YOU could call them the Walled City’s French Connection. They have taken on a monumental task—revitalising Ahmedabad’s Walled City area—but this team of French architects is upbeat. Perhaps it’s the raw material—the pols—small areas that are a cluster of houses and really a whole community—that they are working with that has them enthused. This particular area finds place on the World Monument Watch’s list of 100 endangered sites of the world. It all began with a growing awareness that pols, which reflect how life was lived in Ahmedabad, were gradually dying out. Of how residents were drifting to the other side of the Sabarmati to concrete jungles. How the present was snuffing out a past that throbbed with culture and heritage. In order to create awareness among citizens and chalk out a comprehensive conservation plan for Walled City areas, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) set up a Heritage Cell—the first of its kind in the country—in 1996. And after the 2001 quake, the AMC and the French Embassy decided to join hands to conserve these buildings. Says Debashish Nayak, adviser to the Heritage Programme, AMC, ‘‘We invited French architects for the project because France shares similar architectural components. Moreover, the perspective of an outsider will be totally different and they’ll bring in a lot of energy.’’ Pierre Cadot, heritage architect from France, is the sectorial expert of the Heritage Cell. ‘‘It is quite sad that such an area, which speaks volumes about a past that’s rich in culture and way of life is being thrust into oblivion. A city, which is significant world-wide in terms of architectural splendour, is losing all those picture-postcard-like nooks,’’ he says. "Ahmedabad’s Walled City is listed by the World Monument Watch among the 100 endangered sites. With residents moving out, the area is losing its cultural roots"Pierre came to India as a part of the AMC’s Indo-French revitalisation project almost a year and half ago. His other team members—architects Sebastian Mazauric, Douchan Palacios and Katayoun Mohseni Chabasteri and water colour painter Yannick Andolne, all from Toulouse—joined him three months ago. The team’s agenda is clear: restoration of chabutaras, facades, redevelopment of Dalpatram Chowk, tankas—underground storage tanks through which the tradition of harvesting rainwater was practiced, Panch Kuva building, Dwarkadish temple, heritage artefacts, illumination of 12 darwazas and renovation of the pols. When they came to Ahmedabad, they stayed on ‘‘this side of the city,’’ but soon found that it made sense to shift to a pol. Now, they live in a rented place in the three-storey Dhaal-ni-Pol, which is also being refurbished. Ask them the difference between the two areas and they say that life ‘‘on the other side’’ is ‘‘more mechanical.’’ ‘‘Life is much more interesting here—you can witness the hustle and the bustle: women washing clothes, children playing, people feeding the birds. Most pols have a single-entry point that make you feel that you belong to one big family. People are so friendly and helpful, quite unlike those in on the other side,’’ says Sebastien Mazauric, architect. ‘‘It’s the first time that foreigners are staying in their locality and they’re curious about us. There is a certain lack of privacy,’’ Pierre admits. What particularly interests them is the revival of panch system of the pols in which the panchs take care of the living conditions of people in pols. ‘‘Most people here are not educated and have no idea of how to use open spaces. Pols lack tidiness as there’s no system to dump garbage. We are trying to educate them on that front,’’ Pierre adds. ‘‘We now know more about Ahmedabad than Amdavadis themselves,’’ says Katayoun, who also finds time to play chess with residents. But isn’t the area trouble-prone? ‘‘I don’t think so. When riots took place in Ahmedabad, it affected the whole city, why single out the Walled City?’’ asks Pierre. ‘‘This phenomenon of shifting of the affluent class towards posh and luxurious areas took place even in Europe some 40 years ago. But now, people have realised importance of their history,’’ says Katayoun. ‘‘This can happen here too, though it will be a slow process. First the public transport system should function efficiently and traffic regulations should be implemented,’’ he adds. The team will also bring out a calendar that features the 12 darwazas of Ahmedabad and their historical significance. Yannick is painting each frame. ‘‘I have painted them as they look right now. People ought to know about their treasures, don’t they?’’ he asks. They seem to be enjoying everything: their work, their neighbourhood and Gujarati food. What they like most are ‘‘those Muslim pastries found in Walled City.’’ ‘‘The taste can’t be matched,’’ says Pierre.
