THE MODERN INDIAN VERNACULAR IN DELHI
A search for an authentic design language for the new urbanity
Let me describe the modern Delhi cityscape to you: a historical monument (probably from the 11th century Sultanate period) standing tall as the mascot of the crumbling heritage, the new mall next to it- a gleaming glass and steel structure with its façade a display of all the International brands it houses, the concrete structure which was built as a community market but now looks like that aunt who couldn’t age gracefully, her hair wisps of white or grey, and the tree lined boulevard of houses that are a mix of a number of styles- the colonial verandah, the baroque railings, the modern glass box and the decorative non-functional pitched roof, each house extremely different from the one next to it. The new entrant in the cityscape is the plush infrastructure for public transit: air-conditioned buses and metros, ferrying people past the hawker-lined bumpy roads.
The great disconnect between the rich and the poor in India has always been a fundamental issue in terms of infrastructure and while talking about the modern Indian architecture, the disparity becomes even more apparent, for the rich Indian, who only gets even richer, the buildings he gets made should be ‘world-class’ and of international standards; he makes his demands so clear that it is almost inevitable that the building in Dubai that he liked so much is almost as it is juxtaposed in the Indian scenario. According to Charles Jencks in his introduction to the Language of Post Modernist Architecture, “Post modernist style is hybrid, doubly coded, based on fundamental dualities. Sometimes it stems from juxtaposition of new and old and sometimes based on the amusing aversion of the old.”(Jencks, 1977)
PUNJABI BAROQUE AND THE LIKES
The last three decades in India have seen architectural development of a unique kind, and the only category that it all can seem to fit into is ‘Amusing’, although Jon Lang gives it a formal name of the Modern Indian Vernacular. The Modern Indian Vernacular has been described to be architecture of display, a ‘mish-mash’ of styles, with influences from everything ranging from Antiquity to Islamic Architecture. As Gautam Bhatia states in his book, Punjabi Baroque, “India is a setting for daily satire and parody and contradiction is the inherent quality of India’s urban life.” (Bhatia, 1994)
Gautam Bhatia states that the deceptiveness of Modern Indian Vernacular stems from the complexity in our traditions- contradiction, paradox, confusion are all a part of the modern Indian design language. There is a constant search for cultural authenticity, despite India having a plethora of cultures to take inspiration from. Probably it has something to do with the fact that traditionally, Indian culture has always been accommodating of cultural interventions. Accommodation is a principle embedded deep in the Indian mindset and cultural hybridity is prelevant in the modern Indian Indian context. Culture is what Urban India is clinging on to while everything around is becoming modern and hence universal.
All this is reflected in the new styles of residential architecture that have emerged since the 1980s. Gautam Bhatia names them: Punjabi Baroque, Bania Gothic, Early Halwai, Marwari Mannerism, Sindhi Hacienda (Bhatia, 1994). He witfully acclaims them to be a product of the New Indian Middle Class dream. Much of this kind of architecture looks displaced and pays least attention to the climate, vegetation, location and human behaviour and only fulfils the market and political aspirations. As Gautam Bhatia puts it, for the neo-Independent generation it was essential to break away from the architecture of the ‘colonial bungalow’ and “replace it with something new, something that symbolized the spirit of freedom.” The new Indian was “in the mood for some happy experimentation.” This resulted in architecture that disassociated itself with ‘archaic notions like comfort, practicality’ and were mere copies of a plethora of European villas and palaces as seen in design journals. In Bhatia’s exact words,
“ Renaissance windows, Baroque embellishments, Tudor gables began to appear on facades. Inside, a decorative staircase copied from a Hollywood film invariably sat alongside another for the actual climbing; a Gothic window was put in for a view of the milk booth on the road. Mouldings and decorative elements from Germany, Greece and Italy were added in a friendly composition pleasing to the eye, especially when closed. At last, Indian architecture was free of domination from any single foreign power!” (Bhatia, 2007)
This phenomena can be termed as ‘socio-architectural dilemma’. This kind of architecture manifested itself as a medium for the Nouveau Rich Indian to declare his ‘standing in the society’. Much of the elements of these houses were drawn from the inhabitants’connections to their past.
“Somebody remembered a balcony from their house in Punjab, a jharoka from Rajasthan, and these were kind of given to the architect as features to be placed in the house in some form or the other.” (Bhatia, 2012)
As architects we are trained to ridicule this kind of ‘sense-less’ and ‘un-thoughtful’ architecture, such as the Modern Indian Vernacular, and follow principles of neo-modernist contextual design. But it is also true architects tend to philosophize their own work in order to justify what they do, and buildings like the Punjabi Baroque and Bania Gothic come without a justification. They are products of a popular culture, a culture where wealth is displayed in the form of marble claddings, marble floors, marble statues….
But that was the 20th century. The turn of the century has seen Punjabi Baroque slowly erode and move to the smaller towns like Moradabad and Kanpur. A new phenomenon of ‘adapting’ modern minimalistic styles is seen in the same posh localities of South Delhi. The owners of these houses, now looking to reinvent, turn to modern designs from Singapore and Hong Kong for inspiration. Plain white four storey buildings with glass balconies and wood cladding is the new ‘cool’. “What to call this new style? India Shining Minimalism? South Delhi Scandinavian? Punjabi Modern?” (Lahiri, 2012)
The nature of materials may have changed, with the advent of new technologies and the huge construction market in India with international firms stepping into the realm, but the crux of the building remains the same: embellishments, and how the house appears on the outside. Climate and context still remain lesser concerns.
BLOCKBUSTER ARCHITECTURE
A similar parallel can be drawn in Bollywood movies. The popular ones, mostly the ones in the 100 cr club, have a top notch cast, the swankiest locations, the funkiest songs but the most clichéd and thought- less plots. What makes these movies work is the fact that they are wholesome entertainment, they do not compel the viewer to exercise his brains and in turn prove to be his money’s worth. But these movies define popular culture in the broadest sense. They represent that part of Bollywood without which the entire movie-going experience would be dull and drab. The so called ‘critics’ term these movies as ‘time pass’, and ask you to ‘leave your brains at home’ when you go to watch them.
The Punjabi Baroque is much like the Bollywood block buster movie- you may criticise it as an intellectual, but you will enjoy it all the same. There is no denying that a lot of the Modern Indian Vernacular Architecture doesn’t speak of ‘intelligent’ architectural practice, but it is that component of the cityscape that lends it that connection to the demands and tastes of the non architects. It is popular culture and perhaps should be accepted as the ‘accidental’ dual coding of post modern Indian architecture.
The Modern Indian Vernacular may not be intellectual, in fact architects may find it extremely ugly and un-tasteful, but it is that aspect of architecture which converts popular philosophy into practical design. It is the design of plurality and hybridity and sums up much of the Modern Indian lifestyle- one of a constant search of balance between the past and the future.
REFERENCES
BOOKS
- Bhatia, G. (1994).Punjabi Baroque. 1st ed. New Delhi: Penguin Books.
- Jencks, CJ (1991).The Language of Post Modern Architecture. 5th ed. New York: Rizzoli
- Lang, JL (2002)A Concise History Of Modern Architecture In India. 1st ed. New Delhi: Permanent Black.
JOURNALS
- Bhatia, G (2007), The Modernitis Plague, Architecture in India is a play of forms and a disturbing one at that. Outlook India. [Online]. August 20, 2007. Available from : http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?235368 [ Accessed 20th May, 2014]
- Lahiri, T (2012), Delhi Journal : The end of Punjabi Baroque. The Wall Street Journal India [Online]. June 8, 2012. Available from : http://blogs.wsj.com/indiarealtime/2012/06/08/delhi-journal-the-end-of-punjabi-baroque/ [Accessed 20th May, 2014]
