Inside Insight: Our Founder Joins the Panel at Century Inside Insight, Chandigarh

Ar. Sanjay Agarwal of FRDC shares how community connect, category reinvention and brand DNA shape retail design

On Friday, 11th September 2026, Hotel Hyatt Regency in Chandigarh became a meeting point for some of India's most engaged design minds. At Century Inside Insight, an insiteKONNECT architect meet by Insite magazine, our Founder, Ar. Sanjay Agarwal, joined a distinguished panel to talk about the ideas that drive FRDC's work: connecting with communities, reimagining retail categories and redefining brand DNA through space.

An evening for the design community

insiteKONNECT is the architect-meet platform of insite, a monthly design magazine with a pan-India readership, both online and offline. This edition was organised by Akar InfoMedia Private Limited in partnership with Century Plyboards (India) Limited, one of India's leading plywood manufacturers.

More than 80 architects and interior designers travelled to Chandigarh from across the country, and over 50 designers from the city joined them. The result was a room rich in perspectives, from large-scale practices to boutique studios.

The panel: Inside Insight

The centrepiece of the evening was the panel discussion Inside Insight. It was moderated by Dr. (Ar.) Sangeet Sharma, Partner, SD Sharma & Associates, Chandigarh. Joining Ar. Sanjay Agarwal were:

• Ar. Ali Hyder Shaikh, Senior Associate Architect & Design Leader, Architect Hafeez Contractor, Mumbai

• Ar. Niraj Shah, Co-founder, ido design and ido graph, Ahmedabad

Each speaker opened with a short presentation on their body of work and design philosophy, which set the tone for the conversation that followed.

FRDC's presentation: Designing retail with purpose

Ar. Sanjay Agarwal's presentation showcased FRDC projects built around three ideas: community connect, reimagining the category and redefining brand DNA.

Through a selection of retail projects, he showed how a space can become a meeting point for the community around it, how a familiar retail format can be rethought from the ground up, and how a brand's identity can be expressed through the built environment, not only through its logo and communication.

Conversations beyond the stage

The programme continued over cocktails and dinner, giving delegates time to meet, share experiences and build connections. Events like this remind us how much good design grows from exchange between practitioners.

Thank you

We thank Akar InfoMedia and the team at insite for the invitation and a smoothly run evening, Century Plyboards for their partnership, and everyone who joined us in Chandigarh. We are grateful to Dr. (Ar.) Sangeet Sharma for moderating the discussion, and to Ar. Ali Hyder Shaikh and Ar. Niraj Shah for sharing the stage and their insights.

About FRDC

FRDC is a retail design firm that creates spaces connecting brands with the communities they serve. To discuss a project with us, get in touch through the contact page on our website.