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PROJECT EKA
URBAN REVIVAL PROJECT Project type Project area Location College Team Role Program
: Urban design : 4 Acres (16,188 Sqm) : Shivajinagar, Bengaluru; IN : M S Ramaiah Institute of Technology, Bengaluru, IN : Kiran Balakrishna, Ashwin Nambiar and Smera Rose Jacob : Conceptual & design development, renders and presentation : Annual NASA Design Competition (ANDC) - 2016
The city of Bangalore has always been a city of dreams and imagination owing to its vast range of people and cultures. The proposal deals with one of the oldest and the most iconic parts of the city. The site is surrounded by iconic buildings with the historic Russell market being the main focus. The site chosen for re-vitalization boasts of a rich historic lineage. Russell market is a landmark in its own right in the vast city of Bangalore. The vibrant nature of the envisaged market have gradually begun losing its sheen as it were, as time progressed and was gradually sinking into one of disrepute and degradation. The proposal is to uplift and re-vitalize the existing fabric of people. The concept prioritizes and demarcates spaces that encourage interaction between people in a micro as well as macro level. The introduction of a sunken plaza with tiered seating in curvilinear fashion addressing the monumental façade of the rejuvenated market wall is primarily done with the intention of breaking the monotony of the existing space. The carved-out plaza with cobble-stone paving is envisioned as a multi-faceted interactive space that attempts to recapture the potential vibrancy of an era gone by. The effort has been primarily to rejuvenate the existing historical market rather than uproot it and relocate it into a new building. Curtailment of vehicular intervention becomes a major hurdle in such exercises and this has been taken care of by providing parking in neighbouring areas while access to the plaza is ‘pedestrianized’. A plethora of hawkers are encouraged to exhibit and sell their wares in the plaza thus invigorating the space. A free-standing bridge made of steel and wooden planks connects the upper part of the building to the street thus providing a much needed access to the higher floors of the building while not being too intrusive on the activities happening below. The style in which the pathway has been designed shows the drastic change in the style of architecture from the time in which the market was built to the present time. Also the fact that the modern styled mural co-exists with a historic structure captures the feel of the locality where people of different communities live together harmoniously. The numerous planks provided below the trees serves as seating for the floating crowd which comes in and also serve as pop up stalls during the different festive seasons in the locality round the year.
Up: Location of the site // Map of Shivajinagar, Bengaluru, IN