Author: Chiara Karnik
Site Location: Navi Mumbai
Institute:Pillai University, School of Architecture & Design
Advisor: Prof. Neha Sayed
Diwale Village and Beyond reimagines the waterfront of Diwale, a historic Koli fishing settlement along Panvel Creek, Belapur, Navi Mumbai. The project responds to the village’s dense organic fabric, changing fishing livelihoods, fragmented waterfront access, cultural needs, and vulnerability to monsoon flooding.
Instead of replacing the existing settlement, the proposal introduces a flexible public layer along the creek that strengthens the relationship between the village, its community, and the water. The masterplan is organised into four interconnected precincts as the Entrance Courtyard, Temple Courtyard, Maidan, and Ganesh Ghat, each supporting different social, cultural, recreational, and livelihood activities.
At the heart of the project is the idea of temporality in architecture. Modular and movable structures allow spaces to transform according to changing needs, functioning as fish markets, community spaces, festival pavilions, workshops, libraries, and emergency refuge areas.
Through livelihood, culture, waterfront, modularity, and participation, the project proposes architecture as an adaptive system rather than a fixed object. It aims to strengthen Diwale’s existing identity while creating a resilient and replicable framework for vulnerable coastal urban villages.
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Drawings
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Dear Chiara,
I hope you are doing well.
My name is Saumya Kumari, and I am a final-year B.Arch student at Anant National University, Ahmedabad. I am currently working on my architectural thesis titled “Architecture and Plurality: From the Production of Space to Plural Life Worlds,” with Diwale Village, Belapur, Navi Mumbai, as my case study.
My research explores how architecture can help us understand and represent the different ways people inhabit, use, share and negotiate space within an urban village. I am particularly interested in the relationship between everyday practices, livelihoods, shared spaces, settlement transformation and the waterfront.
I came across your project, Reimagining the Waterfront of Diwale, and found it highly relevant to my research, especially in understanding the village’s relationship with the water edge and its associated spatial and livelihood practices.
I would be grateful if you could share any relevant data, documentation, maps, observations, reports or research material from your study that could help me develop the secondary research for my thesis. I would also appreciate any insights into your research process, key findings, or sources that you found useful while studying the site.
Any information you are able to share would be extremely valuable in helping me build a more informed understanding of Diwale Village and its waterfront.
Thank you for your time and consideration. I look forward to hearing from you.
Warm regards,
Saumya Kumari
Final-Year B.Arch Student
Anant National University, Ahmedabad