Elasti-City: A cartography of space and time by Divya Vaidya

elasti-city a

cartography

Divya Vaidya

space

and

time

elasti-city a

cartography

space

and

Urban Elasticities | Divya Vaidya Supervisors: Prasad Shetty and Vastavikta Bhagat School of Environment and Architecture University of Mumbai 2020-2021

time

CERTIFICATE This is to that the dissertation titled:

“elasti-city, a cartography of space and time” is the work of

Ms. Divya Vaidya whose signature appears below as the author.

The Author certifies that this is the original work carried out by the Author and is not paraphrased, or copied in whole or in parts (except for those statements and graphics mentioned along with references) or submitted in any form to any other institution for obtaining an academic degree. The Supervisors whose names and signatures appear below confirm and certify that: the above mentioned dissertation is the original work of the above mentioned Author; it is carried out under their supervision and the work is of acceptable quality necessary for partial completion of the course to obtain the Bachelor of Architecture Degree. The External Examiners whose names and signatures appear below below confirm and certify that they have evaluated the Author’s work in a Viva-Voce and the work is of acceptable quality necessary for partial completion of the course to obtain the Bachelor of Architecture Degree. The Director whose name and signature appears below certifies that the Supervisors and External Examiners are appointed by the School of Environment and Architecture for mentoring and evaluating the above mentioned work. Based on the evaluation of the Supervisors and External Examiners, the above work is acceptable for the partial completion of the course to obtain the Bachelor of Architecture Degree from University of Mumbai.

SUPERVISOR Name: Date:

EXAMINER Name: Date:

DIRECTOR

School of Environment and Architecture

AUTHOR

INSTITUTIONAL SEAL

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I would like to take this opportunity and express my gratitude towards all those who have been there and directly/indirectly contributed in the making of this dissertation, without whom the dissertation wouldn’t have taken the shape that it has come to take. First and foremost I would like to express my sincere gratitude to all my interviewees and interlocutor from Nikadwari Lane, Girgaon. I would specially like to thank Manisha Jain, Isha Jain, the Girgaoncha Raja Ganeshotsav Mandal and Sanjay Harmarkar for being extremely considerate and helpful even with the difficulties of the pandemic. Thank you for opening your doors to me, making time and answering all my questions. This dissertation would not have been possible if I was not welcomed into the homes of friends, family, acquaintances, neighbours and even strangers to carry out my research. I sincerely thank all the members of the faculty at School of Environment and Architecture who have shaped my thinking by giving me valuable insight, sharing their experience that gave me the necessary tools to delve into the research of this dissertation. I would like to specially thank Prasad Shetty for guiding me through various stages of research and Vastavikta Bhagat for her guidance and inputs at various points of the research. I acknowledge the works - Fold by Delueze, In the Name of the Godess by Tapati Guha Thakurta and Landscapes of Urban Memory by Smriti Srinivas which have been instruemntal in understanding fundamentals of my study. I am indebted to Aai - my late grandmother, my parents Samir and Saloni Vaidya and my brother, Bhavik Vaidya for being so patient and forgiving, always. Thank you Shraddha Kaki and Preet for having me. The past five years and the creation of this book would not be possible if not for your constant support. I’d like to mention my friends and colleagues - Viraj Adhate, Tanishqa Rodrigues and Smit Nandu thank you for aiding me in my research and being supportive critics, with regards to both work and life. Akshay and Soham for discussing elasticities. My friends - Virangi, Neesba, Suraj and Mokshi for always being understanding. Finally, I would like to thank all my peers for engaging in constant discussions which helped me gain different persepective.

Abstract

Prologue: Introduction to Urban Elasticity Hypothesis Research Aims Research Objectives Research Question

Frameworks: Theretical Framework Operative Concepts

Methodology

6 Folds/ Stories: Neighborhood Sense: Setting the context Schedules Organisational Structures Aagman Process Monetary Transactions Visarjan Process

The Stretch and the Fold The Fabric The Fabric when Stressed Conclusion

Street Map of Mumbai

ABSTRACT The city of Mumbai is densely populated and is a pulse point of religiosity and hope. In spite of being this dense and compact, every now and then it is able to stretch itself to hold more during these festivals and added events. One such event that occurs annually is the festival of Ganesh Chaturthi. Every year as the festival draws near, the neighborhoods in the city undergo a rapid flux. These neighborhoods transform into becoming nodes of energy and beliefs. They start attracting attention, people and resources like magnets. The neighborhood starts swelling and stretching and folds layers of systems and negotiations into itself to accommodate this volume. It starts transforming when it is time to prepare and procure resources for the festival, till it is dismantled and absorbed back into the city. It gestates and holds a whole plethora of energy, hope, rituals, colors, chauvinism, aspirations, desires, power relations and fear all overlapping till it finally gives birth to the grand event. For that period, the lives of the people in and around the neighborhood get re-organized. The community does not sleep. The enthusiasm starts setting in and can be seen in the voluntary compromises, shifts and changes almost unconsciously made by people for the long-awaited event. Once the event is delivered, the structure, routines and enthusiasms start shrinking, almost rapidly, till it fades to its previous state of being. Resting, till it’s time for it to give birth again. This thesis documents these phenomenons in an attempt to look at how urban nodes within Mumbai behave during times of added events. It tries to demonstrate how streets and neighborhoods are altered architecturally in order to accommodate the swellings within the city and the changes they induce within public behavior. In addition to this it also documents various layers of negotiations, permissions, etc in the space time continuum of the recurring cycle of Ganesh Chaturthi.To analyze the fold that makes the fabric of the city elastic, the thesis attempts to draw a set of charts, diagrams and maps layering the various folds that place this elastic fabric in time and space. These readings and data further help understand the ability of urban forms to fold, stretch and be elastic, in an ever-evolving city. It challenges the notion of permanence.It provokes one to think about the city as a complex overlay of non-rigid, non-definitive spatial and logistical systems that are light, temporary, reversible and adaptive to change, leaving no or little trace on ground.

PROLOGUE : INTRODUCTION TO URBAN ELASTICITY

Hypothesis:

Research Aim:

A city gets pregnant and delivers an event every year. These “cyclic” events challenge the city every year to stretch more to make space for its growing density. This elastic ability of the city to stretch, swell, transform is motivated by beliefsreligious and non-religious, influx of people. It is brought about by the coexistence of the formalities and informalities of the community and its shifts to pool in resources and the easy assembly and disassembly of the temporal structure that help the reabsorption to take place.

The ability of urban forms to fold, stretch and be elastic, in an ever evolving city, challenges the notion of permanence. The aim is to think about the city as complex overlays of non-rigid, non-definitive spatial and logistical systems that are light, temporary, reversible and adaptive to change leaving no or little trace on ground.

Research Objective: To look at how urban nodes within Mumbai behave during times of added events. To demonstrate how street sections are altered architecturally in order to accommodate the swellings within the city and the changes they induce within public behaviour.

Research Question:

What is the nature of the urban form that contributes to the elasticity (stretch) of space?

To further evaluate the research questions, the following questions were asked: Where does the city produce such elasticity from? In what ways does it accommodate these surges? Why does it even do it when it can cause so much stress ? How does it contain this stress? How do these temporal gestations define the city? What is the promise of such gestations? How does elasticity as a trope lend towards thinking about spatiality - swelling & shrinking in these events? How does the city change after it gives birth to the event? How does the neighborhood reorganize itself to facilitate ‘this stretch’ ?

LENSES & FRAMEWORKS To answer the research question, the thesis is conceptually framed in two parts: > Base Condition - Community - Resources - Power > Architecture of elasticity - Temporal structures - Modifications in space Through these processes one understands how the neighbourhoods of the city become elastic and are able to bear the intensity of the flux. `

Theoretcal Framework: Trying to map landscapes of temporality in three frames: > Spatial > Social > Logistical Considerations made: 1. Extents of swelling and shrinking in each event in terms of : - population density - area covered 2. The actors involved - Residents - Visiting people 3. Fixed in space: - Location and re-organization of - Physical structure - Hierarchy of space allocation and use

4. Temporal: - Routes of access - Time based events - day v/s night life 5. Temporal Structure: - Spatial needs - Materiality - Technology 6. Impacts/ stresses in the neighbourhood it takes place

Operative Concepts: The thesis works around ideas of : elasticity, folds, gestation, swelling, containment, flux, volume, density, stretching and shrinking. Each of these is further understood by the readings and references from the following readings: > Fold by Delueze

7. Process of preparation to dismantling and time taken to do so

> In the Name of the Goddess - Tapati- Guha thakurta

8. The organisational structure- the mandal and its workings

> Landscapes of Urban Memory - Smriti Srinivas

9. Raising Funds 10. Permissions to be acquired

Fold by Deleuze Matter : Delueze says that things start evolving in relation to their environment. It is the differences between them that define them. The differences can be imagined as a labyrinth. This labyrinth is made of multiple folds and the way in which each of this fold is made. This labyrinth can not be unraveled simply by following a rectilinear path. A rectilinear path will often always be met by dead ends and little understanding. The secrets of continuity of a Labyrinth, if one follows a rectilinear path, will never be known. He then suggests to follow a curved path in which this movement of fold and unfold is possible. Leibniz, a renowned mathematician, suggests that the curvature of the universe fundamentally happens by three elements - fluidity of matter, elasticity of body and motivating spirit of mechanism. Folding / expansion: Leibniz compression happens not via a tangent but by spinning movements. This spinning movement in matter makes it porous. Like in a pond, different waves and flows make the top cohesive surface of the pond porous by causing ripples. ( insert a pond surface, ripple diagram made via stippling representing molecules of water) Cohesion binds the molecules of matter together. This force of cohesion binds the molecules of the matter together tightly in some and loosely in others making them inseparable by neither the action of the surrounding forces nor the pressure of the surrounding forces. An absolute fluid matter would

lack cohesion. The molecules in a fluid are sparsely arranged compared to those of solids but they are always bound together by the force of cohesion. In this manner, every substance has a degree of hardness and fluidity inherent in itself. (check illustrations of dilip d’cunha for wetness) This degree of hardness and fluidity is what makes matter elastic and gives it the potentiality of the stretch it can go through from one fold to another. Elasticity is the expression of active compressive forces exerted on that matter. A flexible body or an elastic body thus can be divided into multiple small folds retaining its cohesive nature. Such that the body does not dissolve into smaller ‘minma’ For example origami- folds in paper and folds in cloth/tunic Unfolding / contraction : Unfolding is not the opposite of fold. It is only the act of folding up with the memory of the fold previously made. Thus contraction may or may not result in the state which it started with but will always be embedded with the stretch it underwent to achieve the expanded state. The forces that stimulate and facilitate this transition, fold, stretch of matter from one state of being to an expanded state and back to its initial state become the mechanism. In this constant movement of transformative change is a progressive loss and gain of movement and energy where in lies the spirit of matter.

Matter fold <> matter time

In the name of the Goddess by Tapati Guha Thakurta The transformative scale of the Contemporary festival can be best study via Rising budget new forms of sponsorships clusters of 3 Puja pandal all over the city In the year 2000, priorities shifted from the magnitude and opulence of the festivals to streamlined aesthetics of art, craftsmanship and design. There is a relationship between the small scale of the Pandals and the heightened visibility. Even if the poojas are smaller their presence in the city is highlighted by the advertisements, in newspaper and TV reports and promotional posters that starts coming up before the festival occurs this is termed to be a pre-puja e-presence of the festival. These new waves whether in Puja budget or in the corporate or artistic profiles never erase the older trends but keep forming thicker layers and folds over these. In 2006, websites of puja productions started coming up. This is termed as ‘pre-puja e-presence’ The city is covered with such a thick layer of this e-presence that one stops noticing the seasonal shifts of nature in fields and the breeze. The city begins to dress up two months before the puja via announcement banners, newspaper reports, tv features transforming the festival into a televised event. This builds the anticipation and sense of waiting and longing of the people. Eventually, the city undergoes “spatial metamorphosis” over weeks with scaffoldings,bamboo structures, tin sheets, tarpaulin covers, plywood, glass, thermocol

start coming up depending on the themes of respective mandals. These form the urban-scape of the puja in the city. Equal labour often goes in the landscaping of puja sites in addition to intricate details of pandals. Much of the work happens in cardonnedoff spaces, away from public view to maintain a level of secrecy to the theme. In spaces with limitations these pandals often take an interesting form to co-exist with existing functions of the space. These themes become repertoires of disappearing folk, culture, memory, traditions. The act of recreating these settings is often an act of subsuming the ‘folk’ in their own nonindividualised stylistic manner. We enter these spaces knowing fully how fragile they are, how impermanent these structures are and that they will soon disappear. Even after knowing this, it does not deter the ‘seduction’ of these travels in space and time on viewers.

Landscapes of Urban Memory by Smriti Srinivas Themes before 1980’s included - demographic, socio-ecological parameters of the city, services and industrialization, migration, caste and the 3P’s planning, political change, poverty. By the end of 1980’s it changed to gender, pop culture, cinema, aging, urban disaster, colonialism,sciences,archaeology, architecture. Now it is primarily revolving around all things eco-friend, environmentally sensitive. She points out how jatras become interesting acts of mapping the city and neighbourhood they enroute. Every hault is strategic and has cultural/ historical significance. They also help one orient via these nodes in the city. The experience of each festival/jatra is mobilised by :

Moments- brief time Movements - move/ gestures The multiaial, multiplanar surface performative complex

of the

urban

Vistas - view / spectacle Babble - talk / stories Color - tones / aesthetic

A model of the Civic

METHODOLOGY To study the phenomenon of elasticity in urban spaces, the first task is to identify these nodes where the city stretches to capacitate more than it usually would. To further evaluate the research questions, the following questions were asked: Where does the city produce such elasticity from? In what ways does it accommodate these surges? Why does it even do it when it can cause so much stress ? How does it contain this stress? How do these temporal gestations define the city? What is the promise of such gestations? How does elasticity as a trope lend towards thinking about spatiality - swelling & shrinking in these events? How does the city change after it gives birth to the event? How does the neighborhood reorganize itself to facilitate ‘this stretch’ ? Owing to the period of the global pandemic, my visits to the site were restricted therefore interviews became key to my method of field study. In order to address these questions, this thesis studies the festival of Ganesh Chaturthi in the neighborhood of Girgaon, Mumbai.

I was born and bought up in Girgaon, a neighborhood known for the way. The research mainly bases itself on oral stories, routines of people’s lives, secondary resource referencing, images and other data sourced from interviewees. The method will try to document the folding and unfolding of city nodes to accommodate the various complexities that the festival brings. With the help of 9 stories, the labouring of the city will be demonstrated. 6 stories that make this event : Setting up the context : what happens for the rest of the year? The Neighborhood : nature of the festival in the neighborhood, by briefly describing 5 ganesh mandals Schedules: The timeline The organizational Structure : the ganeshotsav mandals Aagaman: Permissions, Assembly, Diverted paths crowd and traffic management Monetary Transactions: Visarjan- Disassembly The detailed stories would be in reference to one ganesh mandal - Girgaoncha Raja, Nikadari lane, Girgaon.

FOLD 1: NEIGHBOUHOOD SENSE Setting The Context Girgaon is located at the foothill and twin hills of Malabar and Cumbala which open into the plains of Girgaum Chowpatty, Khareghat Colony and Gowalia Tank. The Sanskrit term “Giri” stands for hills, whereas the sanskrit word “gram” denotes a village. Thus, it originally meant a village at the foothill of mountains. Situated at the south end of Mumbai, Girgaon is now turning into one of the demanding residential and commercial places due to its geographical location. Girgaon has many wadis and every wadi has a story to tell and follows its own customs. Communities like the Marathi-speakers, Gujarati, Konkani, Jains, Marwaris, Christians, and Hindus follow their own customs and rituals. They celebrate different festivals, customs for birth, marriage, death, and other important events. Therefore, while it is easy to sense that Girgaon is different from other societies, it is very difficult to define conclusively what is essentially Girgaon. Ganesh Chaturthi is celebrated in great style. The area is filled with crowds. It is not only about Ganesh Chaturthi. Girgaon also celebrates other festivals with equal zest whether Diwali, Gokulashtami or Makar Sankranti .

Street Map of Girgaon, Mumbai.

FOLD 2: SCHEDULES The Recurring Calendar The innermost circle charts the space in time the festival takes over the years which ranges from 3 months to 4 months. Further zooming into the year 2019, that is the second circle. Where July and August went in the preparation for the main event that happened in September. The third circles charts out various activities that take place in the month of the event. The orange marks the 11 days of the main event, the yellow marks the transition period and the blue marks the four days required for quick dismantling of the structure that holds the event. The 11 days have events like pujas, mahaprasad, promoting eco-friendly practices and female dominated engagements, that are open to all catering on an average 1000 ppl/day. The 2 weeks following the visarjan are occupied with events in interest for residents only like spardhas (competitions), performances by the residents, orchestra and fun fairs. These cater to an average of 300 ppl/day.

Recurring Calendar: maps the timeline of events

FOLD 2: SCHEDULES The Annual Calendar This Annual Calendar plots when different actors are in motion over the year. The yellow marks the preparatory period and the orange is the time spent in action. The planning and advertising committee start meeting regularly since April. Since the idol here is made insitu using shalu matti or clay, the madap and idol making start two months prior to the event. The security is minimal in this time but yet active to ensure no one sees the murti/process before the main days. Even though banjo and dhol tasha are required only on the first and the last day, their practices begin in august usually under bridges or rented basements. It is interesting to note that the gestation of various layers happens steadily over 2 months but as the event is over it takes very little time for the space to shrink back to normal.

The Annual Calendar

FOLD 3: ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE The Politics Of Governance This diagram explains the layer of governance that organizes this event. The Ganeshotsav Mandal is lead by the Adhyaksh (chairperson), the Pramukh Karyavah (Manager) and the Khajinder (Treasurer). It also has various other teams like the Karyakarni Sadasya (Female Members) Jahirat Samiti (Outreach Team) Vargani Samiti (Fund collection team), Mandap Samiti (Structure Team) and Karyakartas (field team) all supported by the Hitchintaks (well-wishers). With little interference from the government, the festival is solely organized by the residents of the lane. This temporal governance looks at all aspects and negotiates with the local authorities for permissions to accommodate more. They efficiently retain legitimate authority through careful engagement with local governing actors like the police, municipal corporations, fire- fighting team.

Organisational Structure of the Nikadwari Lane Ganeshotsav Mandal

FOLD 1: NEIGHBOUHOOD SENSE Setting The Context Girgaon has many wadis and every wadi has a story to tell and follows its own customs. One such wadi is the dense Nikadari Lane where the Girgaoncha raja sits.

An Aerial perspective to understand the nature of the wadi

FOLD 4: AAGMAN PROCESS Phase 1 : Assembly About 2 months before the event the construction of the structure begins. The mandap is set using locally sourced bamboo and jute ropes at the far end if the lane. care is taken to use a minimum footprint so that the pedestrian and two wheeler paths through that node of the lane are not restricted.

Sketch showing the process of setting up the mandap

FOLD 4: AAGMAN PROCESS Phase 2 : Privacy And Security A trolley is placed in the center. On top of this trolly, a tripod of 3 iron rods is set and fixed to become the skeletal base for the idolof lord Ganesh. With the monsoon appraching heavily, the bamboo framework is covered with tarpaulin sheets on four sides. As the set up for the base is completed care is taken to completely cover the mandap leaving a door to prevent anyone from seeing the murti and its process before the event. this is also done to make sure no damages or hindrances occur during the whole process of making.

Sketch showing the process of setting up the mandap

FOLD 4: AAGMAN PROCESS Phase 3: The Murti The Murti is completely eco-friendly. It is made from hay and shalu maati / clay. The mass of the murti is first completely modelled in hay. This mass is then layered with sahllu maati. Once this layer has dried snaller pieces of hay and jute are used to dfine different characteristics of the murti. The top most layer cracks once it dries. to fill and smoothen them a method of alternate layering and drying of the shallu maati is used to eventually fill cracks and get smooth surfaces to paint on. It takes nearly 2 months to complete this. The smooth surfaces is then painted on using ecofriendly paints that dissolve safely in water when submerged. Multiple layers of paint are used to get the desired finish and look of the murti. The Murti has brrn made by the same family for threee generations and so the look and form of this murti has never changed since its inception.

Right: step by step process of making the murti

FOLD 4: AAGMAN PROCESS Phase 4: Diverted Paths The nikadwari lane when the festiva has not gestated is a tight lane dotted by vehicles parked on both sides of the street. The manner of parking outlines the organic form of the street and turns accordingly.

Nikadwari Lane: in times other than the festivities

FOLD 4: AAGMAN PROCESS Phase 4: Diverted Paths The vehicles that are usually parked inside the lane are moved to make space for the crowds and festivities. Few two-wheelers yet occupy space inside the lane. Most of the vehicles are parked right outside the lane with a sticker given to prevent toing and fines. But doing so narrows the width of the main road that could get troublesome traffic.

Nikadwari Lane: when the festivities begin

FOLD 4: AAGMAN PROCESS Phase 4: Diverted Paths As the time of the event draws near, the temporary structures are built. The Mandap where the idol is placed is at the end of the lane emanating a certain power superiority in its presence. The sides of the lane are adorned with promotional banners and lights hung on bamboo poles. The start of the street is marked by a huge bamboo portal that too is covered with promotional banners. Similar portals are placed at regular intervals on the main road to welcome visitors in the neighborhood. Every year as the festival draws near, the neighborhood undergoes a rapid flux. These neighborhoods transform into becoming nodes of energy and beliefs. They start attracting attention, people and resources like magnets. The neighborhood starts swelling and stretching and folds layers of systems and negotiations into itself to accommodate this volume. It starts transforming when it is time to prepare and procure resources for the festival,

Nikadwari Lane: banners and hoardings

FOLD 4: AAGMAN PROCESS Phase 4: Diverted Paths Once the event commences, dedicated queues of worshippers line up both in the day and at night. With the entrance of the madap dotted with chappals, the lane on the other hand is dotted with smaller vendors selling handmade toys, eco-friendly goods, food items etc.

Nikadwari Lane: gestating qeues

FOLD 4: AAGMAN PROCESS Phase 5: The stretching and swelling This neighborhood transforms into becoming nodes of energy and beliefs. They start attracting attention, people and resources like magnets. The neighborhood starts swelling and stretching and folds layers of systems and negotiations into itself to accommodate this volume. The neighborhood gestates and holds a whole plethora of energy, hope, rituals, colors, chauvinism, aspirations, desires, power relations and fear all overlapping till it finally gives birth to the grand event. For that period, the lives of the people in and around the neighborhood get re-organized. The community does not sleep. The enthusiasm starts setting in and can be seen in the voluntary compromises, shifts and changes almost unconsciously made by people for the long-awaited event.

Nikadwari Lane: during peak visarjan

FOLD 5: MONETARY TRANSACTIONS The Income Of the monetary transactions that take place. 63.6% of the income comes from voluntary donations and 17.9% from advertisement records. These funds are collected from shops in the neighborhood like card stock shops, paper marts, stationeries, mobile stores etc. Although initially, it started with the jahirat committee approaching them, but over the years they have voluntarily and increasingly continued to fund this festival dear to their beliefs. This signifies a close knit network and belief and faith that drives these voluntary compromises.

Income of year ending 31st March 2019

FOLD 5: MONETARY TRANSACTIONS The Expenditure This expense chart shows that nearly 44.6% of money goes into the mandap and decoration. Around 17.1% goes for the shree murti. Followed by other smaller expenses. The Balance and Dan- peti Collections are used for social causes like blood donation camps, Shishyavritti’s or scholarships, food/clothes donation camps, promoting eco-friendly practices etc.

Expenditure of year ending 31st March 2019

FOLD 6: VISARJAN The Route On the 11th day i.e., the Visarjan, the lane stretches immensely accommodating a couple 1000 of people that eagerly come for the banjo - dhol - tasha. Not only residents but also people from the entire neighborhood, their friends and also the people who have moved out of this lace all come together for this visarjan ceremony. The Visarjan follows a route nearly 2.72 kms long. The route has 15 halts, each marking gathering spots, culturally and socially significant nodes in the neighborhood for example the second last halt is a diverted path to pay respects to a murtikar who met with an accident while saving a child. Due to the number of halts and the sheer magnitude of the number of people coming along,this journey that starts in the day, takes around 15 hrs to complete.

Street Map of Girgaon, Mumbai. with visarjan route

FOLD 6: VISARJAN Dis-assembly After a 15 hour long route, the procession finally reached the Girgaon Chowpatty at sunrise. To prevent the wheels of the trolley getting stuck in sand, metal sheets are picked and placed below the tires. The murti once sugmerged, takes a couple of hours to dissolve. Once the visarjan and cleaning up is done, the setup is dismantled rather quickly and collapses to fit on the small trolley that is maintained and reused year after year.

Pictures showing adjustments while taking the trolley in sand

THE STRETCH AND THE FOLD The Fabric The city of Mumbai is densely populated and is a pulse point of religiosity and hope. In spite of being this dense and compact, every now and then it is able to stretch itself to hold more during these festivals and added events. One such event that occurs annually is the festival of Ganesh Chaturthi. Every year as the festival draws near, the neighborhoods in the city undergo a rapid flux. These neighborhoods transform into becoming nodes of energy and beliefs. They start attracting attention, people and resources like magnets. The neighborhood starts swelling and stretching and folds layers of systems and negotiations into itself to accommodate this volume. It starts transforming when it is time to prepare and procure resources for the festival, till it is dismantled and absorbed back into the city. It gestates and holds a whole plethora of energy, hope, rituals, colors, chauvinism, aspirations, desires, power relations and fear all overlapping till it finally gives birth to the grand event. For that period, the lives of the people in and around the neighborhood get re-organized. The community does not sleep. The enthusiasm starts setting in and can be seen in the voluntary compromises, shifts and changes almost unconsciously made by people for the long-awaited event.

Nikadwari lane with the overlayed Fabric

THE STRETCH AND THE FOLD The Fabric when Stressed I’d like you to imagine throwing something heavy at two things - paper and cloth. Paper is hard, when you throw something against it, it will tear and go down instantly. But if you throw the same thing on a cloth, it will hold it. The urban form behaves very similar to this. It is a mesh of instances that happen everyday. When a huge stress is thrown at it, it is able to hold, stretch and be elastic. The neighborhood starts swelling and stretching and folds layers of systems and negotiations into itself to accommodate this stress. What is it that makes it cloth like? There is a physical dimension to the urban form and there is an unseen dimension that is made of several layers - governance, financial, organisational, social. These layers are not necessarily visible, or physical in nature. These layers overlap each other thus making space elastic. The space becomes elastic because of the ability of the form which is able to become fabric like. These festivals are examples where the urban form transforms and becomes elastic. This elasticity is produced by the overlapping of not only the physicality of the space but also these soft non-physical entities. Nikadwari lane with the overlayed Fabric Stretched

THE STRETCH AND THE FOLD Conclusion In an area like Girgaon, when redevelopment is spoken about, the image of the area transform into a series of tall structures and high-rises. I then wonder if the space would be the same? Would it yet allow the form to be elastic and accommodate these added events and festivals? Maybe not. The generic idea of redevelopment would have this space transform in a way that the ground floor becomes parking lots and barricaded. The people living here would move outside, festivals would be celebrated in closed spaces and they would loose its liveliness. Each of these would become these gated entities that would be rigid.

Can redevelopment be rethought so that the urban form does not loose its elasticity?

Nikadwari lane: speculation of the future with generic redevelopment of buildings