Story of Chandigarh

In this episode, we explore the monuments of the Capitol Complex - their meanings, functions and origins. We critique the symbolism of the Open Hand and its present-day transformation and overuse as a symbol. We also briefly discuss the mythical status of Chandigarh in the architectural imagination.

TIMESTAMPS:

1:10 - What might be the reason behind the lack of literature around the monuments in the Capitol Complex?

2:13 - What are the different monuments?

3:16 - The missing sculptures of the Martyr's Memorial

4:41 - The martyrdom / end of history and the lack of statues in the city

6:10 - The Tower of Shadows and the Artificial Hill (24 Solar Hours) and 'briese-soleil'

7:54 - The Capitol monuments as an ode to the cosmos

10:01 - Monuments as shrines of Corb's belief system akin to Nehru's dams

10:49 - Similarity to 'follies' with lack of a defined program

12:53 - The invention of new 'modernist rituals'

13:19 - Monuments as 'direction indicators' and 'mileposts'

16:05 - Could the monuments be read as cubist objects that act peripherally to reframe the main buildings?

16:48 - The 'original' concept of the folly in British stroll gardens and Chinese/Japanese gardens

18:57 - The genesis of the Open Hand - a symbol of the 'second machine age'… open to give and receive

21:28 - The Cold War, the Non-Aligned Movement and independent thinking - utopian vision articulated in the Open Hand

25:12 - Sidestepping the dualities of East-West critiques around Chandigarh; 'Non-Aligned Modernism'

26:10 - The 'situationist' modus operandi of modernism

27:14 - What does the ubiquitousness of the Open Hand as a symbol of Chandigarh do its meaning?

28:11 - The uncontrollable transformation and dissemination of symbols / Fondation Le Corbusier's Open Hand logo

31:37 - Other monument like structures and symbols around the city

33:37 - Monuments collectively as objects of intrigue

35:44 - Chandigarh's status as mythical in the public imagination

In this episode, we explore the missing building(s) of the Capitol Complex - the Governor's Palace and the Museum of Knowledge. We explore the formal brilliance of the Governor's Palace and Corbusier's idea of the museum. We also talk about the mythical status of Chandigarh in the west and the possibility of reinterpreting the program of the museum of knowledge.

TIMESTAMPS:

1:16 - What was the initial thinking behind the Governor's Palace and why was the project scrapped.

3:59 - Corb's practice of collaging elements into a single composition.

5:36 - Corbusier, Picasso, the 'masculine bull'.

9:16 - Leonardo da Vinci's Vitruvian man as a precursor to the Modulor man.

10:42 - The contrast between the interior and the exterior of the Governor's Palace.

13:01 - Scrapping the Governor's 'Palace' for being an 'undemocratic' idea.

14:01 - Scaling down the Governor's Palace using the 'Modulor'

15:13 - The dramatization of the Assembly building.

16:36 - The Mundaneum, Museum of Unlimited Growth, Olivetti's computers and the idea of the Museum of Knowledge.

20:25 - The future of the museum, data and knowledge

21:13 - Information access vs knowledge production

24:40 - The program of the Museum of Knowledge

26:51 - Futurity, utopia and uncertainty in the Corbusier's Capitol.

30:07 - Historic preservation 'sleight of hand' - the Governor's Palace shell proposed with the Museum of Knowledge program.

32:00 - Corbusier's reduction to a formalist

36:40 - The 'mythical' status of Chandigarh in the West - the 'double exotic'.

39:37 - The orientalist fetishization of Chandigarh furniture.

42:52 - Reinterpreting the program of the Museum of Knowledge - an ephemeral event?

In this episode, we explore the Assembly building in Chandigarh. We discuss the evolution of its design, examining how it became the focal point of the Capitol Complex. We also critique the sculptural form of the building and the symbolic significance of the painted enamel door.

TIMESTAMPS:

1:07 - Why does the Assembly building seem to be in the centre of the Capitol? Was this always the case?

3:51 - How did the scrapping of the Governor's Palace change the design and significance of the Assembly?

5:58 - Hyperbolic paraboloid connection to cooling towers of thermal power stations in Ahmedabad

9:44 - Assembly as self-conscious structure - the 'bull' metaphor

11:25 - Relationship to the cosmos in the Assembly building

13:47 - Developing a modernist ethics of living

18:10 - The sense of the sacred and divine in the Assembly chamber

24:32 - The roof of the Assembly with the amphitheater and bridge

26:19 - The painted enamel door and its visual concepts

28:43 - Corbusier's fascination with the right angle

32:32 - The 'potato' cutouts as portholes or eyes

34:13 - The presence of the hand and its connection to arts and crafts

36:29 - Chandigarh, democracy and the embodiment of the Nehruvian state as a counterpoint to Lutyens' Delhi.

In the sixth episode, we explore the Secretariat building. We discuss Corbusier's transformation of the building, its Excel spreadsheet architecture, its oceanliner-like quality, and its potential for infinite expansion. We also highlight the uniqueness of its ramps and roof garden.

TIMESTAMPS:

1:48 - The original 'UN style' vertical design and the current 'Unité-esque' form and orientation of the Secretariat building.

5:02 - The Capitol Complex as Corbusier's playground.

7:28 - Analogy of the Writers' Building in Calcutta - Secretariat as a bureaucratic machine.

11:55 - Utility and beauty - the Secretariat and the Oceanliner.

14:25 - Pilotis and uninterrupted nature - Rajendra Park and Leisure valley

17:48 - Modular facade elements and rough Indian craftsmanship

18:56 - Excel Spreadsheet Architecture™

20:19 - The Ramp as a sensual, schizophrenic, heterotypic space

24:55 - The extruded Secretariat - infinite expansion

27:51 - The roof garden with the parasol viewing platform

35:48 - The echo of a dam in the Secretariat's form

In the fifth episode, we'll talk about the High Court, the first building to be constructed within the Capitol Complex. We discuss its likeness to an umbrella, its weightlessness and the experience of the uncanny. We also discuss the interiors and specifically the tapestries of the high court as well as Corbusier's flexible approach to executing his vision.

TIMESTAMPS:

1:19 - Why was the High Court the first building to come up?

1:50 - The 'umbrella' analogy: visual, literary, mythological

5:35 - Making it look structural: The visual trickery of the roof and arches of the high court

9:02 - Cooling the air by compressing and releasing the prevailing winds

10:27 - A building in which Corbusier engages all the elements

14:28 - Weightlessness of the high court building ; plan-elevation interplay

19:36 - 'Doubling' of the facade in the reflecting pools; horizontal symmetry

25:04 - The experience of the 'uncanny' & the Barcelona Pavilion

32:38 - Multiplicity of readings in works of art

33:39 - The pylons marking a 'ramp in the sky'

35:24 - The hidden extension to the high court

38:52 - The tapestries and the symbols of law, balance and harmony

42:21 - Rough texture of 'hand-poured' concrete

44:37 - Corbusier's flexible approach to execution and foreseeing future changes

48:59 - The ramp as architectural promenade

In the fourth episode, we discuss the implications of the UNESCO Heritage designation for the Capitol Complex on Chandigarh. We discuss Corbusier's process of siting the Capitol and its connection to cubism and the cosmos. We also talk about the intentionally open-ended quality of the Capitol Complex and how it relates to the future of citizenry and a faith in the nation's future.

TIMESTAMPS:

1:08 - The UNESCO Heritage Tag for the Capitol Complex and its consequences. Which parts of the city were included and why wasn't the whole city included?

5:31 - Barbed wire, controlled access to the Capitol and guided tours

6:01 - Eurocentric exclusion of Jeanneret and other architects from UNESCO recognition

10:44 - The Capitol as Corbusier's tour de force

14:39 - The siting of the buildings in the Capitol

17:00 - Corbusier and cubist architecture

21:37 - Corbusier's fascination with India's rural landscape and integration of the city and the village.

25:06 - Monumentality, temples and the cosmos in relation to the Capitol

30:48 - Buildings as celestial objects; the Capitol and its invocation of the sky

34:30 - The 'East-West' dichotomy and the change in perception of Chandigarh after the 70s and postmodernism

40:31 - Corruption, the Emergency and the attack on Nehruvian modernism

44:05 - The Open Hand, Nehru's Non-Aligned Movement and the Third World.

46:52 - The open-ended, leaky Capitol Complex

49:28 - Citizenry, anticipatory democracy and nation building in the context of Chandigarh and India

52:49 - Aesthetic masterpieces of Le Corbusier OR crowning achievements of the aspirations of the Indian nation state and its faith in the future?

In this episode, we will talk about the development of the Chandigarh masterplan. We will look at the design strategy behind the streets, the philosophy of the sector and the role of 'mistakes' in the masterplan. We'll also learn how Corbusier paid homage to the Mayer-Nowicki plan as well as the anthropomorphic nature of the Chandigarh plan. Finally, we'll briefly discuss the placement of the Capitol Complex and the Sukhna Lake.

TIMESTAMPS:

1:13 - What was the thinking behind the zig-zag arrangement of the sectors? Where is sector 13?

4:59 - The reason behind the curve in the Madhya Marg and other east-west marks

6:46 - 'Mistakes' in the masterplan; embracing the perfectly imperfect roughness of the concrete

8:57 - Reasons behind the hierarchy embedded in the plan and housing types

10:33 - Where is the 'heart' of the city? What makes sector-22 special?

13:08 - Corbusier's proposal of mass housing blocks for Chandigarh; the extendability of the Secretariat

16:00 - The modularity of the masterplan set up for southward expansion

18:22 - Anthropomorphism in Chandigarh's plan; the logic of the green belts as continuous playing fields

21:28 - The layout of the sector and homage to Mayer & Nowicki in the Corbusier plan in certain sectors

25:24 - Special sectors for museums (sector 10) and schools (sector 26)

27:54 - Was the golf course and Chandigarh club part of the original brief for the city?

30:56 - Corbusier complaining to Nehru and not being paid enough

33:35 - The internal facing sector houses, sheltered from traffic across the city

35:35 - The 'displacement' of villages to accommodate the masterplan; except for temples

37:22 - Chandigarh's unique tree planting strategy and MS Randhawa's role

41:21 - The siting of the Capitol Complex compared to the Mayer-Nowicki plan

44:24 - PL Verma, dams and a brief history of the lake

In this episode we will talk about how the Chandigarh Capital Project team was selected. When did Corbusier and Jeanneret enter the picture and how was the rest of the team assembled? Who were the people displaced by Chandigarh and where did the labourers involved in the city's construction come from? We will also discuss the team's heirarchy and how the work was divided amongst them.

TIMESTAMPS:

1:07 - How and when did Le Corbusier become a part of the team?

3:23 - Was the idea of a competition ever floated to select the architects?

5:03 - How did Jane Drew and Maxwell Fry enter the project, following their African experience?

7:34 - Corbusier's terms and conditions for joining the Chandigarh project

8:36 - The deal: Jeanneret to be in Chandigarh on behalf of Corbusier

12:24 - Corbusier's preference to work from home

14:55 - CIAM's role in globalising modernist architecture

17:46 - The false East-West dichotomy in Chandigarh's discourse

19:51 - Criteria for selecting the younger architects

22:58 - Chandimandir rest house office as described by Mulk Raj Anand; how Corbusier 'shrunk' the Mayer plan.

27:30 - Land surveying and road laying by the engineers before shifting the office to Chandigarh

28:33 - The first building in Chandigarh - Capital Project Office in Nagla (Sector-19)

28:53 - The first houses came up in sector 22 to house the architects and engineers

30:28 - Labourers showed up in Chandigarh… from where? Were they trained on-site?

31:11 - The untold stories of the people and villages displaced to make way for Chandigarh

35:26 - The first 'inhabitants' of Chandigarh

36:17 - Corbusier fascinated by Indians carrying their beds on their heads!

37:00 - Jeanneret's design for the Sector-19 Planners' Office

38:46 - How the junior architects joined the team

39:44 - How was the work divided amongst the architects?

41:51 - The order of constructing the institutional buildings

42:57 - The conflict between white painted plaster and exposed bricks

In our first episode, join us as we explore the origins of the modernist city of Chandigarh, with Dr. Vikramāditya Prakāsh. How did the partition of India and Pakistan lead to its creation? Who were the idealized inhabitants of this utopian city? How was the site selected? What was the Garden City movement, how does it relate to Nehruvian modernism?

TIMESTAMPS:

Hosted & Produced by Eashan Chaufla

storyofchandigarh@gmail.com