Map 19: Important nodes, street hierarchy and sites of buildings in Bara Bazar and Park Street

housing the important religious structures (mid 19th century and earlier) and Park Street, housing the grand mansions built by the community (early 20th century). Bara Bazar and Park Street contain different unique urban contexts and architectural styles which are elaborated below.

7.2.1 Urban Context

The urban context of Bara Bazaar is mainly defined by the building use, street hierarchy and urban density. As mentioned in chapter 4, page 34, Brabourne road acts like a main spine connecting most of the religious structures, it contains more modern buildings, compared to the many traditional buildings along the secondary and tertiary roads.

Park Street is defined by the scale and prominence of its mansions, as well as the commercial establishments. Its urban density is larger than that of Bara Bazar. The area also contains three educational institutions, two Armenian and one Jewish institute.

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Map 19: Important nodes, street hierarchy and sites of buildings in Bara Bazar and Park Street

Both places contain important nodes, that are defined by the architecture (Refer Map 19). The urban context influences an individual's perception of the architecture. As most of the important religious structures are located in Bara Bazar, it represents the communities significance in the area. Park Street represents the development of the communities over time, showing the change in the orientation of their businesses, from smaller business establishments in Bara Bazar to larger mansions in Park Street.

7.2.2 Chronology

Most buildings of the two communities were built during the British empire and were influenced by the architectural trends that were started by the British, (use of prevalent styles and building techniques, using architecture to make strong political statements and emphasise power). The time period dictated the social and cultural principles, which were kept in mind while designing buildings. Many religious structures were built in the 1800s, while the mansions in the 1900s. The architecture of the mansions represented how the communities had developed to adapt to the context at that time period.

7.2.3 Stylistic Issues

The local context had a strong influence on the buildings built by the communities. Neoclassical, Edwardian, Victorian, Indo Saracenic introduced by the British, are some of the styles that were seen throughout the city. With time, the influence of the prevalent trends grew stronger and was observed in most of the Jewish and Armenian buildings. It helped make the buildings historically identifiable but sometimes be misinterpreted as British colonial buildings.

7.3 Detailed Studies of Selected Examples

For detailed studies, similar buildings in the two sites were selected. Along with the Armenian and Jewish structures, religious buildings of other communities were also selected for comparison. This selection was based on their function and age. The analysis is divided into two parts Urban Context and Architectural Style.

7.3.1 Urban Context

With the study of the buildings in the two areas, the analysis brought out the important role they play in the context. The buildings did not stand as individual entities but were a part of the urban fabric, defined by their scale, orientation, and visual linkages. (Refer Table 8 and 9)

Inferences from the study: • Standing as landmarks, the religious buildings serve an important role in the urban context. • The religious buildings stood on sites which act like islands in a busy congested market in Bara Bazar. • The buildings displayed a strong interconnection between business, religion and social life of the people in the area. • Currently, most of the religious buildings are underused and now only play a role in serving, visitors and the few members that remain. • In the early 20th century, the more important its location the more thought was put into the design. • The similarities in scale and profile of the mansions of Park Street helped give them a unique identity. • When a building was built it did not only serve as an identity for a community but also for the area. It made the area unique with many landmarks and used different adapted styles. Scale, orientation, profile and prominence helped define the building.