An Urban Transept
Role - Research, Graphics and Design
Year - 2018
Samudaya (suh-moo-daa-ya)
the background
Over the 4 years of my undergraduate studies, I developed a keen interest in the historic nature of cities and wished to probe into the heritage of Bangalore and the layers of time that influenced the city for my final thesis project.
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With this understanding, I approached my thesis by trying to understand the harmonious mix of culture and commerce in our central business district - home to both the fast-fading heritage of our city, as well as the sky-rocketing value of land.
As, I searched for buildings in Bangalore that were losing their importance to urban gentrification, I came across a building named 'Lady Jehangir Kothari Hall. Intrigued, I went inside to find that it served as a community hall for a fringe community in Bangalore, known as Parsis. Though I had heard of the name, I lacked substantial knowledge about the community and decided to take it upon myself to do some research about the community, and their importance to Bangalore.
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Upon further research, I found that the single Fire Temple, or Agiary, where the entire Parsi Community of Bangalore congregate to pray, was across the street. Speaking to a few members of the community, I found that this community in Bangalore was small and depleting, with hardly 700 members left in the city. Out of this shrinking numbers, over 80% of them were above the age of 70.
A majority of the structures in the neighborhood around the Hall once belonged to the Parsi community in the 1990s, however much of the area has undergone urban gentrification and presently consists mainly of multi-storey flats and commercial spaces, due to it's presence within the CBD.
Lady Jehangir Kothari Hall, Balekundri Circle, Est .1932
Parsi Fire Temple, Balekundri Circle, Est.1926
the context
The plot surrounding the Hall, and the Temple were owned by the Parsi Association of Bangalore. Hence, due to the presence of these important structures and strong context, it felt fitting to create a space to help the community in this area, where one could see the impact of the culture on the city.
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The site was split into two by Venkataswamy Naidu Road, a busy street that is often choked with traffic. - the northern parcel of land contained the Hall and the Dharamshala (guest rooms) , and the southern parcel, the Temple.
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Several buildings in the area, as shown below, show many indications of the Parsi style of ornamentation, and I felt that this would provide further value to this site selection.
Selected site along with area once predominately occupied by Parsi Community
the intent
Structures in the area with Parsi ornamentation
Delving into the needs of the community, I found that the things that would benefit the community would be spaces to be used for community gatherings and community building exercises, spaces for the public to interpret their culture, and spaces for civic benefit due to the location of the space, to generate revenue.
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This way the function of the structure would be three kinds - cultural spaces, interpretation spaces, and civic spaces.
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Samudaya, meaning 'altogether' and 'community' in Sanskrit and Kannada, reflected the feeling that I would want to create within the space designed. A sense of belonging for each community, in this palimpsest city, where a huge number of cultures converge.
satellite image of Balekundri circle, and site selected
site context, indicating building height, use, and traffic movement in the area
cultural space
civic space
design development
the design
Community Space -
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Catering to the Parsi community, this would consist primarily of a community hall for gatherings, an office space for the Parsi Association of Bangalore, accommodation in place of the existing Dharamshala, and space for the 'Jiyo Parsi' scheme introduced by the government for the betterment of the community.
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Interpretation Space -
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This space would be visited both by the community members, as well as visitors to gain knowledge about Parsi customs and culture. It would include an art gallery to display traditional art forms, a crafts workshop space to help pass on traditional art forms (like gara, toran making, and kusti weaving), and a Kosher restaurant to help introduce the Parsi style of food to the public.
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Civic Space -
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These spaces, including the auditorium, vocational training center, and library would be used by the general public for the betterment of the neighborhood and society. Due to the prime location of the structure, the revenue generated from this space could be used for the maintenance of the heritage structures and the betterment of the community.
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axes of narration
the programme
entry level plan
the product
The idea was to create a narrative where a visitor would be taken through the history of Parsis in India.
A visitor was to enter the centre from Lady Jehangir Kothari Hall, which would act as a gallery for traditional Parsi art. From there one could move downstairs, making use of the depressed land form, to the tunnel under Venkataswamy Naidu road, connecting the two parcels of land.
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This tunnel, would serve as a 'Walk through History', showcasing the development of the Parsi community in India, from their arrival in the 10th century, to their strong prominence now in India's economy.
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The exit of the tunnel would be an open pavilion, with free-standing columns that are designed to create a feeling of ruins - giving significance to the building ruins left from in Persia of the Zoroastrians - with the temple as a background as a symbol of hope.
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The end of the corridor from the Temple is the civic use spaces, which are the furthest from the heritage buildings as this is to be of use to everyone in the society, and not to disturb the cultural community activities. The street corner is also utilised to create an open plaza that could be used for recreational events in the neighborhood.
southern parcel elevation (with Hall)
northern parcel elevation (with Temple)
basement level plan
first floor plan
second floor plan
southern parcel
northern parcel
The overall courtyard layout and architectural character for the project was developed from the traditional Parsi Residential structures called 'baugs', which exist to date in a few places like Bhuj, India, and Persia (now Iran).
The Baugs had a distinct character, with trabeated beams, sloped roofs, and tall slender columns - all of which can be seen in the project in a more modern contemporary way.
section through northern parcel
tunnel section
street-view of northern parcel
exit of tunnel into open pavilion with the temple in the background
street-view of southern parcel
street-view of southern parcel
street-view of southern parcel
© May 2023 by Sagarika Konanuru.