Zine #2 : Mannu Palla

mannu palla

Vo l u m e 1 | I s s u e 0 1 | A p r i l 2 0 2 0

m 2

lester silveira | the balcĂŁo

mannu : palla ( Mud : pond)

manipal

Tiger Circle

editorial

Dr. T.M.A. Pai was no architect, at least not in the contemporary sense of the word.

However, many sources refer to him as the ‘Architect’ of present day Manipal. And rightly so. But he was much more than that. He combined the foresightedness of an urban planner with the command of a great leader, and as you will come to see later in the magazine, the vision of an architect.

Dr. T.M.A. Pai literally created a vibrant town out of scratch. He will always be remembered for the way he transformed Manipal from a barren hill into a citadel of learning - all thanks to his incredible perseverance, hard work and grit.

It’s interesting to dwell into the subject of modern towns and cities that were built in the 1900s. The most high profile of them all - Chandigarh. It was a truly revolutionary moment for India as Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru commisioned Le Corbusier to design a capital city for Punjab. But away from the pomp and granduer, and nestled between the Western Ghats and the Konkan coast was Manipal, where something special was underway long before India had even gained independence. Manipal was a truly alien idea at the time. There were critics, and detractors. But what resulted from the endeavours of its creators was something extraordinary - which is why it was such a beautiful experience to document and make this issue.

I think it is essential for architects to look upto certain characters that shape thought, or who have the power to shape society. Correa often spoke about Nehru and his ideas for a modern India. Architect Michael Murphy once said ‘To be an architect is to sit at the table of power’. It is important for architects and planners to work in tandem with such leaders to bring about the best of each others ideas and make it a reality so that citizens benefit at large.

Personally, having studied at the Manipal School of Architecture & Planning, I have ultimately, to thank Dr. Pai for becoming an architect. It was not so straightfroward, and is a story that can very well be reserved for another day. After rejection from Goa College of Architecture, Manipal stepped in and offered me a lifeline when I was heading nowhere. And I feel I am indebted to Dr. Pai for this. They say that each student who graduates is a living testimony to the work Dr. Pai put in. And so it is.

This zine will touch upon the greatness of Dr. T.M.A. Pai, will take you through the transformation of ‘mannu palla’ to Manipal, and offer insights into the history of the university town.

Enjoy!

- lester silveira the balcão

a note The zine, as i like to call it, is a short collection of essays and graphics on a particular theme. The difference between reading one essay, and a host of them with some carefully placed visuals, is huge. Sometimes, the true essence of something you want to convey can only be done through a concentrated dose of information on the topic, thoughtfully spaced out with effective pauses inbetween. In this way you can feel the impact of the subject tenfold - something a solitary written article can not offer you.

whats inside

02

essay

10

cover story

22

essay

32

time capsule

Dr. T.M.A Pai : architect of modern manipal

mannu-palla : from mud pond to university town

manipals tryst with art deco

kamath’s - forever in our memories

Click the page number or title to

jump straight to the page!

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essay essay

Dr. T.M.A. Pai : architect of modern day manipal

All photos in this article, and entire zine are courtesy Manipal Group except stated otherwise

Dr. TMA Pai was no ‘architect’, at least not in the contemporary sense of the word. But he was much more than that. A wise planner, an excellent tactician and a great leader. The fruits of his efforts are visible in a single trip to Manipal.

But what was it that motivated him? We take a look at what influenced young Madhava Pai and how he overcame his hardships to leave a indelible mark on the whole of India.

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It’s quite rare for someone to obtain ‘legendary’ status whilst still alive. On the face of it, Dr. T.M.A. Pai was quite an ordinary man, but his vision, courage and perseverance to achieve his dream set him aside as a special individual. He was an exemplary person, who dedicated his life towards improving the three pillars of society healthcare, banking and education. But the path was filled with adversity - and Dr. Pai had to overcome many obstacles to fulfil his mission.

Tonse Madhava Ananta Pai was born on 30th April 1898 into a poor Brahmin family in the village of Kallianpur, around 12km from Mangalore. His father passed away at an early age, and the family struggled with earning their daily bread. Even in this dire situation, Madhava Pai went to school with financial help from his brothers and uncle. He was a bright student, and never missed an opportunity to learn. In doing so, he attained a scholarship to learn medicine at the Madras University.

A young Madhava Pai

A family photo : The Pais

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Skilled Surgeon, Pioneering healthcare A huge turning point in Madhava Pai’s life came after he obtained his medical degree and was about to shift to Hong Kong to set up his practice there. He had loans to repay and debts to be settled with his uncles. The prospects of working abroad where he could be handsomely paid was attractive to him. Dr. Pai had even sold some of his wife’s jewellery to purchase surgical instruments from Germany. But when he approached his mother about it, her blessing was not forthcoming :

‘You must stay with us; you must serve your own country; you must serve your kith and kin. You have been away for years.

I am growing old now. I must see your greatness with my own eyes, and God will bless you if you stay here. As long as I am alive, you must see that all my ambitions are fulfilled by you. You must be a great and good son to me’’.

(Recorded in The Pais of Manipal by Selden Menefee)

These words left a deep impact on him. He ditched his plans to go abroad, redirected the instruments from Germany to Udupi and set up a small clinic there. Dr. Pai began treating patients there and soon became known for his skilfulness as a surgeon. But he was also more than that. He was a pioneer in healthcare in his locality.

There was plenty of skepticism surrounding medicinal care in the early 1900s especially in the rural surroundings of Udupi. Dr. Pai went beyond the expectations set of him and attached a nursing home to his clinic to nurse patients back to health as he believed that the post treatment recovery period was as important as the treatment. He was a staunch supporter of modern methods of medicine and encouraged the use of vaccines, educating his countrymen about its advantages and uses.

Dr. T.M.A. Pai with a patient. Dr. Pai was, underneath everything, a highly-skilled surgeon

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The Pigmy Scheme Meanwhile, Dr. Pai’s brother Upendra Pai had started a new initiative - a bank that could cater to the needs of the weaker sections of society.

The Canara Industrial and Banking Syndicate Limited was formed on October 20, 1925 with the motto ‘No man is too small for a bank account’. Dr. T.M.A Pai joined his brother in his venture, juggling time between his medical practice and the bank, eventually shutting down the clinic completely.

He greatly contributed to the success of the Syndicate Bank (as it came to be known later) with the revolutionary Pigmy scheme in 1928. Under this scheme, saving deposits of even a few annas were accepted.

They introduced runners - who would go to peoples’ doorstep to collect these small sums of money.

Through this scheme, he enabled the poor to build a large pool of savings. Selden Menefee records the success stories of people with the bank ; ‘‘In Cannanore, a railway porter saved Rs. 5000 in seven years, bought land and built a house which he called ‘Pigmy House’ ’’. There are several other such stories, where daily wage workers had saved massive sums of money under the scheme.

Dr. TMA Pai believed in the power of the common man - and felt that if given the right opportunites, he could excel and be of great use to society. He would often say that the greatness of the nation ultimately came down to the common man. And so through the bank he went about empowering the rural poor.

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India’s educator Dr. T.M.A. Pai always had it in the back of his head to improve the educational opportunities in the region. He finally embarked on this mission when in 1933, he purchased a large tract of land that became available on a barren hill known as Manipala, 5kms from Udupi. Here, he dreamed of building a vast educational complex. There were people who commented that it was foolish to buy such a large piece of land and also questioned who would attend a medical college on the hill, but Dr. Pai would not be bogged down.

The Academy of General Education was founded by Dr. T.M.A. Pai in 1942, and initially served as a platform to provide vocational training to the locals so that they could use the skills to earn a living. The first real test of the Academy however, was the setting up of the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial College near Udupi. It was no easy task - Dr. Pai himself went door to door seeking donations from people in Udupi and made several trips to Madras seeking affiliation from the University there in order to make the college a reality. The college overcame all obstacles and finally opened its doors in June 1949.

Dr. T.M.A. Pai at a construction site

In 1953, he defied his critics yet again to succesfully establish the Kasturba Medical College in Manipal. Five years later, he established the Manipal Engineering College. Manipal grew rapidly in the following years and colleges of Pharmacy, Law and Dentistry were added. He went on to establish colleges in almost each village and surrounding town like Moodabidri, Coondapoor, Brahmavar, Sringeri and Perdoor. Most of these were community efforts and thus fostered a sense of community pride and collective ownership.

TMA Pai established close to 15 colleges and 15 schools. Ripleys Believe It Or Not listed him as the man who founded the most number of institutes in a lifetime. He earned plenty of laurels for his efforts and his fame spread far and wide. In 1972, he was awarded the Padma Shri, one of India’s highest civillian orders, by the President of India.

Dr. T.M.A. Pai participating in the annual volunteer work project at Perdoor High School, 1966

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The last stretch As his age advanced, Dr. T.M.A. Pai receded slowly into the background only handling meet-and-greets with students and colleagues. But his enthusiasm was unwaveringly high, and he could still talk at length to whoever would engage in coversations with him. When he turned 80 years old, the entire Manipal family threw a grand celebration for him. To commemorate 80 years of his life, he was awarded with a vest studded with 80 medals from the various institutes he started.

The following year his health deteriorated further, and he was shifted to the Valley View Health Club so that he could be close to the watchful eyes of the doctors. But his spirits were still high. He would sit in the verandah of the hotel with his binoculars watching the new Artifical Limb Centre being built across the road. He would often call for the engineers and discuss the progress of the work with them - delivering instructons whenever he felt changes were necessary. His P.A. Ballal would also bring to him his daily mail, and typed out the replies based on Dr. Pai’s instructions.

Dr. T.M.A. Pai passed away on 29th May 1979 aged 81. The nation had lost a man who left an indelible mark on it. As Professor K S Haridasa Bhat writes, ‘In a variety of fields he was destined to achieve unequalled triumph thanks to his vision, daring and organizing acumen. Rare are the examples of a single individual who worked in numerous walks of life - like banking, insurance, business, education - general, medical and technical - and who forged ahead, undaunted and unswerved by setbacks and failures and came out triumphant’.

Dr. T.M.A. Pai endeared himself to the public with his infectious zeal, simplicity and openness to all, despite his seniority

Dr. T.M.A. Pai inspecting one of the wards of the Kasturba General Hospital

References : 1. Menefee, S. (1984). The Pais of Manipal (Second). Manipal, Karnataka: The Academy of General Education.

2. Ramakrishna, A. S. (Ed.). (1991). Smriti - A documentation on the life and Thoughts of Dr. T.M.A. Pai, founder of Manipal. Manipal, Karnataka: Smriti Bhavan.

3. Kharkongor, G. C. (2016). Manipal and Beyond. Haryana: Penguin Group.

NOTE : All Archival Photographs are courtesy Manipal Group.

Copyrights Reserved by Manipal Group.

Illustrations by Lester Silveira, The BalcĂŁo

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cover cover story

mannu-palla : from mud pond to university town

Photo of barren land at Manipal | Source : Smriti Bhavan, Dr. T.M.A. Pai Museum

Today, Manipal is a vibrant and bustling university town which is becoming more and more urban everyday. Here we take a look at the humble beginnings of Manipal and its transformation over the years

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It’s astonishing to think about how, up until the 1930s, Manipal was just a barren hilltop where cattle occasionally grazed, and which had only a few sparse settlers. Toward the South of this hill was a lake that swelled up during the monsoon, and dried up during the winter. The lake had a clay bottom, which led locals to call it mannu (or mann) palla in the local Tulu dialect, meaning ‘mud pond’.

Residents from the neighbouring town of Udupi knew of this hill named ‘Manipala’, where some would come to collect firewood during the day.

It was also along one of the important routes from Udupi to Mangalore, through Karkala. However, apart from this, it was an area everyone tried to steer clear of, oweing mostly to the thick jungle that surrounded the central ridge, that was home to several cheetahs, leopards and jackals.

In 1933, Dr T.M.A. Pai became aware that some land atop this hill was up for auction by the District Court. With a vision of a vast educational complex in mind, he set up the Canara Investments Ltd. through which he purchased 107 Acres of Land. Dr. Pai had a dream to create an eductional enterprise and to do something substantial with the land. The first college would only appear 20 years later; nonetheless he and his brother Upendra Pai set about developing the barren plateau.

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Manipal was no sheer coincidince, but the result of the hard work, grit and tactical acumen of Dr. T.M.A. Pai. When asked ‘Why Manipal?’ in a questionnaire, this is what he had to say :

‘‘I had in view a vast complex which required at least a thousand acres of land. I also felt agricultural land should not be used for this purpose. I also felt that at a future date the Suvarna river may be harnessed at a higher level for water supply and we would have the facility of plenty of water because the pipes should pass to Udupi through this place. We had also the highway road to pass through Manipal and there was electricity already available. With these conveniences I thought it should be possible to develop this plateau as a centre for educational activities without any extra cost either to us or to the Government. …this plateau further commanded very beautiful scenery, with the western ghats on the east and the Arabian sea in the west’’ -(Smriti : Life and Thoughts of Dr. T.M.A. Pai - a documentation)

This was the genius of Dr. T.M.A. Pai, logical and tactical, possessing the foresightedness you would expect from an urban planner.

The building spurt in Manipal began in the years following 1933 and is well documented by Selden Menefee in The Pais of Manipal. The first building in Manipal was the Tuberculosis Sanatorium built in 1934 by Upendra Pai for Dr. Pai in 1934.

It was meant to treat patients, but had not been put to use yet. So Upendra occupied it during the day with his wife Parvathi, who created a makeshift kitchen in the bare shell of the building to cook their meals.

Meanwhile, Upendra Pai had laid out a boulevard width street at the centre of Manipal. And at the start of it, work commenced on a two storey commercial complex. Along this street, he also built his permanent residence, which he and his family moved into in the summer of 1935. A roof tile factory was also completed in 1935, oweing to the discovery of clay deposits on the hill. This tile factory supplied tiles to all subsequent buildings built in Manipal.

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A view of the few early buildings built at the centre of the Manipal Plateau

Whether this building with the stepped gable is the TB Sanatorium that was originally built requires confirmation, but all evidence points in its favour.

Pictured here, in the heart of the plateau, with steps descending to a play area - todays KMC Greens.

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A violent storm that broke out in the monsoon of that year ripped off most of the tiles of their roof and drenched their house completely. Parvathi Pai told her husband that she had had enough of living in the wilderness and were on the verge of leaving the place to go back to Udupi. Dr. T.M.A. Pai and his eldest brother P.A. Pai stepped in. They advised them against shifting back to Udupi as it would have had a negative effect on the progress of Manipal. Instead, they both decided to shift to houses alongside the Upendra Pai home to give them company. By 1936, they made the shift to Manipal.

Menefee records how the news of this building boom on the hill spread throughout Udupi : ‘on weekends in 1935 many people walked up from the town to see what was going on, and have picnics on the hilltop. This delighted. U.A.; He installed benches for them to sit on, and played his radio for all to enjoy’. It was a big hit among the crowd as a radio was quite a rare possesion at the time.

P.A. Pai, the eldest of the Pai siblings, shifted his handloom and weaving business from Udupi to Manipal naming it Manipal Textiles. A whole host of workers made the shift to this new booming town and Upendra Pai was busy in building new houses to accomodate them. The creation of such jobs led to an influx of people who came to settle down in Manipal. Soon, there were enough children to start a school. In the space of a few years, a school, an elementary college and also an orphanage was started. The first few steps to an educational complex were in motion.

In 1942, Dr. T.M.A. Pai founded the Academy of General Education, but it did not start of as the large academic body that it is today. Initially the Academy would offer vocational training to people, giving them certificates when they acquired certain skills thus propelling them to find work. Dr. T.M.A. Pai would often express that most of all, he wanted to set up a medical college on the hill. It was his primary aim, and he spent days and nights conceptualizing it.

Inauguration of the Physiology Block of the Kasturba Medical College in 1955 by Union Minister Amrit Kaur.

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The setting up of the MGM College near Udupi was the first real challenge of the Academy. It was an uphill task to collect funds for the building of the college, and to obtain affiliation, but when it was finally completed in 1949, Dr. Pai was armed with a sense of accomplishment and experience under his belt.

He also had a group of followers who believed in him. It was time to make his idea of a medical college a reality.

The setting up of a private medical college was no easy task. Most of the existing medical colleges were government ones, and the setting up of a private college would require the affiliation of a particular University. Madras University had a hold of collegiate education in the South Canara district, but he did not wish to seek affiliation there on account of the experience he had with the MGM College. Dr. Pai learnt that he could seek affiliation with Karnatak University, but this would require the permissions from the Madras and Bombay Governments. He made several trips to Madras and Bombay to obtain the necessary permissions. The lengthy tussle to convince the authorities of his proposal and to obtain their permissions pushed Dr. Pai to the brink; some of them labelled him as ‘mad’ to think of a medical college in such a remote location. But he was firm in his resolve, and did not give up, emerging succesful.

Kasturbha Medical College was inagurated in 1953, opening its doors to its first 100 students. The critics did not entirely shy away. On hearing about the manner the events unfolded in Manipal, The Union Minister at the time Amrit Kaur took a sly dig at Manipal in one of her speeches, just a few months after the starting of the college :

‘‘I hear in our country a medical college is being sponsored by peoples who do not have the buldings, the equipment and the teaching personnel and where two governments and one unvierstiy have co-operated. Parents have paid Rs. 3000 in their anxiety to give education to their children. If there should be no buidlings, no equipment, and no teaching personnel and if this is the way that medical education is to spread in out country, I want to use all the powers in me and stop such institutions from growing’’ But on the invitation of Dr. Pai, she visited the campus and had a complete change of heart, publicly announcing that she was proud of the institution and praised the high standards it set. Manipal was slowly endearing itself to the public.

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View of Tiger Circle with two of the early buildings - Kasturba Medical College Original Block on the left (1953) and the Physiology Block (1955) in the background

Manipal Institute of Technology

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Tiger Circle in November 2016; Beyond it lies the new multi-storey KMC Blocks. This Circle with its water fountain differs from the original Circle landmark and was built further away from it. However, today even this new Circle does not exist, having been demolished in the latter half of 2017.

Innovation Centre at the Manipal Institute of Technology Campus

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A new commercial centre opened in Manipal : Manipal now boasts several international global brands

Manipal.edu Building - The present-day Administration Headquarters

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After the success of KMC, Dr. Pai felt encouraged to go ahead with realising his dream for a vast educational complex and a Hospital on the hill. Compared to the struggle of establishing the first two colleges, the rest of the journey was relatively smooth. In 1957, the Manipal Engineering College was founded. By 1970 Colleges of Law, Dentistry and Pharmacy were successfully established. Schools of Architecture, Communication, Hotel Management, Jewellery Management and several others were added in the latter years as Manipal became firmly established as premier educational complex.

After the death of Dr. T.M.A. Pai in 1979, his son Dr. Ramdas Pai took over at the helm of the Academy, in what many viewed as a natural succession. He closely followed the work of his father since the beginning. If Dr. T.M.A. Pai gave birth to Manipal, Dr. Ramdas Pai really took Manipal futher and established it as a centre of excellence in education and healthcare Under his tenure, he also succesfully earned it a deemed university status in 1993, one of the unfulfulled dreams of Dr. T.M.A. Pai. Today, the Manipal Academy of Higher Education as it is known, is synonymous with excellence in higher education in the world.

Branches have been opened in Nepal, Malaysia, Antigua, and Dubai as well as Manipal campuses in Sikkim and Jaipur. ‘Over 28,000 students from 57 different nations live, learn and play in the sprawling University town’.

Manipal is becoming more and more urban everyday. The recent expansion of the highway that passes through the town is one of the projects that has changed the look and feel of the place, taking with it the iconic Tiger Circle. The building of large commercial complexes opposite the Hospital cluster has also transformed the skyline of Manipal.

More changes are bound to take place as Manipal is set to reach dizzying heights - and all from its humble beginning as a ‘mud pond’.

References : 1. Menefee, S. (1984). The Pais of Manipal (Second). Manipal, Karnataka: The Academy of General Education.

2. Ramakrishna, A. S. (Ed.). (1991). Smriti - A documentation on the life and Thoughts of Dr. T.M.A. Pai, founder of Manipal. Manipal, Karnataka: Smriti Bhavan.

3. Kharkongor, G. C. (2016). Manipal and Beyond. Haryana: Penguin Group.

4. History: Manipal Academy of Higher Education (formerly, Manipal University). (n.d.).

Retrieved from https://manipal.edu/mu/about-us/history.html NOTE : All Archival Photographs are courtesy Manipal Group.

Copyrights Reserved by Manipal Group.

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essay essay

manipal’s tryst with art deco

Residence of Dr. TMA Pai (1936)

While a lot of emphasis has been placed on the establishment of Manipal as a centre of learning, its built heritage often goes unnoticed.

Here we look at the cluster of buildings that make up the very heart and soul of Manipal.

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In the 1960s, Selden Menefee wrote :

The visitor to Manipal is at once struck by

the modern three to five storey buildings of the Medical and Engineering Colleges and Hostels, Valley View Health Club and Hotel, Syndicate House and Syndicate Bank, which give the little town an urban skyline, and is all the more impressive from a distance because it sits high on a hill. At night, it looks like a city in the sky.

The creation of Manipal was truly ground breaking. But what also emerged from that era and what goes rather unnoticed was a set of buildings that were truly modern in their approach, befitting of the idea that was taking birth on the barren plateau.

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The first formal structure in Manipal was a Tuberculosis Sanatorium built in 1934 by Upendra Pai for Dr. T.M.A. Pai. Since he had not yet started using it, Upendra and his wife occupied it temporarily, cooking meals in a makeshift kitchen during the day, and returning to their residence in Udupi by night.

The Sanatorium eventually did not take off and is one of Dr. Pai’s rare ‘failures’. Nevertheless, this first building proved to be a very important one, its flexibility allowing the Pai brothers to use it for a variety of their experimental projects. Selden Menefee describes how this very building, years later, housed an elementary school - the first educational institution in Manipal. Glenn Christo Kharkongor, in Manipal & Beyond describes how ‘In 1953, when Kasturba Medical College was started, this building housed the physiology department, with microscopes arranged on the veranda’.

Given the longevity and the importance of the building, there are however not enough archival descriptions of it. But it is highly probable that the building exists even today. The ‘Heritage Building’ as it is called today, is encircled by the new KMC block, and lies parallel to the steps that lead down to KMC Greens. Within it is housed the book store Higginbothams.

Archival photographs show the building - a centralised form, with 4 gabled roofs springing from the centre towards each wing. The gables have a peculiar treatment - atop each gable is the ziggurat type stepped formation - typical of the Art Deco style. Today, this characteristic has been lost somewhere along the several renovations it has undergone.

The roofs now extend across the gable in traditional fashion.

While visually they appear to be the same buildings, it requires confirmation whether this was infact the TB Sanatorium that Upendra Pai built in 1934.

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The Art Deco The Art Deco was a popular artistic style that emerged in France and spread internationally in the 1920s and 30s and thereafter.

It influenced the design of buildings, furniture, posters, cars and several other objects. An emphasis on strong geometry, clean lines and symmetry were few prominent characteristics of Art Deco. The style gained fame quickly and spread around the world, eventually reaching the shores of India, which today houses a large collection of Deco buildings. Later, Art Moderne sprang up, which was summed up by sleek curving forms, horizontal lines and ergonomic design. Though Moderne actually differs from the former style, it is usually placed under the same bracket as Art Deco since it evolved from it afterall.

Two-storey commercial complex at Tiger Circle

The next set of buildings to be built in Manipal were a tile factory, a two storey commercial complex and the residence of Upendra Pai. The tile factory still exists today, but it has been remodelled to house offices. A tower of the factory still survives as a vestige of this vintage tile factory that supplied roof tiles to all the initial buildings in Manipal.

The commercial complex that Upendra Pai built in 1935, like the Sanatorium, displayed inherent Art Deco characteristics, atleast in its facade composition. Located at the intersection at Tiger Circle, it was a two storey structure that exhibited strong geometry - a central portion that had a stepped top end,and flanked by two angular wings. ‘Super Hair Dressers’ have been in operations here since 1966 and T.M.A Pai would frequently get his hair cut here, as recorded by Kharkongor. Today, Super Hair Dressers still continues to function and the building fabric has very much been retained.

The prime Deco example however, has to be the residence of T.M.A Pai. The Doctor shifted residence to Manipal in 1936 to give company to his brother who was already residing there and also in a bid to push forward the idea of Manipal.

Dr. TMA Pai and his wife outside their residence in Manipal.

Photo on display at Smriti Bhavan.

The residence he built emerged to be a fine Art Deco (Streamline Moderne) building right from its composition and layout, to minute detailing. The staircase block was placed at the edge of the house, giving it a bold sense of geometry, while the rest of the mass of the house curved in towards it. The staircase block itself was a fine streamlined cylindrical mass. The flooring, grill details and detailing are all in visual harmony with the style.

Detail, Dr. TMA Pai Residence (Smriti Bhavan)

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Subsequent buildings like the Kasturba Medical College (1953) and the Physiology block (1955) also displayed an Art Deco arrangement, with a nod to a highly modern ribbed-facade aesthetic. Looking at archival images, the buildings displayed features like a strong sense of geometry, symmetry arrangement of volumes and an emphasis on horizontal lines with deep chajjas that were all synonymous with Deco buildings, but devoid of ornamentation. The use of such characteristics allowed the large building mass to be broken down in smaller parts, visually.

Two other buidlings in a similar style were the Pharmacy College, which may have been one of the workshops of the Engineering College, and another commercial building.

Kamath Canteen was another commercial structure built in 1972 and is an Art Moderne building at the most rudimentary level. It was a curved streamlined building placed at a junction in the Engineering College Campus. A deep chajja which followed the streamlined pattern extended from the building face across the verandah giving it a bold look while also cutting off glare. Curved ribbon windows and horizontal bands in the parapet further ensured that it remained stylistically uniform. Sadly, the structure was demolished in early 2017, signalling the end of an era.

Kasturba Medical College (b.1953) on the left, and the Physiology Block (b.1955) on the right are two truly modern buildings that bear characteristics of Art Deco

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Physiology Block (b. 1955)

College of Pharmacy (Date of completion unknown)

Kamaths Canteen (b.1972) | Source : Team-BHP.com

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The two-storey commercial complex built in 1935 that houses Super Hair Dressers, as seen in 2018.

Another old commercial complex in the Art Deco style that is still in use today - Ice Land is housed in one of the wings here.

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So far we have seen several structures that had a fair amount of thought behind their planning and design. But from where were they inspired? And who had a hand to play in them?

The buildings were mostly built by Upendra Pai, who was in Manipal since the very start, and so naturally would have a hand in their design and execution.

But there is very little doubt that T.M.A Pai had a large role to play as well. He was known to be highly involved in the process of building - sometimes joining the workforce in the spadework. More importantly, Manipal was his brainchild, and he was at the heart of each and every bit of development on the hill. Together with this brother Updenra, T.M.A Pai must have gone about conceptualizing the designs of these structures.

Incidentally, T.M.A Pai made several visits to Bombay throughout the 1920s and 30s either to obtain approvals or funds for his various proposals, meeting with many businessmen and officials there. The timing co-incided with the Art Deco euphoria that swept across Bombay in the 1930s. Regal Cinema, built in 1933, and the New India Assurance Building, (1936) were two popular early examples. It must have clearly left an impression on the mind of Dr. Pai, which was always overflowing with ideas. It seemed like the appropriate style for the cluster of modern buildings at Manipal.

Incidentally, Dr. TMA Pai also visited Miami in 1959, which along with Bombay is considered to have the largest collection of Art Deco Buildings in the world.

From all this we can take that T.M.A Pai was a man of taste. But beyond all the gloss, this style may have been the most practical for the buildings of Manipal as explained in this excerpt by Windsworth Studio :

For all its panache, Art Deco design was immensely practical in execution. For projects on a tight budget, the simple box could be decorated with motifs and embellished with appendages that made a conceptually rudimentary structure appear fashionable and up to date. Visual interest could be further enhanced by stretching linear forms horizontally and vertically throughout the building. This was frequently done with bands of brick, canopies, or copings The Modern and Art Deco buildings of Manipal were no marvels. Barring a few, they are quite forgettable buildings. Nevertheless, these buildings were the naive products of the inspirations of T.M.A. and Upendra Pai. Manipal was, always, to begin with, an experiment, and a truly ground breaking idea. This also needed modern designs - something that had a futuristic outlook, devoid of any pretentions. By staying true to its time, but also looking toward the future, this set of buildings embodies the values that Manipal stands for. These buildings are the very heart and soul of Manipal and must be protected as a marker of its history and humble beginnings.

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Map of Manipal (2016)

References : 1. Menefee, S. (1984). The Pais of Manipal (Second). Manipal, Karnataka: The Academy of General Education.

2. Ramakrishna, A. S. (Ed.). (1991). Smriti - A documentation on the life and Thoughts of Dr. T.M.A. Pai, founder of Manipal. Manipal, Karnataka: Smriti Bhavan.

3. Kharkongor, G. C. (2016). Manipal and Beyond. Haryana: Penguin Group.

4. Art Deco Style Architecture (1925-1940). (2019, February 19). Retrieved from https://www.wentworthstudio.com/historic-styles/art-deco/ 5. History: Manipal Academy of Higher Education (formerly, Manipal University). (n.d.). Retrieved from https://manipal.edu/mu/about-us/history.html NOTE : All Archival Photographs are courtesy Manipal Group.

Copyrights Reserved by Manipal Group.

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time capsule time capsule

kamath’s - forever in our memories

Kamaths - Artist Unknown, 1999 Yearbook, MIT

What happens when a building that was an icon, a landmark, is demolished?

It continues to live in people’s memories...

Kamath’s was a shopping complex at the very heart of Manipal Institute of Technology (MIT) Campus. It was a meeting place and the backdrop for campus life to play out. Here we dig up some early reactions to Kamath’s from the archives.

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lester silveira | the balcão

‘‘Situated in the heart of the campus, this place is always full of life, be it a quick cup of ‘chaa’ or coffee during the break, or a drawing sheet five minutes before the class. Also a strategic place to see the elusive residents of the L.H. (Ladies Hostel) It is infact MITians’ own mini super market’’ - 1999 Yearbook, MIT ‘‘Since 1975, Kamath’s has served as the nerve centre: source for all the latest news, theatre for drama, catwalk for fashion, and stop over for caffeine and nicotine addicts’’ - 1998Yearbook, MIT

Source : manipalblog.com

‘‘Nothing left me so unprepared as the sight before me, as I reached the much heard of ‘KAMATHS’.

The first thing I saw frightened me enough to lower my boldly raised umbrella. Three ferocious looking cows,stood in a row, with a dont-youdare-try-any-thing-smart kind of look in their eyes. But what unnerved me even more was the sight of the three dozen boys seated comfortable on the three rows of steps, eyeing us with this silly grin on their faces. Sure enough, they didnt just stop at the grin..’’

- Rani Kuttapan, 1997 Yearbook, MIT

Sketch by Ferry Gonsalvez - 1997 Yearbook, MIT

KC. | Source : lifeinmanipal.blogspot.com ‘At the Kamath’s Speedbump’ - Artist unknown - 1997 Yearbook, MIT

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a note This articles in this zine were based largely on the work of Selden Menefee, who documented the life of Dr. T.M.A. Pai and the birth and rise of Manipal meticulously. In fact, all modern works have their foundation in the work of Menefee, who spent a lot of time with Dr. Pai for his book The Pais of Manipal, which makes it a really credible source of information. A few rare copies of the book are being sold online, but there is one in the Manipal Institute of Technology Library for those interested.

Another good read on Manipal is SMRITI edited by A.S. Ramakrishna, which contains a biography of Dr. Pai penned by Prof. K.S. Haridasa Bhat and also has other interesting speeches and correspondences of Dr. Pai. The most recent work, MANIPAL and BEYOND : Ramdas Pai and the Landscape of Indian Education by Glenn Christo Kharkongor, is also a great book. It gives a good insight into the transformation of Manipal in the 21st century apart from the historical aspects.

All the Photographs that are shown in this zine appeared in a brilliant video documentary on Dr. T.M.A Pai made by Maya Productions, available on YouTube, and belong to Manipal Group.

also...

This zine is an attempt to throw some light on the built heritage of Manipal which deserves recognition. But this work is not exhaustive. There are a lot of facts that need corroboration and there is also much more history and heritage that could not fit in this small compilation.

Nevertheless, this is a start, and I hope it encourages more people to come out and document the history and heritage of Manipal.

A few years ago, Manipal lost an icon with the demolition of Kamath’s. Manipal is changing at an alarming rate, and while I understand the need to make space for new buildings, it is my personal opinion that such iconic buildings that are central to Manipal’s origins and a marker of its humble beginnings should be preserved. They are the very heart and soul of the place, and a part of its built heritage - the physical component of its identity.

- Lester Silveira, The Balcão

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lester silveira | the balcão

obrigado thank you