AGARAADHI From an Epoch Bygone to a Habitat Redefined
Dedicated to every language, culture & community that has been wiped off the planet, due to what we call ‘MODERNISATION’.
CULTURE! Why is it important?
Is it because we believe that everything was just perfect back in the good ol’ days? I recall my parents, grandparents, pretty much everyone elderly in my family telling me - “whatever our ancestors did, they did it for a reason”. Relatable, eh? If you were brought up in an Indian society just like moi, I’m sure you can. But then, let’s think for a moment. Aren’t we also talking about a past that cherished male chauvinism, caste discrimination, etc.? Now one might say that it’s only wrong when you follow traditions mindlessly. Agreed! But how about leaving our traditions behind mindlessly (just like how we are doing today)? If the former is wrong, isn’t the latter wrong as well?
Well, let’s find out today!
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01
HISTORIC. NOSTALGIC. SERENE. These words pop up in my mind as I speak of MAHABALIPURAM. If you’ve ever been here, you’d notice some of its major attractions like the Pancha Rathas, Shore Temple, Arjuna’s Penance, etc.,
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although their positions are changed in the image above. Why, you ask? The point is just to express the flavour of this beautiful town with all its rock-cut architecture, stone sculptures, tourism, the ocean, etc.
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02 LOCATION & BACKGROUND
In case you don’t know, Mahabalipuram is a coastal town situated 60 km south of Chennai and 100 km north of Pondicherry. To its east lies the Bay of Bengal and on its west the backwaters. Back in the day, it was a major port town for the Pallavas since it was situated right next to the sea. And, the monuments here are considered to be the epitome of Pallava Kingdom’s mastery in the art of rock-cut architecture and stone sculpting. Realising the heritage
and architectural value of these stone marvels, UNESCO came into the picture and had the Group of Monuments named a ‘UNESCO WORLD HERITAGE SITE’. Presumably, this is where a tragedy began for the people here.
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03 CASE OF MAHABALIPURAM
A very common criticism thrown at our Government today is the lack of value shown towards heritage. But in my opinion, the Government of Tamil Nadu has gone an extra mile to showcase the town’s beauty and develop tourism. For starters, the establishment of GOVERNMENT COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE AND SCULPTURE back in the 1950s meant the flourishing of the traditional art form of stone sculpting here once again. This enabled the sculptors to begin their sculpture outlets; most of them inside Mahabalipuram.
What’s obvious with the case of Mahabalipuram is the stone sculpting units and the flourishing tourism here unlike many heritage sites in India. But guess what’s not obvious? The plight of the villages around. Much less, do we even know that there are villages around this heritage town?
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04 SURROUNDING VILLAGES
There are many villages around Mahabalipuram; six of them lie within a 5 km radius. Apart from villages, even some minor settlements comprising of less than ten houses can be observed. All these settlements and villages have been through some level of deterioration without an exception. Curious as I am, I went on a venture to find out more.
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05 OCCUPATIONS OF THE PAST
First thing I noticed was the vast agricultural lands. Speaking to the locals, it became clear that agriculture is and was the primary occupation. Dairy farming is also practised to complement agriculture. As you might have guessed - being in a coastal zone, fishing is also a major occupation. And, there are several other occupations but not as evident as the ones I’ve mentioned.
A lesser-known fact about these villages is the presence of the IRULA TRIBE. Even during my venture, locating this tribe proved to be difficult as their settlements weren’t prominent. They are hunters, snake catchers and honey collectors by tradition. That being their major occupation, a considerable number of them also work as coolies in the fields of landlords during the sowing and harvesting seasons. It is also said that they have their folk medicines that have been passed down for generations.
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06 MUD & THATCH BUILDINGS
One thing that stood out during my journey was the presence of mud buildings. Although much less in number in comparison with concrete structures in that area, their presence was still prominent as we don’t get to see a lot of mud structures in the cities. Mud houses in this region were typically single or double roomed without an attached toilet. There was extensive usage of palm timber and local stones. The walls of these houses were too short and the reason for this wasn’t apparent then.
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MADRAS STYLE BUILDINGS
My curiosity was yet again captured by another building typology - Madras style buildings with central courtyards. Much to my surprise, I didn’t find a single building of this type habited by people. They were all abandoned, broken and taken over by nature. They start with a THINNAI (sitout) at the entrance which is followed by a passage that leads to the central courtyard. All the rooms are arranged around this courtyard. Central courtyards play a huge role in temperature regulation and quality control of the inside air. An interesting material used in these buildings was lime. It was used for mortar, plasters and other finishes.
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08 DEMISE OF LIME CULTURE
If you are thinking whether what’s illustrated above happened for real, it did. Arumugam was one of the many proud lime manufacturers in this region. There existed a well developed social infrastructure among the fisherwomen and the lime manufacturers when the practice was still alive. Unlike many places, the raw material used for lime production is not limestone, but CALCAREOUS SHELLS as there was an abundant supply of them from the sea.
Since lime production was practised mostly as a family business, its knowledge is still present, but the practice dead. Most people who were in the business back then were left jobless and some turned into unauthorised tourist guides. With lime production in decline, even Madras style buildings were pushed into decline as lime was an essential material for such buildings.
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09 PRESENT DAY SCENARIO
Remember when I spoke about deterioration? Dilapidated buildings, uninhabited houses, dead cattle, abandoned agriculture lands; these are some images that are still stuck in my mind. Something is happening to all these villages. But what is it? The reason was just becoming clear.
Ever since tourism-oriented development began happening in Mahabalipuram, the land value in and around the town kept increasing. More and more resorts and private properties started to come in, and this increased the land value even more. These lands were common lands on which the livelihood of these locals was based on. As the land value increased in this region, these common lands were slowly getting into the hands of external parties due to LAND PRIVATISATION.
Q
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ST0RIES FROM THE GROUND
I should admit I was biased in the beginning when I asked them why they started building concrete houses. I assumed that they took this transition from mud to concrete houses as a status symbol. Truth is, they were unable to build those kinds of houses anymore. Materials like mud, stone, palm timber were gathered from their commons. As their commons were privatised, gathering these materials was no more an option. Remember when I said the walls of mud houses were short? That’s because they could only gather so much mud.
Evidently, lots of these villagers were migrating to big cities hoping for a better job and a better life. The dilapidated old buildings I earlier mentioned were a result of this. A survey conducted with 86 families in these villages made it clear that they were migrating because they were losing their indigenous occupations. They were losing their occupations because they were losing their COMMONS.
Q1
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HABITAT DETERIORATION
In a nutshell, this is the level of deterioration that has happened in a matter of 3 decades. Losing their commons also meant losing their vernacular building practices. These buildings were based solely on the materials gathered from the commons. Even the few traditional buildings that are left now are either uninhabited, dilapidated or in very poor conditions.
All this made me think about what could be a solution to push back these negative consequences faced by these villages due to ‘development’. From what I could observe, this is a CHAIN REACTION caused due to the tourismoriented development of Mahabalipuram to increase in land value to land privatisation to losing commons to losing the culture. But what if they don’t lose their lands? What if they could voice out together to retain their commons?
Q2
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PROPOSED INTERVENTION
A People’s Organisation - which will be the first and the foremost function proposed in the institution. This is where unions and discussions are intended to happen with the support of non-native enthusiasts to reclaim and retain their commons. It also acts as the managing body for the whole institute. Other functions proposed in the campus are intended to revive the vernacular practices and reassure the locals that what they’ve been for centuries is right.
Some of the functions of the institution follow the model of teaching in order to LEARN AND EARN; as in the locals are employed to teach their vernacular practices to non-native students. The Building Science Institution, Lime Kiln, Unschool and the Agriculture Unit follow this model. Also, to welcome non-native enthusiasts to contribute to the welfare of the villages and the institution, accommodation in the form of Residences, Dormitories and Guest Houses are provided.
Q3
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SITE FOR INTERVENTION
For the proposed institution to function efficiently, the site for intervention had to be in the vicinity of all these villages, and hence, Mahabalipuram town itself was considered as the best choice. The chosen site is located just 200 m south of the Pancha Rathas which can be accessed through a local road on the east. On the west, it abuts the Buckingham Canal.
Q4
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SITE - PHYSICAL ASPECTS
The chosen site is 24.9 ACRES large, which exhibits a great deal of geographical conditions starting from east to west. The site begins with sandy soil on the eastern end, which gradually turns into clayey soil as we move towards the west. The intermediate composite soil portion is rich in vegetation, which when combined with the riparian vegetation on the western end sums up to roughly 370 trees; mostly neem and palm. Added to that, there’s a 1 acre large monsoon generated pond. Towards the western end, the site contains a 12 acres large portion of agricultural land which seems to be abandoned.
Q5
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SITE PLAN & PHASING
The existing natural features dictated the Site Plan causing minimum environmental disturbance. Most of the trees have been retained, only certain palm trees have been cut to accommodate buildings and pathways. The cut palm trees are used for building construction and more were planted in a 1:3 ratio on the eastern side of the campus. I call this the ‘PALM CYCLE’.
Public functions such as the Food Court, Farmers Market and the Lime Kiln are placed upfront, while the Building Science Institution and the Unschool occupy the core. The rest - Residences and Dormitories come on the back. Out of the 12 acres of abandoned agricultural land within the site, 8 acres have been revived for the food sustenance of the campus. This campus has been envisioned as a GROWING CAMPUS. At a point when the entire programme is not required, it can still stop at Phase 1 and function well.
Q6
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MASTER PLAN WITH ROOF
For an institute that aims to reassure the locals about the efficiency of their vernacular practices, it is of utmost importance to design buildings in their style; we have two here. Madras style buildings are designed wherever there’s more risk of fire, such as the Cafeteria, Food Court, Residences, etc. Mud and thatch buildings are designed wherever buildings need to accommodate easy structural alterations in the future like the Building Science Institution, Unschool, etc.
Q7
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DESIGN STRATEGIES
The campus responds to the social, environmental and cultural context and it comes without a boundary wall as to allow the locals to feel more connected to the institution. Care was given for the campus planning so that the two vernacular architectural styles go well with each other.
The toughest part was to allow the designer in me to adapt to the local architectural styles and produce designs that respond to the context (as I’m formally trained to design ‘fluid forms’), but it had to be done nevertheless. This is why buildings were planned in a rectilinear fashion; which was not only to design simpler roof forms, but also to conform with LOCAL AESTHETICS.
Q8 . 1
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.1
The CENTRAL CAFETERIA was the first building to be designed. It was because I was familiar with Madras style buildings than mud & thatch buildings. As this structure is relatively smaller in scale, it also acted as a design exercise to
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help me understand the materials, spans, aesthetics, etc. This building style is characterised by the use of exposed brick walls, lime plasters, terracotta tile roofing, oxide flooring, etc.
Q8 . 2
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18 CAFETERIA
The building is located between the Building Science Institution, the Unschool and the Residential zone, as it serves the food needs of all these zones. Hence, the cafeteria is divided into 3 DISTINCT PARTS. The southern wing of the Cafeteria seats the students from the Unschool and the Building Science Institution. The northern wing serves the people from the Residential zone. The central portion of the building is dedicated to the kitchen.
Q8 . 3
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18 CAFETERIA
The cafeteria has an overall SEATING CAPACITY OF 160 during its peak hours. The whole building is designed with multiple entrances and exits to make it more porous. Doors and windows have been avoided in most cases since it is a public building. Instead, jalis and colonnades are provided for lighting and ventilation. This reduces the cost as well as the material requirement for the building, making it environmentally and economically friendly.
The structure has been designed as MULTIPLE DETACHABLE VOLUMES. Firstly, this helps in breaking the monotony of the spaces since every space will look and feel differently throughout the building. Another technical advantage of designing so is that, if the needs of the Cafeteria changes, increases or decreases in the future, certain parts of the building can be easily detached or modified without having to alter the whole structure.
Q9 . 1
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The UNSCHOOL is designed taking inspiration from the local mud buildings. It also happens to be the largest mud building in the campus. As mud buildings are more common among the working classes of that region, it was desired to adopt
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this building style for the Unschool to break the ‘kaccha’, ‘pakka’ stereotyping of buildings starting from the school-going children. The pedagogy of this school is largely derived from the Montessori teaching model.
Q9 . 2
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19 UNSCHOOL
The whole idea of this Unschool was not just to formally educate them, but also to pass on the local knowledge to the future generations. EXPOSURE OF VARIOUS VERNACULAR PRACTICES is achieved by positioning the Unschool at the very end of the campus and just before the Agriculture Field. So, it becomes natural for a child to pass through and witness all the other activities that are happening inside the campus before they reach their school.
Q9 . 3
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19 UNSCHOOL
The Unschool building is an example of how the technology used for constructing local mud buildings can be used for constructing buildings with larger spans too. The walls are 45cm thick since unstabilised, uncompressed mud is used. The first floor slab is done by Madras Terrace Roofing method. The building is designed with THREE COURTYARDS for lighting and ventilation due to its large span.
It starts from administrative spaces on the east and ends with Classrooms and Activity Rooms on the west. The Assembly Hall is located at the centre. Classrooms and Activity Rooms do not have any tables and chairs for the students. While one reason for doing that is for better space utilisation by making it flexible to accommodate many activities, another reason is to make the Classroom more DEMOCRATIC by breaking the typical rigid arrangement where all students sit facing the teacher.
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BUILDING SCIENCE INSTITUTION
Coming down to the heart of the campus, we have the BUILDING SCIENCE INSTITUTION. The sole purpose of this institution is to get the local masons to teach their vernacular building practices to non-native students. This not only provides them monetary incentivisation but also reassures them about their traditional ways of construction. It comprises of an Administrative Office, an Exhibition Hall, Lecture Halls, a Construction Yard, storage spaces, etc.
Q9 20 ..23
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BUILDING SCIENCE INSTITUTION
The Building Science Institution is a set of multiple small earthen buildings. The planning of which is done to allow casual visitors to the Exhibition Hall, while the core remains for workshop-training purposes. Towards the western end of this zone, mason closets and store rooms are located, which also accommodates a common toilet at the centre. The design of the toilet derives inspiration from the form of small Kerala temples.
A special design consideration was to design all these buildings to be lower than the trees in the background, to retain and respect the NATURAL SKYLINE. The entire space dedicated to the institution is designed with lots of open spaces and discussion zones to make the space interactive.
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.1
The FOOD COURT is where the tourists and casual visitors will get to taste the local food cuisine. The Food Court building, like the Cafeteria, is a Madras style building characterised by exposed brick walls, central courtyards, Madras Terrace
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Roofing, etc. As it is volumetrically a huge structure, the building is designed with two courtyards and continuous clear-storey windows to provide lighting and ventilation.
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21 FOOD COURT
The building is located in the Public Zone and is surrounded by a Cultural Amphitheatre, the Farmers Market and the People’s Organisation. It is designed to be extremely porous so that the users stay connected with the cultural events that may happen around the building.
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21 FOOD COURT
The planning is done axially - so that we have a central aisle which has seating provisions, and the shops are placed on either side. These shops vary in their mode of functioning. Some shops do not have seating provisions and they only have takeaway counters. These shop fronts are designed to open towards the cultural amphitheatre to respond to the cultural activities around the building.
Seating provisions are given in and around the Food Court that range from closed, semi-open and open areas. The terrace is made accessible through a staircase from the aisle, which not only acts as a dining space but also acts as a VIEWING PLATFORM for the cultural amphitheatre on the eastern side. This way everything stays visually connected and provides a better spatial experience.
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22 RESIDENCES
The Residential zone of the campus comprises of Intern Accommodation, Dormitories & Residences. The RESIDENCES, in particular, are designed for enthusiasts who hail from outside this region to contribute to the welfare of the campus and the settlements around. These enthusiasts are expected to reside inside the campus, with or without their family, for a long term.
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The Residences in the campus follow the architectural style of local Madras buildings as this style was originally developed for residential buildings, but is also adapted to suit the modern needs of people. The biggest uncertainty in
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designing these buildings was the number of people who will stay in one unit; as it is impossible to predict whether these enthusiasts will choose to stay with their families or not.
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22 RESIDENCES
With this challenge in hand, a concept was developed inspired by the ‘HALF A GOOD HOUSE’ CONCEPT of Alejandro Aravena. One Residence building consists of two housing units, wherein one unit can be converted into two smaller units or used as it is to accommodate more people. This conversion of one housing unit to two smaller units can be done with very minimal structural interventions. The other way around is possible too.
Furthermore, the concept of THINNAI from the traditional Madras style houses is also integrated with the design of the Residence buildings. These Thinnais face the playground area dedicated to the Unschool, to enable interactions between these non-native residents and the local children. It also consists of a central courtyard; either side of which the two housing units are located.
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23 LIBRARY
Lastly, the LIBRARY is located on a mound adjacent to the pond on the southern side. It forms a part of the Building Science Institution but is not limited to users from this zone, as it also acts as a public library for the whole region. It has a capacity of roughly 10000 BOOKS which is distributed on two levels.
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23 LIBRARY
The TWO-TIERED BOOK ROOM is connected to reading rooms on both floors. A spiral staircase is provided on both the ends of the library to connect the two floors. The design of the library is highly dictated by the presence of contours which gives it a unique experience among all the other buildings in the campus.
The reading spaces are decentralized into multiple spaces and in multiple types. The Library is designed to support the diversity of various people’s preferred reading environments. There’s a stepped seating under a neem tree and a roof-covered grassy mound, added to other open, semi-open and closed reading spaces; you name it.
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24 USERS & OPPORTUNITIES
You can see a man telling the local children “so you see kids, traditions are important”. And two interns can be seen empathising with the masons now that they’re made to work under the sun. And you can see a lot more drama and conversations happening within the campus because that’s the very basis of forming a united society.
So this brings us to the end of our story. What is an architectural design? Is it merely the volumes we create? I think otherwise. The last illustration is to present this very social fabric that is developed within the campus by the planning of functions with respect to each other. In simpler words, the buildings are planned to develop more human relationships.
Remembe I’m sure yo we got us etc., ultima
‘AGARAAD agaraadhi While the know them habitat, pr ‘AGARAA
AGARAADHI
er when I asked if leaving traditions behind mindlessly is wrong? ou’d have the answer by now. In the name of modernisation, all into climate change, energy crisis, resource exploitation, ately forgetting our language & culture. If only we knew the value of our heritage.
DHI’ - the word means dictionary in Tamizh. The case of Tamizh’s is identical to the case of all these villages we just saw now. ey do hold a lot of value, we don’t consider or much less m anymore. Taking inspiration from what’s lost to restore a retty much what this project was about. Hence, the full title ADHI - From an Epoch Bygone to a Habitat Redefined’.
AGARAADHI
I hereby declare that this undergraduate thesis project titled “AGARAADHI - From an Epoch Bygone to a Habitat Redefined� is the result of my work and prepared by me under the guidance of professors at Rajalakshmi School of Architecture, Chennai. Due acknowledgements have been made wherever anything has been borrowed from other sources. This project obtained me the following recognitions 1. 2. 3.
JK AYA Best Architecture Student of the Year 2018 Runner up in COA-NIASA Undergraduate Thesis Awards 2018 Honorary Mention in AYDA 2019 Indian Nationals
I understand that my thesis project may be made electronically available to the public as of March 2020, but a mention of me would be nice wherever this content is used :)
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
To begin with, this project required tremendous effort and dedication which would not have been possible if I didn’t have the support of many individuals. Therefore I would like to extend my gratitude to all of them. Without the knowledge, experience and optimism of Ar. Madhanraja, Ar. Kalaislevi, Ar. Babjee, Ar. Sundararaman, Ar. Mary Mathew the project would not have been finished with the same level of confidence I had attained during its completion. Ar. Sudhir, my mentor had been an invaluable source of inspiration and zeal for making this project possible in the first place. He had been great in making suggestions and had personally helped me a lot with his constructive criticism that improved the quality of the outcome.
My friends - Ashwin, Jayashree, Vijay, Agnisha, Aswathy, Manipriya, Abarazithan, Harrshad, Bala, Harini, Anisha, Adithya, Vignesh. J and others have been undying supports on all levels throughout the project. They put in priceless effort into my work like it was their own. My family for all their positive words and actions. Rocky, for understanding the value of all the work done by walking carefully around the house without stepping on any of the sheets and models when they were spread all around. Lastly but never the least, the locals of Mahabalipuram and the villages around for having faith in me to share their stories and treating me like I was one among them.
A special thanks to
COSTFORD & Laurie Baker for equipping me with skills and perspectives to pursue my career in the right direction.
I’m an architect based in Chennai, who believes sustainability should be the crux of any design in this age of climate change; and the best course to be sustainable in my opinion, is to take a look back at what we used to do for centuries. I, as an architect, aim to change the perception of vernacular building practices in the future through my practice. I like to share stories, teach, travel and express myself through graphic design. If you think that we should get in touch . . .
+91-9884399230
elancer.kaushik@gmail.com
@the_elancer
INDEX OF ILLUSTRATIONS
1
01
5
05
9
09
Mahabalipuram Scene
Occupations of the Past
Present Day Scenario
2
6
Q
02
06
10
Location & Background
Mud & Thatch Buildings
Stories from the Ground
3
7
Q1
03
07
11
Case of Mahabalipuram
Madras Style Buildings
Habitat Deterioration
4
8
Q2
04
Surrounding Villages
08
Demise of Lime Culture
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Proposed Intervention
Q3
13
Q7
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21
21
Site for Intervention
Design Strategies
Food Court
Q4
Q8
22
14
18
22
Site - Physical Aspects
Cafeteria
Library
Q5
Q9
23
15
19
23
Site Plan & Phasing
Unschool
Residences
Q6
20
24
16
Master Plan with Roof
20
Building Science Institution
24
Users & Opportunities
REFERENCES
•
Climate Responsive Architecture – A Design Handbook for Energy Efficient Buildings by Arvind Krishnan
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Building Types for Basic Housing by Joan goody, Robert Chandler, John Clancy, Geoffrey Wooding
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Cost Reductions for Primary School Buildings - Laurie Baker
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Mud - Laurie Baker
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Rural House Plans - Laurie Baker
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Alleppey - Venice of the East - A Report by Laurie Baker
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Time Saver Standards - Building Types
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AUROVILLE ARCHITECTURE - Towards New Forms for a New Consciousness
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www.cmdachennai.gov.in
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www.kanchi.tn.nic.in
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https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/in-other-news/151117/ mahabalipuram-stone-sculpture-gets-gi- tag.html
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http://ijssei.in/index.php/ijssei/article/view/61
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Mahabalipuram New Town Development Authority
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Mahabalipuram New Town Development Plan
