MASTER' JURY

The jury went with few notes as i began to question many things that may bring the discourse of abstraction in center. The ideal of representation & concreteness are duality within which entire idea of manifestation oscillates. The notion of academics is real vs real than perhaps we are limited by choices but if real is abstracted than choices are given new identity of attitude. I think the attitude is which brings entire discourse of design discipline in focus. Can urban responses are as abstract as responses of self within urban?.. The work produced by the batch was phenomenal, & had enough substance to bring discussion of urbanity in some sense. The idea of seeking urbanity in housing is rather difficult task, yet they all understood the concern if not responses.

I thing we need to ask right question on such issues...

- what is urban

- what is not urban

- what is urbanity that need to design

- what is urban edge

- is that anything that is non-urban

- is urban a process...

- is urban a collective ideal

- is urbanity has order

- can urbanity be time bound

I feel issues of such nature can bring some more values is shaping our notion of urban.

MEMORY

UNDISCIPLINED ETYMOLOGY

The undisciplined city conference on 30/11/09 had some interesting views & interpretation of our city that are going through rigorous transformation. The list of deformities that surfaces through rationlization of our cities are beyond the scope of even multi-disciplinary approaches we talk about. The undisciplined etymology is the store of such deformities.

• Legal deficit
• Delienation deficit
• deman deficit
• demand ssesment
• stake holder assesment
• undisciplined legislative/ power/ politics/ economy
• undisciplined gentrification
• undisciplined linguistic territorial demand
• autonomous processes
• unintended city
• Intentions & contentions
• Building cities from outside
• urbanity "a state of mind", urbanism "a object of mind"
• is conteporary urbanism a new found confusion?
• disciplinary confinement
• contested trajectory
• urban society going out of disciplinary constitution
• beyond city bound.

EASTERN CARICATURE

The metaphor that attached with east is rising & perhaps manifested somewhere in our rituals & our cultural manifestation. The east is histoically a historical, that cannot be slightest exaggeration in that since we are facinated by narrative more than monuments. We have limited discussion on the very idea of east, especially from western biases. Perhaps the argument of east have never delve more deeply into their interpretation of form, sources, intentions, meaning. Hence there are inherent risk in any attempt to evaluate current tendencies that our cities manifesting without bases to rationalize transformation. The filter of east is perhaps inhibiting the process since the colonial stigma, British legacy still lingers with our socio-cultural processes that shapes our cities. Hence east is perhaps analogy from western centric thought who tried to renewed the Raj legacy from the nostalgic perspective of current fashion.

Our attempt appears to be partial appraisal extends to the historical context from which the expression of our cities evolving. From our external perspective it appears that certain presumptions regarding the cultural history of (east) and in its contacts with other cultures in contemporary world may yeild intriguing & deceptive assumptions.

SAURASHTRA

The cyclical route to Saurashtra seems analogus to cyclical notion of time that exist in our memory. The travelling distance of 2000 km appeared like one cinema with several character, each is individual yet bounded by larger theme. The Saurashtra has architecture, which are distorted & defaced along the time, yet pride to exist with distorted hisotory is visible among people.

" perforated timewall has distorted the time memory, yet it is familiar"

"that scatterd memory through time wall seems familiar"

"that hidden lapsed memory overshadowed by brocken building seems familiar as well"

"time has no respect for age, every building that rose with time is destined & perhaps thats the form of time"

"the form of buildings are distorted & defaced yet the ideality in existance with time also seems familiar"

SHIMLA

LINGUISTIC LAMENTATION

The linguistic territorial behavior is at display right across the state in search for identifiable camp. The politics of linguistic aggression is criticized all across in the name of secular & nationalism. The media, other political camp in disguise of secular clone has joined the mass combat on such endeavour. The several well to do personalities & surprisingly bourgeoisie camp is out to propagate nationalism; however no effort is made at micro level to understand what does nationalism means to an individual whose life circle is restricted to hand to mouth. How can an individual with no historical perspective on linguistic barometer as a dynamics state politics would make nationalism as supreme authority over linguistic polarity.

The issues are far away from simpleton assumption on uni-coded nationalism over linguistic territory. It has to be dealt with various scales of micro to macro or within various shades of grey. The linguistic territorial behavior exists in most advance countries ex. Canada has French speaking territories which is attached to job opportunities, while Austrian shades of German language has displayed similar behavior and so is the German- Dutch frontiers. The linguistic polarities have connotation of economic opportunity in symbiotic way, which can not be erased with will of power politics.

It may be incorrect to contempt such demand & behavior when one sees groupism exist within city in name of geographical privileges. If south Mumbai is the case to promote what Mumbai international image is about than why not geographical language precedes the image on identity of region.

However at state level politics, it is also imperative to look at the strategy of ruling party with their pseudo secular gown to reinforce the elite hegemony. How is it possible that no individual rose to larger stature without dynasty affiliation? Since it has been the secular metaphor that needs to be represented rather than understood in international politics which has undermined the regionalism. Its may be slightly exaggeration to state that secular model is not enough to understand the aspiration of regional values. The vary idea of language preference is not outside the context of nationalism rather it‘s immediately a part of pseudo-secular policy that is being slapped on people.