Nano hype helping us draw public attention

Industrialisation is fast changing the face of India, with small rural centres emerging as instant towns and urban hotspots, putting considerable pressures on culture, society and, needless to say, the environment. DNA speaks to Rajeev Kathpalia, director of Vastu-Shilpa, an organisation founded by eminent architect BV Doshi, on the role of intelligent urban design and impact of the organisation's annual international workshop on habitat design in Sanand, in light of the Tata's Nano project.

Why have you chosen to focus the workshop on Sanand?
Today, all over India, there are many areas undergoing the transition from rural to urban, because of industrialisation. Sanand is a good example of an area facing tremendous pressure to accommodate the Nano project. And we are not just talking about the influx of migrant workers, but also the change the current residents will need to adjust to. The municipal corporation has a wonderful plan in place but it is a centralised plan from the top. What we suggest is using a more participatory model involving the residents of the town. In a way, we are using the hype surrounding the Nano project to draw public and political attention to ways of incorporating sustainable practices into urban planning.
 
Do you believe that having international input can draw the attention of the municipal corporation?
It is unfortunate that our society places high value on foreign insights. It seems as if we have lost pride in ourselves, and that we need to have foreign endorsement of our own expertise and culture for us to start seeing value in it. But if this means that it can draw attention to more inclusive and sustainable urban planning, it is something for a good cause. In any case, the international students often come with a fresh perspective and pick up things which we often take for granted.

Besides sustainability, the workshop places high importance on culture and history. Why is this important?
Culture and history originate from the fundamental issues of climate and land. Our celebrations and customs, what we eat and do; and such things make up our culture and they are governed by constraints of climate and land. The questions in urban design are fundamentally the same today as it was hundreds of years ago, and these are questions that were addressed using much wisdom.

Does the answer then lie in going back to an older way of living?
To a certain extent, old wisdoms are highly adoptable even now. But that does not mean living in huts or cramped spaces. The Vastu Shilpa building on Drive-In Road has a contemporary design, but our insulation and lighting techniques have been adopted from what was used in ancient Indian architecture. It's not simply about going back to the old ways -we used to divert waste into the
river, but now we are greater in population and the river is narrower from all the dams that we can't do this anymore.

How have the workshops contributed to the sustainable design movement in India and the world?
When we first began these workshops seven years ago, it was essentially an academic exercise which allows students from abroad to see urban design in a different context; that is within the diversity which is India. Designing for India teaches you to negotiate a myriad of conflicting tensions, of people, culture, income distributions and resources. Many of the students who have participated in the workshops have done theses on their projects in India, and this affects the approach which is taken by their home universities. I believe that India's role in the world is not in providing foreign aid or military power, but in changing mindsets.