Vir Shah, B.Arch. alumnus won the second prize in the International Essay Writing Competition organised by the Council of Architecture. Themed on 'Role of Architecture in Nation Building', Vir's essay 'UNTITLED', highlighted the importance of people participating in the process of nation-building alongside architecture and design. Keep reading as he divulges more details about the essay, the thought process behind it, his aims and aspirations, and his rendezvous with architecture.

Q. What inspired you to pursue architecture?

A question I’d never have an answer for and I suppose I like it that way. It keeps my drive alive for understanding the discipline. However, I chose architecture at a later stage in my life. Until then, I had a cursory understanding of the field. Looking back, I feel that the physical surroundings I was brought up in played a vital role subconsciously, in my decision to follow this path and imbibed a liking for the art and craft. In the five years of understanding and learning architecture, I was introduced to a whole new dimension and explored various perspectives that helped me in perceiving architecture, not as a profession but rather an experience and a medium. To me, architecture is more about humanising and sensitising spaces and experiences. It is not just about designing shelters but thinking through one’s minds, conditions and milieu in which one survives.

Q. What ideas did you want to convey through your essay?

I attempted to address the questions before asserting what architecture is and what role does it play into the process of nation-building, i.e. “Is architecture used at its full potential as a tool to build the nation with sensitive efficiency? Or, is there a need for widening the range of planes where it operates?”. I have attempted to answer these questions through my essay alongside identifying some broader domains where architecture has a significant role to play.

1. For sincere participation of the people in nation-building, architecture must invoke the ancestral roots and pull out cultural threads from the surviving specimens of ancient times.

2. Temporal and transient articulations of space are often dismissed as hindrances to the protection of an ‘image’ to our global contemporaries. However, architecture’s dissociation with such informal mechanisms of the city results in critical, hazardous and volatile living conditions.

3. Architectural practices in cities and towns present the profession as a highly urban phenomenon detached from the slow morphing of Indian villages. Sustainable built spaces must support participatory schemes that ensure economic viability in the continuation of farming practices and vernacular crafts.

4. Cities allow us to shed the baggage of labels imposed upon by society and assume individualistic identities. Cities are conglomerations where the country’s talent accumulates and builds expertise. Hence, cities can be considered the building blocks of a nation. The architects should design cities in a way to accommodate these pluralists identities, changing lifestyle patterns and social needs.

5. New cities are like laboratories for experimentation in architecture. They serve as the ground to test theories and concepts that best suit the context. For a nation to progress, these experiments are crucial and as non-negotiable as those in the fields of medicine, agriculture and technology.

To be honest, I never thought of using the platform as a medium to share my ideas on this scale. I feel fortunate and grateful for getting an opportunity to put forth my thoughts.

Q. Which elements from India’s past architecture should be implemented for a better future?

The inclusive, visionary and extrovert nature of India’s architecture has been a major driving force and helped put India in the forefront. Significant buildings have showcased India’s talent and have become symbols of innovation and progress. Indian architecture is closely associated with the complex web of social, political and economic forces which shaped the vision of the then independent India and had put out a word of comfort among the people, reminding them of their freedom and rights. Cultural inferences, sensitivity, region and vision were significant factors of architectural marvels of that era.

Q. Any piece of wisdom that would help future architects make the nation better?

It’s a quest and more importantly about carving possibilities for the future without disrupting links with the past, to quote my essay.

I am unsure how India’s growing architecture will turn out to be, but it is important to understand that every era has had its nature, character and link. However, we also need to accept the evolving nature of the discipline and that, through spatial morphologies, we will be able to develop perceptions relative to our immediate surroundings. Keeping this in mind and acting accordingly will help us shape the future of architecture.