The recent project to redevelop the Central Vista in New Delhi and the design competition conducted to launch this project, involves remaking the spatial epi-centre of India’s democracy.
Given its significance, the project leaves unanswered several questions of key significance particularly to do with the vision for such an overhaul, the evaluation of what exists and the processes by which such large public works are conceptualised and awarded.
Speakers
Prem Chandavarkar, Managing Partner, CnT Architects, Bangalore
Prem is a practicing architect in Bangalore, India, who also writes, lectures and blogs on architecture, urbanism, art, cultural studies, politics, philosophy & education.
Madhav Raman, Architect & urbanist
Madhav Raman is an architect and urbanist. He co-founded Anagram Architects in 2001, with Vaibhav Dimri. Anagram Architects is internationally recognised as amongst the top emerging practices in the world with a commitment towards delivering deeply contextual designs that encourage sustainable lifestyles
Over the years the practice has garnered much international acclaim including a nomination for the Aga Khan Award 2010 and inclusion in the Wallpaper* Magazine’s “Architects Directory 2009”. Its work has been premiated at the Architectural Review’s World Emerging Architecture Awards 2007, the Cityscape Architectural Awards 2008, 2010 & 2016, the Wienerberger Brick Awards 2010, the SAIE Bologna 2010, 2011 and 2012, the Holcim Award for Sustainable Construction2011, the Indipool India’s Best Design Studio Award 2017. They have been included in AD50, the Architectural Digest’s list of the 50 influential Indian designers for 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017.
Keenly involved in academia, Madhav conducts workshops and guides research in various design schools.
Amritha Ballal, Architect & writer
Amritha Ballal, is an architect, urbanist and writer. With a focus on socially sustainable design and inclusive cities, Amritha has spearheaded projects that are diverse in scale and nature, ranging from one of the first Integrated Development Plans for an urban village in Delhi, the Bhopal Gas Tragedy post disaster brownfield redevelopment, as well as urban renewal of living heritage precincts in Ajmer and Margao in India, She teaches at the School of Planning and Architecture, Delhi and her published works include Landscapes of Memory (2012) on post disaster urban landscapes , and The city is our home (2011) on the spatiality urban homelessness. Amritha has been nominated in the global shortlist for emerging women in architecture awards 2013 by the Architecture Journal , UK, and the Rolex Mentor Protege awards 2014.
Biju Kuriakose, Architect & co-founder, architectureRED
Biju Kuriakose co-founded architectureRED, an architecture and urban design firm based out of Chennai, India. Having studied architecture in Mumbai, Biju received his Master’s Degree in Architecture and Urban design from Pratt Institute, New York.
aRED’s current projects include developing master plans for three townships in Tamil Nadu, a mixed-use master plan for the city of Salalah in Oman, a 1.5 million sf middle income housing development in Bangalore, housing projects of varying scales in Chennai, Bangalore and Trivandrum as well as multiple institutional buildings within the Crescent University, Chennai.
architectureRED has won several national as well as international design awards including the World Architecture News Award for the “Best Urban design project” in 2009 for the master-plan of Nordhavnen in Copenhagen as well as IIA National Award in 2016 for “Airport city” in Oman. In 2015, architectureRED made it to AD50, a selection of the top 50 design firms in the Indian sub-continent by Architectural Digest magazine.
Prior to founding architectureRED, Biju was an Associate at FXFOWLE Architects, a leading architectural, planning and urban design firm based out of New York.
Biju has been invited to several prestigious forums including Metropolitan Waterfront Alliance- New York, Pratt Institute and Columbia University, NY, as a speaker and studio critic. He was also invited to be part of the Goethe Institute’s Visitors Program 2017 in Germany, looking at water issues and studying the relationship of water to communities. He currently teaches at School of Architecture and Planning, Anna University, Chennai as an External studio critic.
Sudhir Krishnaswamy, Moderator
Professor Sudhir Krishnaswamy has been appointed Vice-Chancellor of National Law School of India University, Bangalore. His research focus is on constitutional law and politics and the empirical analysis of the legal system. He is a Founder and Trustee of the Centre for Law and Policy Research, Bangalore.