A very prominent developer built a fantastic project ,
premium apartments located in east of Pune near Airport. Designed by well known Architectural firm
from Bangalore, the project showcased superbly modern elevations flanked by equally
wonderful landscape in posters and hoardings all around the city. The
construction quality was equally good and while construction was on I had taken
around eighty students of Architecture to study the quality, also how well a
project can be detailed out. This was around two years back when the project
was yet unoccupied.
I recently happed to
visit the same project on a typical enquiry ‘to change a few things’ from a
family residing in this very project. When I walked in to the campus, I could
observe some very interesting things
.
a) The wonderfully designed modern elevation was all looking
‘ Hoch Poch’. People had covered terraces with tin sheets.
b) Many people had put on grills to windows in want of
security .The developers in a vain attempt to protect the look had not provided
grills to windows.
c) There were external ducts in form of a false faced to
hide toilets & dry balconies which were encroached upon in want of more
internal space by people.
d) In some places , where rain water seemed to enter the
windows, external tin roofed chajja / window protection were added done by
fabricators.
e) In the apartment which I visited , I was talking to the
owners how well worked out the layout was by the original Architect, they had
complains all over saying how their furniture wont fit. This family believed in Vastushastra and the developer has not allowed them even
the internal changes in electrical points and fittings leading to shabby external
casing capping electric lines moving on the walls done as per their internal
furniture layout.
f) The original door frames given by the developers for
terrace doors could not accommodate a grill safety door which at times forms a
‘psychological safety’ device.
e) Even at some places the designed landscape seemed to
change.
The question arouse in my mind, When the developer sold
flats to people on the face value of magnificent elevations shown in 3d graphics, hadn’t the same people realized
to asked him, what is the use of a great elevations when it is going to change
within two years of occupation.
Are good looks more
important that the actual person inside ? Same is with a building. People tend
to distort the building envelope and internal spaces to suit their own unique
logics. These patterns are so varied that not one house becomes similar to
another.
You will think ‘ This
happens only in India!’. But world over
people have rejected and changed
designed housing environments. Many of them are examples in Europe , especially
built during the phase and advent of Modern architecture designed by renowned
Master Architects. In culturally diverse
Asian countries like India, during the post Independence period, pre designed
and pre built mass housing projects were thrust upon which were derived from
western modernism principles. Strangely our ancestors built organic cities with
their own houses and communities by themselves.
As with human communities, change is a way of life in ‘Residential
environments’. A ‘post occupational
survey’ done for housing project can give you valuable answers of what
people want. We are living in times of an ‘Emergent Architecture’ or better
‘Emergent Customization’ done by the people for the people. It may be worthwhile embracing a ‘Democratic’
way to Design.
There can be new design patterns which can interpret the change people demand in more designed manner to encompass beauty within the changing framework.
Ar. Hrishikesh Ashtekar
