Build India Architectural Journalism Competition 2007, India Category : Conservation Merit : 1st Prize, Article | 1st Prize, Presentation Team : Amal Roowala, Gaurav Sardana, Kavan Shah, Snigdha Agrawal (NMIMS BSSA 2012) The Ajanta Conservation and Tourism Development Project by Trilochhan Chhaya "Our own epoch is determining, day by day, its own style. Our eyes, unhappily, are unable yet to discern it." – Le Corbusier. Applicable even today, this quote by the master architect Le Corbusier conveys a clear thought, that designers still haven't acquired the ability to discern a good design when they first see it. Post 1960 the world saw a new era of architectural design emerging, where architecture was no more a personal, philosophical or aesthetic pursuit by individualists; rather it had to consider everyday needs of people and use technology to give a livable environment. Each design was unique and yet they had commonalities, which conveyed the ideology of the architect. Architects like Le Corbusier and B. V. Doshi followed the ideology of simplicity in design and gave architecture a whole new dimension. An understudy to the great B V Doshi, Architect Trilochan Chhaya, follows a very similar ideology of the measurables (i.e. the climate, economics, site etc.) being of prime importance for a design. He believes in the concept of minimalism and that the structure should exemplify the same. Like Antoine de Saint-Exupery, a novelist and architect said, "A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away." This concept of minimalism extends beyond the realms of just the exterior, and takes into account the built form as well. Addressing concerns like why and how to solve a "problem" led to understanding the purpose of the built form. This in turn results in spaces that are a symbolic expression of the various factors associated with the project. According to the architect, there are various types of projects ranging from extremely small ones to large multi-crore projects, but each has to been looked at in a different way keeping in mind the various limitations and needs of the users and other factors. He believes that small projects like a house are very personal vis-a-vis large institutional buildings which serve the society and cater to a host of varied needs. The current project talks about conservation in a different light and seeks to keep the user in mind all the time. Declared as a World Heritage site, the Ajanta caves house some of the oldest and varied collection of Buddhist paintings and sculptures in the world. It is one of the few places in the world where the roots of Buddhism and the Buddhist philosophy are found, which are explained in vivid detail through a series of paintings. A National Geographic survey listed the Ajanta caves as the most sustainable heritage site in India, but they also stated the lack of interpretation centers like most of the other World Heritage sites today. The government realized the importance of preserving these timeless relics and set up a project which involved conserving the caves and designing a facilitation center which would not only house the paintings but would also assist in reviving an interest about Buddhism through the various imageries. Another strong reason for the development of this project was that the paintings in the caves could be illuminated with regular lighting, as the natural dyes, that were used to make them would be damaged and thus affecting their longevity. By proposing to create exact replicas of the four caves with the most number of paintings, i.e. caves number 1, 2, 16, and 17, the management hoped to reduce the damage caused to the paintings. The caves are nestled in a horseshoe shaped ridge in a panoramic gorge. Looking at the concept of space being a complex arrangement of numbers relating to the dimensions, costing, etc., which permutated in a series of ways to design the form and to address it, an architectural intervention was developed with the concept of a 'spiral'. The architect has tried to convey the 'story' of this never-ending legacy of paintings through the spiral, which symbolizes progression of time and a continuous process of evolution in Buddhism over centuries. The objective of the project was to add to the splendor of the
caves and the center offers a space to the rich cultural site to convey the same 'story' through the paintings and the murals in the caves. The architect emphasizes that the simplicity is the strongpoint of the building. The form is a natural one and it is like the veins of the body, which make the structure and give it stability and form. The design of the Center is a simple outcome of geometry with no acrobatics involved, which all the projects of the architect seem to achieve Since the project aims to preserve the rich culture and heritage of the caves and yet make it available to the visitors, it classified as a conservation project. A facilitation center equipped with a vast number of multimedia guides and exact replicas of the four main caves at Ajanta was designed. Advanced technology is being used in the interiors to portray the paintings. The use of local materials like stone for the exterior blends in a perfectly with the surrounding landscape and does not overpower the caves. Similarly within the 'Spiral', the center is equipped with the latest technology which informs the visitor sufficiently helps them garner a totally new experience. Thus the contrast between the original caves and the center in the form of technological differences is not so prominent because the physical experience of the visitor in form of exhibits , seminars and interactive sessions is pretty strong.