19 Comments

There is an architectural movement called Critical Regionalism which talks about the idea of building in context, using material that are locally available, responding to local climate and culture. Charles Correa, Laurie Baker, Nari Gandhi and a few others practiced this but the current trend is doing just the reverse sadly.

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Now that you say it, I remember reading about this in a story about Minnette de Silva of Sri Lanka and her designs.

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Yes. Minnette and Geoffrey Bawa were a part of that movement.

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Only in Mumbai

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I have a mix of images here. From Pune, Hyderabad, Bangalore and Mumbai, Thane, Navi Mumbai, Mira-Bhayandar

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Got it

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Superb photo series! Loved the way you framed the towers and juxtaposed the caged birds. Such an evocative image.

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Thank you, Rohan. Those birds are actually crows. In Hyderabad. A city where you don't see much crows and they sell them in cages.

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Thank you. Will check out the book. I listened to the Tamil book on storytel. It’s quite nice and so is his Hyderbad book - 11th Parallel which is available in translation.

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Glad you have shown this hideous concretisation thru' pictures. It's sad how every city is being converted into a concrete jungle

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Excellent piece but so unsettling and almost disturbing to go through.

The photographs made me claustrophobic. Gopal sir, please take a visual storytelling workshop sometime. I don't live in Bombay anymore so online would be nicer. Eager to learn from you.

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Love this.

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Though we are living this on a daily basis, these images hit you hard and underscores your point. It feels like we are living in a dystopian era. Sad!

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Thank you. The dystopia should be photographed!!!

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It’s sad. I hope the city remains the same in some of its parts. I can see change in my own birth precinct of Dadar Parsi Colony. Old Parsi homes are being pulled down in favor of in your face tall buildings. Navi Mumbai growing up was that, Navi. No more! Change is hard. Change at the expense of losing tradition and identity is harder!

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I ll be happy if the values and character that make the city special is retained or strengthened through all this massive change!

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A true documentation of the urban phenomenon. Stories will come from those who are disenfranchised,

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Sadly so. The disenfranchised. If you have any book or movie recommendations about this phase of our urbanisation. Do let me know. I. Tamil, there was one book by Ashokamitran called Thanneer from a long time back that still echoes today’s cities.

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Oh, I would like to read the translated work. I have read Ashis Nandy's Intimate Enemy. It's on a different subject, but answers some of the questions raised here.

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