For twenty-five years we've worked with architects, developers, hospitality groups, and private patrons across India and beyond. Working with international clients is a meaningful share of what we do, and the rhythm of cross-border work is familiar territory.
FOR STUDIOS OUTSIDE INDIA
One Mumbai Studio. Twenty-five plus years of practice.
Clients across six continents.
Australian platform partner
256 GRAYS is a listed CGI partner on Enviz, the Sydney-headquartered spatial visualisation platform used by Australian builders and developers. We supply the photorealistic interior and exterior renders that feed into Enviz spaces.
Read more about the collaboration
Why studios choose us from abroad
Studios outside India work with us because the practical fundamentals line up: working-hour overlap with their day, an English-native workflow, LLP-level accountability, and twenty-five years of visualisation as the only specialism.
A few practical reasons studios outside India choose to work with us:
- Timezone overlap that works in your favour. Our working day in Mumbai overlaps cleanly with European mornings, Middle Eastern afternoons, and US East Coast evenings, meaning fast turnaround when you need it.
- English-native workflow. All client communication, documentation, and project files in English. No translation friction.
- Archviz as a 25-year specialism. Not a side service from a generalist studio. Visualisation is the practice.
- LLP accountability. 256 GRAYS STUDIO LLP is a registered limited liability partnership in India. Annual audits, formal contracts, IP protection, GST-exempt invoicing for export of services.
How we work together
Working together across borders is a planned, predictable process, not a hand-off. Every project moves through named stages with a built-in revision round at each milestone, handled as a two-way conversation rather than a one-way handover, and the principal is accountable end-to-end.
Our process for international engagements has been refined over many years.
- Brief. You share project scope, references, and timeline expectations, via email, our contact form, or an introductory call.
- Quote. We respond with a written proposal: scope of deliverables, milestone schedule, pricing structure, payment terms.
- Engagement. On agreement, we issue an invoice for the first milestone and begin work. NDA available on request.
- Review cycles. Built-in revision rounds at each milestone, handled as a two-way conversation, not a one-way handover. We share work-in-progress for review, incorporate feedback, advance to the next stage.
- Delivery. Final assets delivered in your specified formats. Source files retained for 12 months for future revisions.
Communication and timezones
Yes, our working hours overlap your working day. Production runs Mon-Fri 10:00-19:00 IST and the principal is reachable Mon-Fri 12:00-22:00 IST for calls, giving you full overlap with Melbourne afternoons, London mornings, and US evenings.
We work asynchronously across timezones. Most international clients prefer email as the primary channel, with scheduled video calls for milestone reviews. We keep two distinct sets of hours, and it helps to be clear about both.
Studio working hours, production team
Monday to Friday, 10:00 to 19:00 IST. These are the hours when the production team is at the desk and responding to async feedback. Timezone overlap with:
- Melbourne / Sydney: 14:30 to 23:30 AEST (mid-afternoon to late evening)
- Auckland: 16:30 to 01:30 NZST (late afternoon, overlap until overnight)
- London: 05:30 to 14:30 BST (early morning to early afternoon)
- New York: 00:30 to 09:30 EDT (overnight to morning)
Client conversations and scheduled calls
Monday to Friday, 12:00 to 22:00 IST. These are the hours when the principal is available for synchronous calls and structured project discussions. Timezone overlap with:
- Melbourne / Sydney: 16:30 to 02:30 AEST (working afternoon to overnight)
- Auckland: 18:30 to 04:30 NZST (early evening to overnight)
- London: 07:30 to 17:30 BST (morning to late afternoon)
- New York: 02:30 to 12:30 EDT (overnight to midday)
The combined effect: production overlap covers the AU/NZ working day for feedback rounds; scheduled-call overlap covers the AU/NZ working day for principal conversations and reaches into EU mornings and US overnights. Both honest, both buyer-relevant, no contradiction.
Payment and contracts
We invoice in USD by default, with INR, EUR, GBP, or AUD on request. Payment runs on a 50/25/25 milestone split, so you only release money against work you have already reviewed and accepted.
- Invoicing: INR, EUR, GBP, AUD on request. Default USD.
- Payment: Wire transfer to LLP account in India. Bank details provided on invoice.
- GST: Export of services from India is zero-rated. No GST on invoices to clients outside India.
- Milestones: Payment is structured against project milestones (typically 50% on engagement, 25% mid-project, 25% on final delivery). Each milestone has a defined scope and deliverable, so cost and progress stay aligned. Scope changes are quoted before work begins on the next milestone, never absorbed silently. Adjustable to your standard terms.
Accountability and IP
Your work is your work. We do not republish, repurpose, or showcase any project without explicit written permission, including for our own portfolio. NDAs are standard and IP transfers on final payment.
256 GRAYS STUDIO LLP is a registered limited liability partnership operating in Mumbai since 1999. Each project has a named lead from our side, your single point of contact through the engagement, accountable for timeline, quality, and communication.
We do not republish, repurpose, or showcase work without explicit written permission, including for our own portfolio. NDA is standard on first engagement. IP, copyright, and material ownership transfer to the architect or developer at final delivery, with terms detailed in the engagement letter.
If a deadline is at risk, you'll hear from us before the deadline, not after.
Questions
Questions architects ask
How do I evaluate a 3D visualisation studio I have not worked with before?
Look at three things: the portfolio under real project conditions, who is accountable for the work, and how revisions are handled. A portfolio shows you what the studio can deliver at its best; named principal accountability tells you who you can call when something needs adjusting; the revision process shows you whether the working relationship is a two-way conversation or a one-way handover. At 256 GRAYS, every project is principal-led by Hasnain Sikandar, every milestone has a built-in revision round, and the full body of work is open to walk through on an introductory call.
Which CAD and BIM file formats can you work from?
We work from the file formats most architectural practices already use: Revit (RVT and IFC export), ArchiCAD (PLN and IFC), SketchUp (SKP), AutoCAD (DWG), Rhino (3DM), and 3ds Max (MAX) for handover. We also accept reference PDFs, sketches, photographic references, and mood boards as the starting point if CAD is not yet available. Tell us what you have, and the first thing we do on a project is confirm the file pipeline so there are no surprises mid-way.
How long does a typical project take from brief to final deliverable?
A residential interior render typically takes seven to ten working days from approved brief to final delivery, with intermediate views shown at the milestone points. A larger exterior or master-plan visualisation usually takes two to four weeks. Tighter turnarounds are possible when the scope and the source CAD are clean, longer scopes happen when the project is being designed at the same time as it is being visualised. We confirm the timeline in writing before the project starts, and the 50/25/25 milestone structure protects both sides if scope shifts mid-way.
Can I speak directly with the principal architect, not just a project manager?
Yes. Every international project is principal-led by Hasnain Sikandar, who runs the studio. The first conversation is a 30-minute introductory call with Hasnain directly, and the principal remains accountable through the full project. We do not route international clients through layers of account management or hand the work off to junior staff once the brief is signed. The team supports the principal, the principal does not delegate the relationship.
Do you sign NDAs, and what does your standard NDA cover?
Yes, NDAs are standard. Our default NDA covers confidentiality of project information, designs, drawings, and any commercial details shared during the engagement. It applies before, during, and after the project. We also commit, in writing as part of the engagement terms, not to republish, repurpose, or showcase any project, including in our own portfolio, without explicit written permission from you. If your firm prefers to use its own NDA template, we will review and sign it. IP transfers on final payment, as standard.
Can you work from reference imagery, or do you need full CAD?
Both are possible. If you have full CAD, we work directly from it and turnaround is faster. If you have only sketches, photographs, mood boards, or partial drawings, we can model from those, though it adds a modelling stage at the start of the project. For restyling existing renders or producing variations on a built scheme, photo references plus rough scale information are often enough. The first call covers the source material so we can scope accurately.
What software do you use, and does it matter for me?
We work primarily in 3ds Max with Corona Renderer for the production pipeline, with SketchUp, Rhino, and Revit feeding the modelling stage and Photoshop for the final post-production pass. From your side, none of this changes anything: you send us whatever file format you already have, and we handle the translation. You receive final renders as high-resolution JPEG or TIFF, with optional separated passes if you want to do your own grading.
Do you have Australian, UK, or US client references on request?
Yes. We have worked with practices across Australia, the UK, and the US, alongside clients in India and other regions, on a mix of residential, commercial, hospitality, and master-planning work. Specific named references are available on request after an introductory call, subject to the relevant client's confidentiality preferences. Several practices have agreed to direct reference conversations for prospective clients in the same market.