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Journalism of Courage
Today, May 28, the people of India awake to a new Parliament building, which is their temple of democracy, inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the presence of Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla.
India’s new Parliament building replaces the old British colonial Council House, which was designed by Herbert Baker. It reflected the structure of British rule with its Chamber of Princes, Council of State and a Legislative Assembly, portraying a fictitious narrative in which India’s democratic system is illustrated simply as an adaptation of erstwhile imperial rulers, sending the wrong message that India is a mere extension of Western ideation, invented and nurtured from English cultural mores and traditions. One of the themes of the new Parliament Building is India’s ancient democratic roots in its village panchayats and councils.
The new Parliament Building, created by an internationally recognised Indian architect Bimal Patel, neatly settles its plan into Lutyens’ urban design, interlocking itself into a triangular plot in Lutyens’ layout, adjacent to the old Council House, leaving open the Central Vista view lines, and colonial heritage structures, unobstructed and in place. Like the urban plan, the elevations draw their inspiration from the urban context of the Central Vista, aligning their lower facade patterns of red and upper-level white sandstone with surrounding heritage buildings. The well-crafted stonework creates a rhythm of positive and negative closures and openings, employing 90 columns and 310 windows that sync into the rhythm of the surrounding buildings.
The new design sits blissfully into its context, not trying to scream and yell, “Look at me!” The three public entrances in the centre of the three main facades are marked by guardian statues, giving a pleasant play of form, shadow and markers against the dignified, long sandstone walls. These statues reflect the names of each ceremonial entrance — Gyan Dwar, Shakti Dwar and Karm Dwar.
I have had the honour to visit this magnificent structure at regular intervals of its construction over the past two years and find solace that upon its completion, it blends within the Central Vista context in an unobtrusive manner, yet has a great presence of place befitting the great constitutional institution it houses.
Architecture as National Identity
The architecture of national institutions serves as important memory points for their people, gifting them the meaning and importance of their democratic institutions and the rule of law. The architecture of the new Parliament highlights the Constitution’s roots in ancient Indian systems of governance upon which the national tradition of participatory rule emerged. The Parliament building gives people a strong sense of national identity and their place in the processes of collective decision-making and ruling in multi-level tiers of democratic institutions, beginning with village panchayats, state Assemblies and the national legislative Parliament. The architecture of the new Parliament enshrines the meaning of Indian democracy for its citizens. A major theme of the design is inclusiveness within diversity, which is strongly illustrated in the art work and artefacts created by traditional craftspeople from all communities and belief systems, celebrating the underlying inclusive culture of secular India.
The Message of Soft Power to the World
The new Parliament sends a strong message to the world that a unique India has emerged, throwing off the yoke of British Raj mentalities, and shaking off the colonial hangover, while showcasing an economically and culturally strong nation, having a substantial place among all nations as a centre of democracy. The lion capital, inspired by the Ashoka pillar at Sarnath and the emblem of the Indian State, declares India’s ancient nationhood and modern strength, rooted in meaning, rules of civility and culture.
Design Elements of the Parliament Building
The new Parliament Building is composed of the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha chambers, a Constitution Hall with an attached Constitution Gallery. The top of the Constitution Hall has a large skylight from which hangs a Foucault’s Pendulum, signifying the integration of the idea of India with the idea of the cosmos. Important historical documents and artefacts are exhibited in the gallery, which include the genesis of law-making practices from ancient times to the making of the Constitution.
Another important component is the courtyard and café, with a banyan tree, the national tree of India, at its centre. This breakout space in the heart of the building creates opportunities for informal discussions and gatherings while eating or just contemplating. Trees from every part of India are represented in carved jaalis that shade the circular, open-air colonnade along the perimeter of the hexagonal courtyard. Elements of the building that tie it together include carpets in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, woven by 900 weaver families from 25 villages. The woodwork and furniture in the Parliament building have been created by skilled craftspeople from across India.
The 888 seats in the Lok Sabha have the ceiling theme of the national bird, the peacock, and the 348 seats in the Rajya Sabha look up to a ceiling designed around the theme of the national flower, the lotus. Thus, the new Parliament building integrates itself within its urban setting, within its own spatial complexity and through detailed art works, colour schemes and interiors.
– The writer is the architect for the National Capitol Precinct of Bhutan; the new Parliament and Secretariat Complex in Burundi, Central Africa; the new Brain Research Centre, Shanghai; the Mahindra United World College, near Pune; the Azim Premji University, Bengaluru, besides other designs during his half century of architectural practice and teaching in India
