The Historic Cities Series 2025 – Chandigarh Edition convened an illuminating dialogue at the Chandigarh Architecture Museum, bringing together architects, planners, policymakers, and artists to examine how the city can balance its celebrated modernist legacy with the evolving realities of the 21st century. Chandigarh Dialogue
Organized by NIUA, ICOMOS India, DRONAH Foundation, Heritopolis, Altrim Publishers, Chandigarh University, and Chandigarh citizens foundation was the city collaborator. The event was curated as a city discourse by Dr. Niyati Jigyasu, moderated by Ar. Deepika Gandhi and featured an eminent panel including Prof. K.T. Ravindran, Ar. Sumit Kaur, Mr. J.M. Balamurugan (IAS), Adv. Mac Sarin, and Mr. Manmohan Kohli.
Heritage Walk: Retracing the City’s Origins
The event began with a Heritage Museum Walk led by Ar. Deepika Gandhi, Convenor of Focus Group UPDA, who explained the city’s origins and development through its archival exhibits. This set the stage for deeper conversations on Chandigarh’s journey from an “ideal city” to a living, evolving urban settlement. Chandigarh Dialogue
A City Between Preservation and Progress
Opening the session, Dr. Niyati Jigyasu set the tone: Chandigarh’s challenge is not whether to preserve or adapt — but how to weave both impulses together. This idea of “continuum” echoed throughout the discussions.
In a recorded address, Dr. Vikramaditya Prakash (Architect, architectural historian and theorist) dismantled the “false opposition” between preservation and innovation, reminding the audience that “Chandigarh was about making futures from the very beginning.” He urged recognition of Indian architects’ roles in shaping the city and emphasized “preserving the DNA of future-making” through resilience and open-ended design.
Learning from Global and Local Narratives
Dr. Shikha Jain (Architect) from Dronah outlined how the Historic Cities Series fosters similar dialogues across India. Drawing from UNESCO’s Historic Urban Landscape (HUL) framework, she proposed four strategic tools — civic engagement, knowledge-based planning, regulation, and finance — to help cities integrate heritage with sustainability.
Dr. Rohit Jigyasu expanded on this, identifying five pillars for resilient urban heritage, calling for cities like Chandigarh to embed conservation within development — especially in the face of climate change and rapid urbanization.
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Voices from Art, Architecture, and Academia
Architect-artist Ar. Eashan Chaufla presented a creative lens on Chandigarh’s legacy through reinterpretations of Corbusier’s furniture and everyday objects, arguing that “modernism must breathe through new material vocabularies.”
Visual artist Mr. Diwan Manna passionately critiqued the decline in cultural institutions and limited citizen engagement, urging for renewed sensitivity toward public art and cultural participation.
Meanwhile, Ms. Adriana Garreta (Barcelona) drew comparisons with Paris’s 15-Minute City and Barcelona’s Superblocks, emphasizing that Chandigarh’s grid already embodies such people-centric design. She advocated adaptive reuse — envisioning structures like Neelam Theatre as multi-use cultural hubs rather than relics.
Modernity, Not Modernism
In a powerful address, Prof. K.T. Ravindran clarified that Chandigarh’s UNESCO inscription celebrates its modernity — its bold vision for the future — not merely its modernist style. He highlighted emerging disruptions:
- Climate change and floods,
- Technological transformation (AI, transport automation),
- Demographic aging and migration.
He argued that Chandigarh’s flexible, gridded structure offers it unique resilience but warned that the city risks fossilization if discourse remains confined to aesthetic preservation.
Citizens at the Center
The panel discussion emphasized civic participation as the foundation for Chandigarh’s evolution.
- Ar. Sumit Kaur advocated graded heritage and adaptive reuse of housing.
- Adv. Mac Sarin urged coordinated Tri-City governance to address fragmented planning.
- Mr. Manmohan Kohli called for blending technological progress with the city’s humane design ethos.
Echoing the sentiment, Ar. Kapil Setia concluded that Chandigarh’s principles — sun, space, and greenery — must continue guiding its transformation, but through a participatory, youth-inclusive approach.
Beyond the Museum City
As the discussion closed, one takeaway resonated deeply: Chandigarh must resist becoming a “museum city.” Its strength lies in its adaptability — in its capacity to integrate innovation, community, and culture into its modernist foundation.
The event reaffirmed that Chandigarh’s true heritage is not frozen in concrete but alive in its people, values, and vision for the future.
- Event: Historic Cities Series 2025 – Chandigarh Edition
- Curated by: Dr. Niyati Jigyasu
- Moderated by: Ar. Deepika Gandhi
- Theme: “Chandigarh: Preserving a Modernist Vision or Adapting to a Dynamic Future?”
- Moderator: Ar. Deepika Gandhi
- Panelists: Prof. K.T. Ravindran, Ar. Sumit Kaur, Mr. J.M. Balamurugan (IAS), Adv. Mac Sarin, Mr. Manmohan Kohli, among others.
- Organizers: NIUA, ICOMOS India, DRONAH Foundation, Heritopolis, Altrim Publishers, Chandigarh University
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