The Charles Correa legacy

[Read: Charles Correa: From a child with toy train to the origami artist in stone]

The apartment units in the building are individual yet they are designed based on the Indian bungalow concept. “These are double-height apartments — of three to six bedrooms — with individual balconies that are equivalent to a bungalow’s verandah. The space, however, has been designed in a contemporary fashion with rooms at varying heights, some overlooking the double-height living room,” explains Pankaj Joshi, prominent architect and the director of Urban Design Research Institute that houses Correa’s complete virtual archive.

[Read: Architects remember Charles Correa: ‘An institution by himself’]

Architect and conservationist Abha Narain Lambah points out that the structure was a local response to Le Corbusier’s Unite d’ Habitation built in Marseilles in 1952. It was built to suit the climatic conditions of the city. “In Mumbai, houses are oriented in the east-west direction to tap the sea breeze and the best city views. It’s also the direction of the harsh sunlight and rain,” says Lambah.

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In such a scenario, Correa designed the apartments in a way that they were shielded by the double-height verandah, a concept borrowed from traditional bungalows. Known for his open-to-sky concept that can be seen in almost all his designs, Correa applied it to Kanchanjunga too. The verandahs thus are private spaces for the residents but offer sea breeze and a great view of the city, while also letting in ample sunlight into each of the adjoining rooms through overlooking windows.

“Six years ago, I suggested to the heritage review committee that the building be listed for its unique design but I couldn’t succeed in convincing them,” Lambah rues.

While people distinctly recall Kanchanjunga among Correa’s most iconic works in Mumbai, few remember that he had also designed the Church of Our Lady of Salvation, or the Portuguese Church, in Dadar as it stands today.

“It is one of his earlier works but the church, when it came up, got him into a controversy,” recounts architect Cyrus Guzder, an urban activist, and the governor of the Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Heritage Society and also Correa’s friend. That’s because Correa’s designs were always ahead of time, he reckons.

“At that time, people felt that the beautiful, classic-style church had been replaced with a modern structure they couldn’t relate to. But the people who would go there to pray started to love the structure and the open plan that they found peaceful,” Guzder adds.

The church complex has concrete shells that are ventilated at the top to allow natural light inside. The baptistory also has a mural by artist M F Husain.

It is at this beautiful and now-landmark Portuguese Church where Correa’s funeral mass will take place Thursday morning.

dipti.nagpaul@expressindia.com