Hall of Nations. ITPO doesn't want it, the Ministry of Commerce and Industry thinks it holds no currency, and the Delhi Government's Heritage Conservation Ccommittee see no heritage in it. So are there other ways to save it?  With this in view, Architexturez sent out a call over social media, we asked anyone, everyone, to 'save' the buildings by placing them everywhere in our imaginary, to see, if the universal values embodied in here can allow it to find new sites in our imagining - if they will endure. 

Shubhra Raje and Vrinda Jariwala placed the buildings in situ within contemporary pieces of cinema and literature.

The mystery revolves around the abbey library, situated in a fortified tower—the aedificium—in Umberto Eco's "The Name of the Rose" (1980)
The mystery revolves around the abbey library, situated in a fortified tower—the aedificium—in Umberto Eco's "The Name of the Rose" (1980): One of the principle tasks of an architect is to shape rooms and spaces. In a similar way in which an architect uses his plans and sketches to illustrate his vision, a writer uses his words to express his thoughts. In fact, Eco seems to be an author who is very concerned about being precise in not only describing historical events, but also in setting the architectural backdrop of his novels. His intentions have also been visualized in Jean-Jacques Annaud’s movie of the same title. © Shubhra Raje (image) Vanessa Werder (text)

It is demanded by a section of Delhi society and its socialites that these buildings be conserved. Conservation, however, in a primary sense refers to the ability to determine that a certain quantity will remain the same despite adjustment of the container, shape, or apparent size1 it is an ability we acquire as children.

  • 1. Piaget, J. (1965). The child's conception of number. New York: W. Norton Company & Inc.