The Architecture of Shivdatt Sharma by Mapin Publishing

PRAKĀSH

MODERNISM IN INDIA SERIES

The Architecture of MODERNISM IN INDIA SERIES

The Architecture of

‘‘S.D. Sharma is carrying forward the torch of architecture from the earliest works of Corbusier in Chandigarh to our times. His contribution to the contemporary Indian architecture is remarkable.’’ Raj Rewal Eminent Architect and Author OTHER TITLES OF INTEREST

‘‘A true student of Le Corbusier, Shivdatt Sharma humbly carried forward his mentor’s legacy, weaving it into the fabric of Chandigarh, revealing his own true genius.’’

Auroville Architects Monograph Series Poppo Pingel by Mona Doctor- Pingel Le Corbusier: Chandigarh and the Modern City Edited by Hasan-Uddin Khan

Shivdatt Sharma Vikramāditya Prakāsh

Shivdatt Sharma (b. 1931) is one of the most prolific Indian modernist architects. Starting out as an architect in the Chandigarh Capital Project Team led by Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret, Sharma subsequently became Chief Architect of the Indian Space Research Organization. He then went into private practice. Sharma’s architecture is a distinct blend of the core principles of Modernism, interpreted through the lens of contemporary Indian realities. Modernism was adopted as both symbol and instrument of nation-building in Nehruvian India. Working alongside designers and artists, architects went to work building innumerable small townships, universities, public institutions, housing estates and infrastructural projects across the country. Progressive businesses also patronized Modernism as full participants in the project of nation-building. The Modernism in India Series documents the extensive heritage of Modernism and modern architecture in India. Bringing to light the work of a forgotten generation, this series documents work that is currently under threat by the forces of globalization. This well-illustrated book documents Sharma’s work from the early days, when it was a part of the experimental and innovative ethos of Chandigarh, to the present. He has designed for a range of public and private clients across the world. Along with a portfolio of selected works, this book includes critical essays, interviews and a chronology of projects.

Foreword by Balkrishna V. Doshi

With 97 colour and 90 b&w photographs, and 100 b&w drawings.

Christopher Benninger Eminent Architect and Author

Mosques of Cochin by Patricia Tusa Fels

‘‘A narrative of sensitive, rational and innovative architecture in quest of Modernism, spreading Chandigarh gospel.’’ M.N. Sharma First Indian Chief Architect of Chandigarh, worked with Le Corbusier

FRONT COVER The front profile of Vikram Sarabhai Hall, Ahmedabad

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Printed in India

www.mapinpublishing.com

MODERNISM IN INDIA SERIES

Dr Prakāsh received his B.Arch. from the Chandigarh College of Architecture, India and his M.A. and Ph.D. from Cornell University, USA. After teaching at CEPT University, Ahmedabad, and Arizona State University, Tempe, he joined University of Washington, Seattle in 1996 where is he is currently Professor of Architecture, with additional adjunct appointments in the Departments of Landscape Architecture and Urban Design and Planning. He has served as Associate Dean of the College and Chair of the Department of Architecture. He is also partner in Verge Architecture and Design based out of Seattle, USA, and Chandigarh, India.

Mapin Publishing

The TheArchitecture Architectureof ofShivdatt Shivdatt Sharma Sharma

Shivdatt Sharma

BACK COVER Administrative building of National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education And Research, Mohali

MODERNISM IN INDIA SERIES

The Architecture of

Shivdatt Sharma Shivdatt Sharma (b. 1931) is one of the most prolific Indian modernist architects. Starting out as an architect in the Chandigarh Capital Project Team led by Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret, Sharma subsequently became Chief Architect of the Indian Space Research Organization. He then went into private practice. Sharmaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s architecture is a distinct blend of the core principles of Modernism, interpreted through the lens of contemporary Indian realities. Modernism was adopted as both symbol and instrument of nation-building in Nehruvian India. Working alongside designers and artists, architects went to work building innumerable small townships, universities, public institutions, housing estates and infrastructural projects across the country. Progressive businesses also patronized Modernism as full participants in the project of nation-building. The Modernism in India Series documents the extensive heritage of Modernism and modern architecture in India. Bringing to light the work of a forgotten generation, this series documents work that is currently under threat by the forces of globalization. This well-illustrated book documents Sharmaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s work from the early days, when it was a part of the experimental and innovative ethos of Chandigarh, to the present. He has designed for a range of public and private clients across the world. Along with a portfolio of selected works, this book includes critical essays, interviews and a chronology of projects.

With 97 colour and 90 b&w photographs, and 100 b&w drawings.

FRONT COVER The front profile of Vikram Sarabhai Hall, Ahmedabad BACK COVER Administrative building of National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education And Research, Mohali

The Architecture of

Shivdatt Sharma

MODERNISM IN INDIA SERIES

The Architecture of

Shivdatt Sharma Vikramāditya Prakāsh Foreword by Balkrishna V. Doshi

Mapin Publishing

First published in India in 2012 by Mapin Publishing Pvt. Ltd The publication of this book has been made possible with the generous grant of A3 Foundation, Chandigarh. Simultaneously published in the United States of America in 2012 by Grantha Corporation E: mapin@mapinpub.com Distributors North America: Antique Collectors’ Club T: 1 800 252 5231 • F: 413 529 0862 E: info@antiquecc.com www.antiquecollectorsclub.com United Kingdom and Europe: Gazelle Book Services Ltd. T: 44 1524-68765 • F: 44 1524-63232 E: sales@gazellebooks.co.uk www.gazellebookservices.co.uk

Text © Vikramāditya Prakāsh Photographs © SD Sharma & Associates except those listed below: Courtesy Suresh Sharma, Studio Indiana, Chandigarh: pp. 23, 28, 29, 33, 35, 36 All rights reserved under international copyright conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording or any other information storage and retrieval system, without prior permission in writing from the publisher. ISBN: 978-81-89995-67-6 (Mapin) ISBN: 978-1-935677-22-2 (Grantha) LCCN: 2012944396 Copyediting: Neha Manke/Mapin Editorial Design: Deeksha Kumar/Mapin Design Studio Production: Gopal Limbad/Mapin Design Studio Printed in India by Aegean Offset Printers

Southeast Asia: Paragon Asia Co. Ltd T: 66 2877 7755 • F: 66 2468 9636 E: info@paragonasia.com Rest of the World: Mapin Publishing Pvt. Ltd 706 Kaivanna Panchvati, Ellisbridge Ahmedabad 380006 INDIA T: +91 79 40 228228 | F: +91 79 40 228201 E: mapin@mapinpub.com www.mapinpub.com

Frontispiece: The play of light and shadows at DLF, Shopping Plaza, Gurgaon (See page 148)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I would like, first and foremost, to thank Ar. Shivdatt Sharma for not only entrusting me with this manuscript but also for his lifelong counsel and support. I hope this book does his life and work some justice. This book would not have been possible without the persistent support of Sangeet Sharma, and many members of SD Sharma and Associates. Amrita Kaur Sidhu deserves special mention for her dedication to this cause. Thanks are also due to Riti Verma whose contribution has been extremely vital in developing the entire profile of the book along with the appreciable support of architects Shubra Pandey and Ranbir, as also interns Sparkle and Garima from Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar, and Avanti from Anna University, Chennai. Thanks are also due to Dr S.S. Bhatti, who suggested the idea of a monograph of Mr Sharma in the first place. This is also the place to recognise members of Ar. Sharma’s family, particularly Mrs Geeta Sharma who has steadfastly stood by and supported him in all his work and life. She has long awaited this book. Atul and Shivani have a spiritual and emotional connection with Ar. Sharma, and have always been ready to help him, even at the cost of their personal convenience. Thanks are also due to Purnima and grandchildren Sharang, Arushi and Shivansh for their loving support. Significant thanks are due to the A3 Foundation–A Foundation for Research and Promotion of Sustainable Architecture (www.A3Foundation.com) that provided the primary funding for this publication. In Ahmedabad, thanks are due to Bipin Shah and Sheena Menon of Mapin Publishing, who steered this book through to print. Finally, my profound thanks are due to Mr M.N. Sharma, Ms Sumit Kaur and the late Mr Aditya Prakash for their general help and counsel, and for their service to the cause of Chandigarh.

Vikramāditya Prakāsh

Chandigarh and Seattle November 2011

Acknowledgements

CONTENTS

Foreword Balkrishna V. Doshi

The Crucible of Modernism in India

Conversation with Shivdatt Sharma

Lasting Lessons From Legends – A Testament Shivdatt Sharma

1 DEPARTMENT OF ARCHITECTURE, CHANDIGARH

1963–73

The Architecture of Shivdatt Sharma

Art College Hostel

Central Scientific Instruments Organisation

•

Laboratory building

•

Cafeteria and Guest House

•

Housing Type 1

•

Housing Type 2/3/4

•

Faculty Guest House

Club House for Golf Course

State Guest House

Gurudwara, Sector 19

Technical Teachers’ Training Insititute

Museum of Science

Som Dutt’s Residence

LIG Housing

2 DEPARTMENT OF SPACE 67

Vikram Sarabhai Hall

Ammonium Perchlorate Experimental Plant 76 Control Facility

Pressure Transducers Unit

VSSC Central School

Pracheen Kala Kendra

Carmel Convent School

Tribune Model School

3 PRIVATE PRACTISE

Advanced Eye Centre, PGIMER

101

Advanced Pedriatic Centre, PGIMER

107

New OPD Block, PGIMER

115

National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research

120

Convention Centre, SGPGIMS

125

Cricket Stadium

135

Navjeevan Church

137

Bamboo Museum

143

DLF Shopping Plaza

148

Institute of Microbial Technology

153

Amod Guptaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Residence

160

Chronology of Selected Works

166

Biography

173 Architecture of Shivdatt Sharma

FOREWORD

It was in 1975 that Shivdatt Sharma visited me at my studio. He was keen that I visit his newly designed Vikram Sarabhai Centre at the Space Application Centre (SAC) of ISRO in Ahmedabad. He mentioned that a few years ago he had left his position as architect in the Chief Architects’ Office, Chandigarh, even though he had been working with Pierre Jeanneret and Mons. Le Corbusier. While driving through the campus, he said, “I accepted the challenging position of chief architect in Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Department of Space, in Bangalore to discover my identity.” Knowing some of the earlier works of ISRO, I was unsure of how Shivdatt would have managed to create architecture of his choice especially after leaving Jeanneret. Modest, softspoken, he silently drove me through various existing buildings in the ISRO campus. What a surprise it was, the Vikram Sarabhai complex designed by Shivdatt! It stood gracefully and without imposition among several buildings designed by others. The impact was immediate. It was a very different work from what I had seen in the buildings in Chandigarh. In the Vikram Sarabhai complex, Shivdatt had attempted to articulate a distinctive overall form that also managed to relate the open spaces with the surrounding. The spaces related both to the existing conditions and yet became an integral part of the hall—an exercise normally not seen in Chandigarh since most of the projects were on independent plots. Right from the entrance to the conference hall, one could experience the skilful articulation of spaces with varying light and volumes even though made from the same elements as the surrounding buildings. It had unique qualities, such as the juxtapositions of various elements like slender columns and thick brick walls, high and low volumes relating to the surrounding, and the open and enclosed spaces. Even the

detailing of the unusually well proportioned yet intimate hall was different. I wondered how Shivdatt managed to get a government organisation to execute such a building almost in the same way as in Chandigarh. When I questioned him about his relationships with the technical staff and the clients, he was casual in his remarks, “It takes time, but persuasion helps.” Sarabhai Hall was a lesson that showed how the same bricks, same contractors and same engineers could achieve such a work in a far away location. Perhaps, it was Shiv’s sincerity, devotion, perseverance and sensibility that made the difference. Curious to know how he managed to transform a standard government office into a one that inspired, and to meet his staff, I visited his ISRO office in Bangalore a year later. It was a revelation. Shivdatt had recruited young staff and openminded colleagues. There were models, drawings, and sketches as if they were in Chandigarh. No wonder the quality of ISRO architecture transformed. Almost a decade later after fulfilling his commitment to ISRO and giving them several award winning projects, Shivdatt left his coveted position at ISRO to open yet another door. Even Dr Dhawan, director of ISRO, was reluctant to relieve him. In spite of not knowing what he would do, Shivdatt with determination set up an independent practice in Chandigarh in the early 1980s. Few years later, his son, Sangeet joined the team. To remain connected with the fast-changing world and be in tune with changing architectural scenarios, Shivdatt ventured into designing several complexes which are well known and recognised today. To me, Shivdatt’s story is that of an individual who is willing to cross comfort zones in search of freedom, choice and involvement in the new world. This book represents such a story.

Balkrishna V. Doshi

The Architecture of Shivdatt Sharma

THE CRUCIBLE OF MODERNISM IN INDIA The story of Modernism in India remains to be told.1 It is still largely lost in dusty archives somewhere.2 One day, these archives that are held in personal collections around the country will hopefully be gathered in a single collection, under a common roof, with a curator. Then we might get a better picture. Until then, this book, the first in a series, is intended to offer preliminary insight into this story, through the life and work of one of India’s most distinguished and prolific modernists, Shivdatt Sharma. But the problem is more than just archival. In Chandigarh, as in much historiography of Modernism, there is a tendency to identify this iconic city’s legacy with only the works of the European architects. This is linked to the notion that Modernism as such ‘belongs’ to Europe, from where it was ‘gifted’ to the rest of the world as a part of its colonial and postcolonial legacy. By this notion, work by non-Western architects in other parts of the world is either derivative and secondary or has to be shown to have been localised or regionalised in some significant way to be considered of intrinsic value. In this narrative, the Indian modernists who worked with the Western masters were simple apprentices in training, learning Western Modernism for the East. For them to be ‘themselves’, they had either to reject modernisation and champion a recidivist precolonial Indianness or to sublimate that precolonial ‘Indianness’ into a new Indian Modernism, a catholic blend of the East and the West. Go back to the past or marry the West—these were the choices. This is not, however, the story as Shivdatt Sharma lived it. Sharma learnt his Modernism in the trenches, the hard way. No privileged education in a brand name Euro-American university gave him a head start on the glories of Modernism. Rather, he remembers it as learning by rote, each painstakingly redrafted ‘ink-on-gateway’ sheet after the other. He remembers it as the job of learning to build a new capital city, as desired by Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of independent India, the primary architect of India’s modernisation those early years. Nehru wanted a modernist city, and Sharma had a job building that city, learning the trade from European architects brought in especially to train him and the rest of the staff. It was an office job. Much later in life did he realise that he had learnt from ‘legends’ and that he had a legacy to pass on. Until then, the work of Modernism in India was simply the work of building India. The story of Modernism in India thus, can be told in two tongues, as part of the normative story of modern architecture and its

global spread; or as the story of the making of postcolonial India as part of the staging of a counter-global narrative. I have elsewhere argued that Modernism must be re-evaluated as global heritage, a global cosmopolitanism at work.3 Rather than a specifically European creation born out of a singular European history, I have with others argued that Modernism should be seen as a product and consequence of the global conditions of the colonial world and its aftermath.4 In this revised world view, it is the conditions of the making of Chandigarh, of postcolonial India, that enabled Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret, Maxwell Fry and Jane Drew to accomplish what they did in Chandigarh, and not just vice versa.5 Chandigarh was just as necessary, if not more, to the history of Modernism than Modernism was to the history of Chandigarh. As such, from this perspective, Indian modernists can be accepted as part of the story of Modernism, without having to apologise for it, without having to justify it as having being ‘Indianised’ in some way. Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret, Maxwell Fry and Jane Drew came to be hired to lead the team to build Chandigarh because they were confirmed modernists, not because they were famous European architects. Indeed, Nehru was initially resolutely opposed to hiring architects from abroad, not because he had anything against foreign expertise being brought to India, but because he did not believe there wasn’t an Indian who could not do the job. When he was reluctantly persuaded by the bureaucracy that this was indeed the case, he personally sought out Albert Mayer, an American planner who had come to India as part of World War II and then stayed under the influence of Mahatma Gandhi, to build Chandigarh. Mayer made the first plan and brought in Polish-American architect Matthew Nowicki to lead the team with him. It was Nowicki’s untimely death in an airplane crash over Egypt in 1950 that necessitated the hiring of a replacement architect whose job, strictly speaking, was to complete the work left unfinished by him. This job was offered to Maxwell Fry and Jane Drew who, apparently being too busy, in turn, recommended Le Corbusier for the job. Le Corbusier agreed to take on the Chandigarh project only if Pierre Jeanneret was accepted as part of the team as full-time architect on site. This is how, eventually, all four— Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret, Maxwell Fry and Jane Drew— ended up coming to Chandigarh, to fill in the single vacancy created by Nowicki’s death. Le Corbusier was designated the Chief Architect of the project, and once he took over, Mayer was effectively eased out of the team, and the rest worked under his directions. Maxwell Fry and Jane Drew only stayed for three years (although their original contract was for two) and then left, pretty much never to return. Le Corbusier maintained his sporadic relationship with Chandigarh until the end of his life, long beyond the terms of his contract specified, and long after the Punjab Government had ceased to pay him. Yet his commitment to Chandigarh was only partial, and largely selfThe Crucible of Modernism in India

Juichi: In Japan, where we preserve our heritage, like the Japanese museum, working drawings are very important to conserve too. I want to know how you store those working drawings here. Sharma: We are talking of a project which is 40-45 years old. As far as I know, unfortunately, the drawings have not been preserved satisfactorily, maybe because of changing hands during the course of time.

grows, can the same green cover be maintained? There is talk of energy saving, climate change, and other present-day issues. These questions are posing different problems. They say that the green cover consumes a lot of water, which is a valuable resource. That it will be difficult to have so much of water in the future. However, water can be saved through recycling, so that it can be further used to maintain the city’s greenery. We can’t only have a concrete jungle. And then, there is the aspect of aesthetic regulation. All these things should be looked into.

Juichi: My next question is on Pierre Jeanneret’s work again. His work in India is not so well known in Japan, or even in the rest of the world. But I have seen his buildings, the housings projects, Panjab University buildings such as Gandhi Bhavan, and also cluster housing in Sector 22 and other sectors.

Juichi: What was your experience working with Le Corbusier?

Sharma: If Corbusier planned the head and the heart of Chandigarh, Jeanneret filled in all the limbs and the basic body structure of the city. As you know, Corbusier and Jeanneret were partners for 18 years when they started their architecture practice. But later, during World War II, they parted. It is not that Jeanneret just followed Corbusier’s philosophy. Rather, they both followed similar principles and a similar philosophy regarding architecture. Jeanneret is equally important as Corbusier, and his works need to be studied in greater detail.

Juichi: Honestly speaking, in Japan most of the students study modern movements like those of Corbusier only as history.

Juichi: Chandigarh is making progress. It needs to build new buildings and preserve the old ones.

Rakib Akhtar: Technology plays an important role in architecture. Right now, we have many types of software with which we can analyze all the climatic factors.

Sharma: Need-based buildings are coming up, but the old buildings that have heritage value are being neglected. And which way do you mean that Chandigarh is making progress? In the context of Le Corbusier’s philosophy, or in terms of population and vehicular growth? Chandigarh is growing beyond its seams, beyond the programme which was given to Corbusier. He planned the city, initially, for 2.5 lakh people, and a maximum of 5 lakh. Already, the population has almost doubled over what was planned for. If that is progress, then yes, the city is progressing. But Corbusier intended this city to be a model for quality living that would fulfil the temporal and spiritual needs of the citizens. Today, if these things are not taken care of, Chandigarh may not remain a model city for the world. The population is bound to increase; tomorrow, you’ll have some flyovers and the metro. Soon, Chandigarh will be working like any other city and it will not be Chandigarh anymore! How can that balance be achieved, that even if the city progresses and the population grows, the people can still benefit from the same quality of life as before? There must be some system that you deploy to keep a check on the growth of the city in accordance with the growth of the infrastructure. For example, there is a green cover in the city. But if the population 20

The Architecture of Shivdatt Sharma

Sharma: Working with Corbusier was to note his behaviour, his personal mannerisms, and, specifically, how he translated his philosophy into his work while drawing each line.

Sharma: The important thing is that although the modern movement started in Europe, it was willingly adopted by a few countries elsewhere, like India, Japan and Brazil. It was not that we just followed, but we grew to understand Modernism. Many architects in India have grown even without working with Corbusier.

Sharma: Yes, technology is growing. Architects have to embrace technology, which will only give us new answers for architecture. Juichi: I think that it’s just a tool like the Modulor. We should study the principle, the philosophy first, and then we can use new tools to achieve the desired results. Sharma: Yes. And then there is the question of systems that we have found in the world, that man has formed—like ethics, aesthetics, relationship of man to man, the relationship with supernatural powers, the understanding of spirituality, and life beyond life. These are the systems that man has talked about for living his life. These were always there, and will always be there. You have to simulate the new environmental systems, not forgetting these morals. Study these truths of life and you will understand architecture. Juichi: That is indeed food for thought. Sharma: Only studying books doesn’t make you a good architect. Study beyond. Then you’ll start to philosophise about your work, your own life. Ask, “What am I living for?” You’ll get many brilliant answers.

LASTING LESSONS FROM LEGENDS – A TESTAMENT Shivdatt Sharma

The lives of these legendary planners and architects and their work, in themselves, can impart several lessons. Their work finds place as reference books on the shelves of libraries all over the world. But I wish to talk about their lives and work based on my experience of working closely with them. Chandigarh, only 60 years old, has already emerged as a successful urban pattern. It has stood the test of time, maintaining a pristine quality of life, as conceived by the legends. It provides harmonious living to people from all castes and backgrounds. It is a mix of modern urbanism and rural ethos. Chandigarh is not a revivalist concept, or a borrowed idea from the West. Rather, it is a unique solution for modern living, aimed to enrich and rationalize everyday social life and to emphasize the universality of human reason regarding modernity. When Le Corbusier came to India, he strengthened his own thoughts which he had been developing since the early 20th century. Although many architects in the world supported Modernism, Le Corbusier communicated his thoughts on Modernism most audaciously. This is because his Modernism is unique—his imagination, his feeling of spaces, and his care for sunlight, air, greenery and the idyllic world. Although he religiously painted every day, he gave preference to architecture as he felt it was a better way to serve society.

The origin of Chandigarh was need-based. The idea was to rehabilitate people who had entered this part of the independent India leaving their hearth and home in Pakistan. At that time, India’s economy had collapsed and there was a situation of crisis all around. Though the circumstances were not conducive to the idea of establishing a new city, the thought found patronage in Pandit Nehru, who was in favour of large-scale urbanisation in the country. Moreover, Pandit Nehru established an immediate rapport with Le Corbusier, as they both had similar ideas. Chandigarh, therefore, came up primarily due to political will, followed by the support of bureaucrats and engineers. Subsequently, the potential of its architects was recognized, who dreamt the city to be representative of Modernism—a unique thought of urban planning and a highly specific architecture. Chandigarh started with all sorts of uncertainties and speculations. The media was full of derogatory statements criticizing the plan and its costs. But, gradually, due to the uncompromising patronage of Pandit Nehru, the city blossomed, putting all doubts to rest. Le Corbusier and his associates, all being the members of International Congress of Modern Architecture, processed the pure architecture that was to be followed in the making of Chandigarh. They believed that geometry was a timeless factor in the whole universe, and was therefore to be followed to create purity. Purity here meant as based on logic, rationality and a sympathetic cosmic relationship with the universe. They did not follow any traditions, as they believed that those were thoughts of the past. I was fortunate to have been in Chandigarh—where I lived, worked, earned and learnt the fundamentals of architecture, besides getting an opportunity to understand fascinating facts about Le Corbusier, the person, the architect, the thinker, the writer, the painter, and so on. The Chandigarh Office became an institute where architecture and town planning could be learnt without discrimination. Beginning with a clean slate, I was not required to unlearn any preconceived notions about architecture. Chandigarh was like a school of architecture for me where the faculty was none other than the topmost architects of the world. What a fascinating place for learning! In my early days I worked with the architect couple Edwin Maxwell Fry and Jane Beverly Drew, and with Pierre Jeanneret—all three associates of Le Corbusier, who were selected to work with him for the making of the city. I also worked with Ar. M.N. Sharma who took over as first Indian Chief Architect of Chandigarh. Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret with the plan of Chandigarh. Autographed photo for Sharma

Lasting Lessons from Legends— A Testament

Each room contained a framework of wooden battens, fixed to the purlins through angle irons along the length and breadth of the rooms, to hold the false ceiling of jutelec panels. These were then finished with beading all around the panels (most of these went missing before preservation was started. These were then replaced with a similar material and design).

I joined the project in its initial days and started working in the temporary building designed by Pierre Jeanneret. What a great building! Previously known as the Architects’ Office Building, it was recently renamed Le Corbusier Centre. It is one of the earliest buildings to be built in Chandigarh, in 1952. This building was initially designed as a temporary structure. Fortunately, it still exists, although, at one time, the administration had thought of demolishing it. The building had housed the offices of Le Corbusier—who was the chief architect, town-planner and advisor to the Punjab Government for the Capital Project—as well as of Pierre Jeanneret and other senior architects like Maxwell Fry and Jane Drew. I did not witness the construction of this artistic and excellent example of green, sustainable architecture, which takes care of all aspects such as climate, orientation, light and ventilation, aesthetics and financial nuances. The Architects’ Office Building (now Le Corbusier Centre) laid all the architectural solutions which the later buildings subsequently followed. The building also contained cabins and drafting halls. The significance of the building, apart from being a historic one, also lies in the fact that it introduced a new system of construction and materials not used extensively earlier. The planning system followed was easy and quick to fabricate and execute. These included prefabricated beams, sun-breakers and jutelec for doors and false ceilings.

Top: Former Architect’s Office, currently Le Corbusier Centre

Centre, left: Wooden purlins to support the roofing of asbestos sheets, which was a thatch roof earlier

Centre, right: Corridor leading to Le Corbusier’s Room

Below: Precast beams and concrete louvers of the old Architect’s Office

The Architecture of Shivdatt Sharma

The windows followed a module of one unit or two units, depending upon the size of the rooms. This module was also repeated for the skylights and the ventilators above the cupboards in the corridor. There were openable windows, and the doors were based on Modulor dimensions. Brick tiles were used for flooring in the rooms, corridors and verandas. After about 50 years of its existence, I was asked to prepare a conservation scheme for this building by the administration, and to get it implemented through the Chief Engineer’s Office. I did this job with great care and concern. For me, it was a matter of restoring something like my personal belonging. Exhaustive drawings were prepared to understand the dilapidated condition of the building. Reports and documents were prepared, which are now available in Le Corbusier Centre, and also with the Chief Architect’s Office, Chandigarh Administration. Architect Sumedha Amod Gupta,

a conservationist architect, along with architects Manrit, Shyam and others, were actively involved in this project. Pierre Jeanneret, through this building, conveyed lasting architectural lessons to all architects involved in the Chandigarh Project, as well as to the future generations of architects. E Maxwell Fry Initially, Fry and Drew started working actively on sorting out policies, programmes and budgets, and planning some essential projects in the city. They visited Delhi for the approval of the projects and for arranging funds, which was all possible with the personal intervention of Pandit Nehru. Walter Gropius and Fry had worked together in England from 1934 to 1937 and one can sense the Bauhaus ethic in Fry’s work. At the same time, both Fry and Drew were great admirers of Le Corbusier and of Modernism. Like Le Corbusier’s preWWII building, Fry and Drew whitewashed their Chandigarh buildings. Le Corbusier had also once thought of whitewashing Chandigarh like the Greek villages. Among Fry’s works in Chandigarh are the Government College for Girls, Kiran Cinema, shopping centres in Sector 22 along V4, and the brick facade shops in Sector 17, and all type of housing in the city. Fry was an excellent draftsman as well, who could complete an entire project including the plan, elevation and section, in a few days. He was a writer, poet and painter. He sketched the village life (ponds, trees and animals) on the Chandigarh site during the early days. Fry believed: • If we follow one school of thought, it gives clarity. • The word architecture has a mystic connotation. • The fourth element, Time, gives the discipline a historical dynamism as well as a psychosocial context for the created artefacts. A sort of ‘lessons’ for us working on the project.

quality of life. While going to the sites with her and Maxwell Fry in a jeep, I would listen to all this to my heart’s content. It was like learning lessons in an outdoor classroom (at the sites) and an indoor classroom (in the office, on the drawing board). Drew’s architecture was close to Fry’s, with some difference in the details. Her major works were the Peon Village and other housing projects like Sectors 12 D and 13 D, the shopping centres of Sectors 16 and 22, and the College for Women. Pierre Jeanneret While working with Pierre Jeanneret on his housing projects, I found his approach to architecture to be completely different from Fry’s or Drew’s. His work was highly artistic, innovative, poetic…like a sculptor’s. Jeanneret philosophised his work and life less through words and greatly through his work. He believed: • Art and architecture do not express without dignity, which requires spirit and talent. • Vulgar people are those who cannot express dignity without money. • Art is everywhere but the right spirit is necessary to discover it. • He who has never suffered from lack of money is not a complete human being. • There is confusion between a craftsman and an artist. • Insensitive people appreciate work that is represented by a lot of money, large number of working hours, and rich material— although such work is often grotesque and devoid of art. • Poverty is no excuse to ugliness. Jeanneret’s work left a lasting impression on my mind. Even today, I can clearly see his influence on my independent work. Since Jeanneret searched for dignity without ostentation, he admired villages, calling them ‘living galleries of art’. He believed that the principles of Chandigarh’s planning had a lot of semblance to villages—in the plasticity of forms,

Jane Beverly Drew Jane Drew was brilliant and often philosophically talked about and wrote her views on architecture. When I met her and Fry in England, after they had left Chandigarh, she quickly arranged an interview for me and got me a position of an architect in the London County Council in 1965. She also gave me a letter for renowned Dutch architect, Aldo Van Eyck, for me to meet him during my travel in Europe, which I did to my great delight and privilege. I also met Jacob Berend Bakema in Rotterdam, another member of CIAM, who showed a lot of interest in the details of the master plan of Chandigarh. Drew often talked about purism, the theory of the right angle and Le Corbusier’s philosophy. She told us time and again that architecture had to provide what was needed to improve the

Village architecture without architects, which may be called vernacular architecture, had a great semblance to pure architecture.

Lasting Lessons from Legends—A Testament

mono-textural expressions, standardised doors and windows and other fenestrations, spouts and niches, and standardised boundary walls and gates. I worked and remained in touch with Jeanneret for a long time. Working with him was an informal and humane experience. One unique opportunity to work with him was for Nain Tara and Gautam Sehgal’s house in Chandigarh. This being a private residence, we had to work after office hours. It was a great chance to become familiar with his ideology—we shared a one-to-one relationship for one-and-a-half years. When Pandit Nehru visited this house, along with Pratap Singh Kairon, the then Chief Minister of Punjab, and the young Indira Gandhi, he named the house Anokha (unique). Noted Indian writer Mulk Raj Anand called it ‘poetry in brick and stone’.

Jeanneret, though a creative genius, was saintly and full of kindness, with a total lack of ill-nature. He was very simple in his work and lifestyle—for instance, in the summers he would keep a pitcher full of drinking water with a glass at hand so that he would not have to call a peon. He did not have a cooler or air-conditioner in his office. Jeanneret lived in austerity. His humanity is remembered by all who came in contact with him. Jeanneret stayed in Chandigarh for 17 years, until ill-health forced him to return to Switzerland around 1964. I had to visit Jeanneret in Geneva a few times. Every time he asked me to come for at least two days and always made me overstay. During these visits, I stayed in the house of Jacqueline Jeanneret, his niece. He died in 1967 in Geneva. In accordance with his wishes, his ashes were immersed in Sukhna Lake in Chandigarh. Jeanneret’s architecture was personalised and provoked human sensibilities. His work was more subtle and softer compared to Corbusier’s, which was dominant and lofty. Jeanneret designed and developed the Panjab University campus, which houses his ‘Temple of Truth’ and the poetically beautiful Gandhi Bhavan. Corbusier’s Ronchamp and Jeanneret’s Gandhi Bhavan are comparable studies of great architecture of this era. Jeanneret left a lasting impact on all Indian architects. His stamp is therefore visible all over Chandigarh not only in the buildings he designed but also in those designed by the Indian architects. He allowed his team of Indian architects to deal with the projects, subject to his final approval. That is how I could do some projects not strictly in ‘laid lines’, but based on rationality and social reasons, which Jeanneret supported. Top: View from the central court of Gautam Sehgal’s house

Below, left: Front view of the house

Below, right: SD Sharma with Albert Jeanneret, brother of Le Corbusier and a musician , at his studio in his mother’s house

The Architecture of Shivdatt Sharma

me the height of an object nearby. I gave the height using the word ‘approximately’, upon which he cautioned me to always be exact. What I also learnt from him was to philosophise personal life, its aim and objective. Thus, I learnt to philosophise life on this planet, our relation with the cosmos, nature, and so on. It was akin to pure spiritual study. It is the spiritual aspect in planning and architecture which makes the difference.

Le Corbusier One great day, I got an opportunity to work with Corbusier. It was a wonderful opportunity, but at the same time, very scary. I was sceptical if I would be able to deal with the great man. This was in 1963 for the Museum and Art Gallery, in the cultural belt of the city in Sector 10, which is a part of the Leisure Valley. It was eye-opening to watch the master draw line after line, using coloured pencils for clarity—infusing his philosophy into his sketches. It was only gradually that Corbusier allowed a hardworking and sensitive person to come close to him. It was also surprising to find him not so rigid to a logical suggestion. He might not have had agreed instantly to the suggestion, but the following day, he would not only agree to it but also come up with a unique and modified version of the suggestion.

Curiously, I found Corbusier humorous too, and easy to work with—if he understood the responsive potential of the other. One interesting memory is of when at times while working he would doze off for a few seconds (maybe due to the hot weather). Once, he raised his head and asked me whether I wanted to kill him as there was no sign of a cold drink since morning. When I came back with some, he picked up something lying on the drawing sheet and asked me what it was. Before I could reply, he said, “It’s my hair, and I won’t give it to you because you will sell it for a million dollars,” and put it in his pocket. So one can imagine how self-conscious he was of his greatness! During a visit to Chandigarh, a very senior architect from Delhi came to meet Corbusier. After an exchange of pleasantries, the architect requested Corbusier for a picture with him. Instead of obliging him, Corbusier asked, “Have you read my books?” Getting a hesitant reply from the senior architect, the master asked him to read his books and then come back for

Corbusier had neither the patience nor the temperament to teach. Only the people who were sensitive to his philosophy and his approach to poetic spaces could learn by studying his works. Working with him was highly inspiring and mind boggling. The most revealing fact was to see the master working with great exactitude. Every rough sketch he did was full of dimensions and detailed descriptions supported by mathematical calculations. Thus, the foremost thing I learnt was to be exact. Once he asked Top: Jeanneret’s ashes being submerged in Sukhna Lake by his niece Jacquline

Centre: Museum and Art Gallery building

Below: Interior views

Lasting Lessons from Legends—A Testament

a photograph. I don’t know whether the architect did so or not, but I, fearing this sort of questioning by Corbusier, started reading all available books on him. Unfortunately, the Museum and Art Gallery building was midway when he died, leaving it for us to complete. He had left all the sketches of our discussions behind, which I had kept in order to discuss with him during his next visit which never happened. We had to finish the museum’s joinery, choose colour schemes and pedestals for the display of objects, and determine other details. At the end, it was a satisfying effort. Corbusier had defined all the principal aspects and we felt his presence in every part of the building. The Museum and Art Gallery is extremely simple but elegant. I believe it is the best of the three museums Corbusier built (the other two being at Ahmedabad and Tokyo). One enters the triple-height atrium to take the ramp to the galleries on the upper levels. Day lighting and electrical illumination are integral to the design of the building which remains cool without airconditioning or any mechanical ventilation. Two sides have deep verandas, the third an exhibition gallery, and the fourth an auditorium. The auditorium, though an independent building, has been placed so as to look integral to the main museum. The exterior of the building is RCC wall, clad in brick tiles. The internal walls have basic colours, undulatory glazing, and exposed concrete surfaces all around. The museum houses a rich collection of Gandhara sculptures, miniatures, and modern paintings in specific galleries. The library and office are grouped in one space. Dr Randhawa, the first Commissioner of Chandigarh, has documented all about the Museum and Art Gallery in his book Evolution of Life, where he says: “The details were prepared by Shri SD Sharma, Architect, who had the benefit of the advice of P Jeanneret and later of Shri MN Sharma. Shri SD Sharma worked in a spirit of dedication and deserves much praise.” Dr Randhawa’s contribution to Chandigarh was colossal. Chandigarh would have been without the Museum and Art Gallery but for him, as he believed that “Art is not a luxury, but is as important for the balanced development of the human personality as food and drink”.

After the Museum and Art Gallery, it was the City Museum that gave me the chance to design a building on the concept of Corbusier’s Heidi Weber Centre at Zurich, under the guidance of Mr M.N. Sharma, then Chief Architect of Chandigarh. I had not had the opportunity to see this centre in Zurich, although Heidi Weber had sent me tickets to come and help in the display arrangements of the centre. Later, seeing the pictures of the centre, I was happy to see one of my projects—the Gurudwara at Chandigarh—displayed right in the beginning as confirmed by M.N. Sharma who went there to inaugurate the centre. I did this project with two associates, Ar. S.K. Midha and Ar. Krishan Kumar. Mr Midha, a very sensitive architect, rose to become the Chief Architect of Chandigarh. The furnishing of this building was done during his tenure as Chief Architect. The design of the City Museum had different requirements from the Heidi Weber Centre. We added a basement and a ramp, used concrete as the construction material, and included undulatory glazing for light and ventilation. We also made all remaining decisions for the finishing. It was during the tenure of Shri Jagdish Sagar, advisor to the administrator of Chandigarh (who was also the Governor of Punjab), and of Home Secretary Anuradha Gupta that the decision to use the building as a City Museum was taken. Before that the building was being used for various other purposes. In the beginning of year 1997, I was commissioned to look after all the display arrangements of the City Museum, sorting out material from the archives of the Chief Architect’s office. This involved selecting material, designing display techniques, and the overall arrangement for all the levels including the top level which was proposed to be a cafeteria. Prof. Wattas wrote the captions of the displayed material. Mr Jagdish Sagar and Mrs Anuradha Gupta coordinated and supervised the entire development. S.K. Midha, R.K. Jain, Aditya Prakash and Suwarcha Paul were also part of the project team working on the museum. It was inaugurated by Prime Minister I.K. Gujral on 17 December 1997. During my diverse career, my efforts have been dedicated to extending the philosophies of Le Corbusier and Pierre Jeanneret, that is, pure architecture, no superficialities; towards the honest expression and glorification of versatile material like brick and concrete, which were chosen for noble and aesthetic reasons. Chandigarh served as the first phase of my career (1960–73). It provided me with the grounding for my future work as Chief Architect in Department of Space (1973–1980), and then as a consultant architect in practice from 1980 till today.

City Museum, Sector 10, Chandigarh

The Architecture of Shivdatt Sharma

DEPARTMENT OF ARCHITECTURE, CHANDIGARH 1963–73

Shivdatt Sharma began his career in the Chandigarh Capital Project as a part of the team that was led by Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret, Maxwell Fry and Jane Drew. While Sharma had opportunity to work with all of them, including Le Corbusier, he developed a close personal relationship with Jeanneret whom he would regard as his mentor, long after he was gone. Sharma worked with Pierre Jeanneret from 1963 to 1965. After Jeanneret’s departure, he also worked under the guidance of M.N. Sharma, who took over as the first Indian Chief Architect, from 1965 to 1973. This was the defining formative period of Sharma’s career, where he learnt the art and craft of Indian Modernism in the very laboratory where it was being developed. Learning how to design for the climate, using local, readily available materials, with absolute honesty and directness were lessons that were to stay with Sharma through his long career to come. In this sense, the Chandigarh Capital Project Office in Sector 19, which Sharma much, much later would come back to conserve and preserve, was the true school of architecture of his career.

ART COLLEGE HOSTEL

Above: Side elevation, with end glazing

Right: The random rubble stone wall enclosure sits in tight juxtaposition to the rectilinear forms of the main structure.

The Architecture of Shivdatt Sharma

Based on the study of other hostels already designed in Chandigarh, the Art College hostel derives from the unit of the room that is accompanied by a partly covered and partly open-to-sky balcony. The room was designed to enable ‘allyear-round’ living, the persistent goal of Chandigarh Style architecture. The drama of the building’s form is revealed most forcefully in section. Load-bearing brick walls with concrete lintels, roof and balconies, stack up in a pyramidical form, enabling each balcony to be open to the sky. Internally, the structure also echoes the staggering pyramidical shape that not only allows light and air to penetrate through the floors but also enables visual connection between floors, further helping the strong sense of community that a student hostel inevitably has. The end elevation faithfully reproduces the orders of the section. Concrete balconies, crisply hanging off the brick massing and punctuated by dividers, define the long elevation. River rock random rubble masonry walls create the spaces for service activities on the ground floor.

Top: Section showing cross-ventilation, daylighting and bridged pathways for studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; movement

Below: Partitions between individual balconies provide privacy and rhythm to the long facade

1. Cubicals 2. Balcony 3. Corridor 4. Veranda 5. Dining hall 6. Kitchen 7. Store

Art College Hostel

1. Guest room 2. Toilet 3. Veranda 4. Open to sky

Second floor plan

1. Cafetaria 2. Kitchen 3. Toilet

1. Games room 2. Toilet 3. Store 4. Veranda 5. Ramp

Ground floor plan

First floor plan

Section

The Architecture of Shivdatt Sharma

1. Guest room 2. Kitchen 3. Veranda

Top: Elevated cylindrical forms with long and narrow slit windows set up the CSIO cafeteria.

Below: Guest House within the rectilinear geometries of the rest of the campus

Central Scientific Instruments Organisation

Housing Type 1 The Type 1 housing at CSIO was for the lowest category in the hierarchy of institute staff. The housing was constructed in five unit sections, three at the bottom and two at the top, with the upper two units provided with open to sky terraces so that they have outdoor space. The housing is constructed in a long row, helping create a unified and well-defined street character. A single staircase protruding out of the elevation gives access to the upper units. The entire expression of the structure is in exposed brick, other than the lintel above the upper entrance and the inclines of the staircases, which are plastered and painted white.

Stairs establish independent access to the first floor dwellings

The Architecture of Shivdatt Sharma

First floor plan

Ground floor plan 1. Entrance 2. Drawing room 3. Dining room 4. Bedroom 5. Kitchen 6. Bath 7. WC 8. Cycle stand 9. Terrace

Section

Central Scientific Instruments Organisation

Faculty Guest House Conceived originally as a bachelorsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; hostel, this three-storey building now serves as a guest house for CSIO. Designed inside out, the building is best understood in plan. A large central courtyard forms the node around which connecting corridors have been resolved into a long and narrow, three-tiered bridge running the entire length of the building. Small perpendicular

Right: Terraces, jalis and integrated but open-to-air stair block helps define a crisp profile.

Below: The terracing is nestled within the overall outline of the housing, setting up a play between the overall frame and the stepped profile of the building.

The Architecture of Shivdatt Sharma

offshoots provide well-defined individual access to rooms on both sides. As a result, the relatively narrow six-metre wide space between the two rows of rooms has been divided into numerous small courtyards, which receive plenty of daylight and provide natural ventilationâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;an elaboration and variation of the original section of the Art College Hostel.

Second floor plan

1. Central bridge 2. Bedroom 3. Kitchen 4. Toilet

First floor plan

1. Single room 2. Central bridge 3. Toilet

Ground floor plan

1. Bedroom 2. Living room 3. Kitchen 4. Toilet 5. Store 6. Lounge/Dining

Section

Central Scientific Instruments Organisation

Top, left: Internal corridor at top level

Top, right: Internal corridor with side cut-outs for light and ventilation

Below: Front elevation

The Architecture of Shivdatt Sharma

This building rehearses the established architectural grammar of the Chandigarh Style architecture, deploying standard elements like exposed brick face, undulatory glazing, ramp and concrete frame. The design caters to all the requirements of a small sports club—reception and enquiry area, changing rooms, professionals’ shop, lounge, and the games area, etc. The games area is so placed as to afford visual and physical communication with the lounge. Although the building programme was modest, spatial interest was created by intersecting the major activities of in section. Concrete pipes of different dimensions, positioned like ship holes, were inserted into the side walls to function as ventilators. A ramp provides access to the building at the mid level, a distant echo of the one at the Millowners’ Association Building in Ahmedabad by Le Corbusier. The pavilion-like club house was located at the highest point of the site to ensure that it overlooked the entire golf course, with the backdrop of the Shivalik Hills and the rolling green fields alongside the dam which was built to form Chandigarh’s lake. On one side, the building was abutted into a low mound to enhance the serenity of the site. On the opposite site, the gentle slope of the ramp was designed to echo the natural slope of the mound.

CLUB HOUSE FOR GOLF COURSE

Top: Concrete frame with brick walls, undulatory glazing, single pane glass in wood frames, concrete ramp with a solid concrete railing to the south and an open steel one to the north define the ‘Chandigarh Style’ architecture of the Club House.

Below: Vents and columns of side profile.

Club House for Golf Course

The Golf Club House as originally built. Today it is much altered.

Above: Restrained and noble side profile of the Golf Club House

Right: First floor plan. Two squares outlined by the column grid define the push and pull of the free plan.

1. Indoor games 2. Toilet 3. Double height

The Architecture of Shivdatt Sharma

“...a much-deserved book on

the work and practice of one of India’s original modernists— Shivdatt Sharma, with insights into his life, his influences and his affinity towards architecture of Chandigarh.” —Ruturaj Parikh, aecworldxp.com

Dr Vikramāditya Prakāsh is a historian and urbanist. An authority on Modernism, global history and Indian architecture, he has published several books including Chandigarh’s Le Corbusier and co-authored A Global History of Architecture. He is Director of the Chandigarh Urban Lab, a multiyear project to research the trajectory of small and mid-sized cities of India in the age of globalization. Dr Prakāsh received his B.Arch. from the Chandigarh College of Architecture, India and his M.A. and Ph.D. from Cornell University, USA. After teaching at CEPT University, Ahmedabad, and Arizona State University, Tempe, he joined University of Washington, Seattle in 1996 where is he is currently Professor of Architecture, with additional adjunct appointments in the Departments of Landscape Architecture and Urban Design and Planning. He has served as Associate Dean of the College and Chair of the Department of Architecture. He is also partner in Verge Architecture and Design based out of Seattle, USA, and Chandigarh, India.

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BACK COVER Administrative building of National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education And Research, Mohali