The Nagari Film Competition is an annual competition designed to guide and develop films that focus on urban issues, specific to Indian cities. Nagari intends to be a bioscope for the city, and through this lens, we explore diverse urban conditions and engage with issues. Nagari is unique as it has been conceptualised as a guided exercise, with a panel of Mentors on board to help participants on their journey to creating a film. 

By: Andreea Cutieru

Architecture school is a place of experiment and a testing ground for innovative ideas. The academic work and student projects can bring to light the focus of an entire career, shape the backbone for an architectural theory, and crystalize values. How do their studies and formative years reflect on the later work of different architects? Taking a journey along decades, we explore the transition from architecture school to practice, the reverberance of academic explorations and early projects in the work of several architects and practices, highlighting the different pivotal steps that have shaped the beginning of their architectural journey.

Throughout different decades, particular socio-economic environments shaped the opportunities available to young architects. As Natalie de Vries stated: “It’s much harder for young architects starting now because of the current economic conditions. They have to think much more about their business models – we could just dive in and start making things.” Some architects of the last century found themselves in the privileged position of having notable commissions in their early careers, as is the case of Alison and Peter Smithson who were in their twenties when they took up the commission for the Hunstanton School in Norfolk. On the other hand, it took more than a decade since graduation for Zaha Hadid to have one of her designs built. It is hard to tell if contemporary media and the proliferation of the means for disseminating good architecture and innovative projects empower young architects, getting them a step closer to commissions. Nonetheless, the academic preoccupations of architecture students illustrate the ethos of the particular moment and place, underlining distinct approaches to architecture, and it is worth exploring how various architects from different decades have pursued their student architectural interests after graduation.

Charles Correa’s 1955 Master Thesis at MIT strikes as an example of academic interest pursued across an entire career. The project explored the concept of participatory processes at the neighborhood level and put forward a framework for improving urban conditions in a bottom-up approach. This scale and design thinking remained an important part of his life as a practitioner, and a decade later, in 1964, Correa published an alternative plan for Mumbai’s future growth. The vision was accepted by the government in 1970 and became known as Navi Mumbai, with Correa as the chief architect of the new development plan. Throughout his career, Correa was a fervent activist for the improvement of housing and urban life in cities. Moreover, he founded the Charles Correa Foundation, to support architectural, urban design, and community-based projects that improve the human settlements in India.

Successful models for neighbourhoods bring together the 5 Cs – connectivity, convenience, comfort, community and commerce

As the COVID-19 pandemic rages on, cutting us from the usual networks that sustain us, the importance of enriching our neighbourhoods has become evident. The C40 Cities, an international network constituted by mayors and urban planners from across the world, adopted the idea of the “15-minute city” in July, to make our cities more liveable, healthy and whole. In the 15-minute city, everything that an individual needs – workplace, shops, hospital and schools – would be within 15 minutes of their home. This isn’t a new idea, as most of us have memories of having lived in such neighbourhoods.

‘You and Your Neighbourhood’ is the theme of this year’s Z-Axis, the fourth edition of the biennial urban design conference organised by the Charles Correa Foundation (CCF) in Goa. The theme is inspired by the title of the animated film which was Correa’s Master’s thesis at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA, in 1955. It tells the story of how the protagonist Joe’s neighbourhood began to be neglected when a factory came up there. In the film, the late architect asks: How does a city grow? Can we make neighbourhoods better? The answer is found in the people who come together to effect change.