‘BAD CHOICE’

ARCHITECTS IN THE CITY ARE SHOCKED THAT A NON-PROFESSIONAL HAS BEEN ASKED TO ASSIST IN DESIGNING A CAPITAL CITY

Rajamouli is a creative person, but his field of creativity is very different from urban design. He is more accustomed to designing temporary film sets whereas architecture is permanent. We need someone who understands not just a city but the people too. A city has to be designed for the people who live in it and I think there are better qualified persons than film directors. He might be the best in his own field, but that doesn’t make him an ideal choice to design a city. He could be taken on the committee as an advisor as he does know a little bit about art and culture.

YESHWANT RAMAMURTHY, Architect

He’s not qualified to design a town as he is not an architect or a town planner. Art and architecture have different dynamics; they aren’t interchangeable. Town planning jobs should be left to professionals who know their job. I’m actually shocked by the request. I can still understand if they want to take his suggestions to design a particular town square or have some artwork in a particular location, but he may not serve the purpose as the domain of urban planning and designing requires a lot of professional skills.

MANOJ DAISARIA, Architect and former president of Practising Engineers Architects and Town Planners Association

I’m surprised. Designing a town is serious business. A town, unlike a film set, should be workable as people reside there. Aspects like usability, strategic thinking, public consultation, policy recommendations, implementation, management and more come into the picture while designing a township. It’s like visiting a beautician to get a nose job done when you actually have to see a cosmetologist.

ABHA NARAIN LAMBHA, Conservation architect and winner of seven Unesco AsiaPacific Awards for conservation (As told to SWATI SHARMA AND AARTI BHANUSHALI)