JAMIA MILLIA ISLAMIA UNIVERSITY

FACULTY OF ARCHITECTURE AND EKISTICS

RESEARCH PAPER ON

"AR. SHIVNATH PRASAD AND HIS CONTRIBUTION IN

INDIAN ARCHITECTURE"

SUBMITTED BY
MOMIN MOHAMMAD ZAKI
1ST YEAR MASTER OF ARCHITECTURE
BUILDING SERVICES

INTRODUCTION
Tracing the history of modern Indian architecture, we can say that one group of
first generation of Indian Modernists owed an intellectual and formal debt to the
Bauhaus, and the other one highly productive between 1960 and 1980, owes much to
Le Corbusier, one of among which was Architect Shivnath Prasad.
Like many young architects during India's independence, Shivnath Prasad was
keen to change the language of architecture to reflect the emerging nation. Along with
Le Corbusiers presence, Modernism manifested in India and the works of Prasad found
centre stage. His work was climatically sympathetic with a strong Modern aesthetic of
bare-faced concrete with deep recesses to handle the Indian environment.

EDUCATION AND LIFE

Shivnath Prasad born in 1922 and after his primary education he went to study at
the School of Architecture, Edinburgh College of Art and afterwards qualified with a
Diploma in Town Planning. Shivnath was admitted ARIBA (Associate member of Royal
Institute of British Architects) in 1948. In 1950 his address was 12 Regent Terrace,
Edinburgh.
After his return to India Prasad initially worked in Delhi for the Government and
he was assigned as the Architect and Town Planner for the first Master Plan of Delhi1962. Stories abound on the uncompromising stands he took on architectural matters,
in striking contrast to the subservient attitude of his colleagues, so due to rigidity of his

own nature he quit the government service. Then a very few projects of his can be
observed from 1960 to 1980s.
He was sighted occasionally in local architectural Schools where he continues to
terrorize the hapless students with his uncompromising commitment to good
architecture.
Prasads disciplined architecture is almost unique, partly because he left to teach
in the United States later and partly because few had the self-confidence to
transparently utilise the Masters vocabulary in service of their own architectural
programme.

INFLUENCE OF LE CORBUSIER

In an interview Prof KT Ravindran, a professor of Urban design from School of

Planning and Architecture, Delhi said The architect of Shri Ram Arts Centre, was a man
called Shivanath Prasad, who was a maverick, a hardcore modernist. He taught me
when I was in SPA. Charles Correa dubbed him the Eklavya of modernism, because he
was a complete Corbusian without ever having met or studied with Corbusier. Ill tell
you a story about him. I went to interview him some 15 years ago for some article. By
this time, he was old and infirm and a troubled soul. He said, Ive wasted one whole
lifetime chasing this Corbusian shadow. Now I dont even look at his work, I dont read a
book of his; theres some new work Im doing. And then he showed me his new work,
some new capital city complex and it was totally Corbusian: compositional grid-like plan,
where lines are balanced, and buildings are located in exactly the right place. Poor
man
Shivnath Prasad, a Le Corbusier acolyte, seemingly transliterated the works of Le
Corbusier in his architecture.

On the contrary some sources say that he has assisted Le Corbusier in Chandigarh
before he started to work in Delhi.

Prasads rigid and uncompromising nature is transparently exhibited in the

projects he undertook after he left Government service, such as the Akbar Hotel (196569) (now converted into the offices of the Ministry of External Affairs, and renamed
Akbar Bhavan) and Shri Ram Centre (1966-690) and Tibet House Museum (1973-1978).
These buildings are exemplary for several reasons, but most particularly on account of
the reflexive manner in which he utilised Le Corbusiers vocabulary to serve his ends.
The production of these buildings demonstrates the intense commitment to
architectural principles required of an architect to produce compelling architecture.
Prasads intelligent approach to design is also apparent in the neighbourhood plan he
made for West End Colony where he absorbed the area that would typically be set aside
for the service lanes into the open space network. Each house at West End therefore,
has a better relationship with the open spaces than in colonies with separate service
lanes and arbitrarily defined open areas for parks.

CONTRIBUTION / PROJECTS

Surviving examples of Prasads work includes Akbar Hotel (1965-69) (now

converted into the offices of the Ministry of External Affairs, and renamed Akbar
Bhavan), Shri Ram Centre (1966-690) and Tibet House Museum (1973-1978).

Akbar Hotel designed by Shivnath Prasad was heavily drawn on the layout of
Unite de Habitation at Marseilles (1952) & secretariat building Chandigarh (1953 ).

Its a thirteen storey concrete slab building.Design of this building is drawn heavily on
the layout of Corbusiers Unite de Habitation Marseilles and also it resembles to
secretariat building of chandigarh. This building can be referred as the typical example
of brutalism architecture of Le Corbusier with very linear, fortress like and blockish
form.

Heavy massing and sculptural use of concrete can be spotted. A service floor in the hotel
building echoes that of a shopping floor for Unite de Habit which divides the bedroom
area above from the common rooms below. A two storey curvilinear block juts out at
the base which houses restaurants and lounges and other recreational spaces.
Like the Unite de habitation, the roof has "communal facilities"- in this case, a
restaurant, garden and small open air theatre.
As far as resemblance of this building with some of the Le Corbusier's projects are
concerned we can say that this project was designed under the first phase of Le
Corbusier's influence, where architect just tried to copy form and various elements from
the works of master Architect.
From his own work Prasad might have soon realized that he was essentially
copying his design patterns rather than the design process that led to them. In his own
later work he responded to this self-awareness. The Shri Ram Centre, which Prasad
designed almost at the same time as Akbar Hotel was for a private trust that promotes

dance, drama and theatre. It can be regarded as an example of work resulting from the
second phase of Le Corbusiers influence.

This building expresses, through architectural form, the variety of functions the
building is to house. For instance, the theatre is in a cylindrical form and the rehearsal
spaces are in the form of a rectangular mass. The building is unique in its architecture:
its base is shaped like a cylinder on top of which sits a horizontal rectangle.
The ground floor and first floor are within the cylindrical half of the building. Its
auditorium on the first floor - The Shankar Lal Murli Dhar Auditorium - is designed for
theatre music performances.
The auditorium, which boasts of a proscenium stage, has a seating capacity of
about 556 people at two levels. The main hall seats around 403 and the balcony seats
around 153 people. There are two cylindrical blocks (canteen and some offices) placed
on the left side rising upto a lower ht than auditorium.
The celebrated concrete box is oddly appropriate for the site, a triangular slice of
land abutting the Mandi House Chowk. As if presenting a oversized concrete-wrapped
gift box to the circle, and the thousands of cars, auto-rickshaws, bicycles and
pedestrians which navigate its busy stream every day. Green rooms are in a separate
block placed to the backside of the main building connected to stage via staircase.

It can be regarded as an example of second phase of Le Corbusier's influence,

rather than copying design patterns of masters work Prasad might have followed the
design process which resulted to the obtained form. In a true rationalist manner Prasad
explored the use of pure geometric forms cylinder and cuboid to create a piece of
sculpture.
In the Tibet House Museum building Shivnath Prasad developed his own
vocabulary for presentation of Corbusier's Modern style by designing a simple elevated
cube with two sides as dead walls and front and rear side as openings inviting daylight
to serve the purpose of a museum.

These openings were protected by balcony projections and vertical fins. A

curvilinear block to the left housing an office at an intermediate level used like in his
previous projects. A similar block on the backside of the building but purely rectangular
in shape serves as an assymetrical counter form to the curvy block.
The lower structure of ground and first floor houses reception space and a
lounge, a private office in the curvilinear block at an intermediated level while servants
room and office on respective lower and upper level of backside rectangular block.
While elevated cube houses three floors, first for conference halls and galleries, second
for museum and third for library.

In Tibet House Museum Shivnath Prasad developed his own vocabulary of

Modern style by designing a simple elevated cube but he was not out of the Corbusier's
shadow. There was a concept of different forms differing in expressing different
functions.

References
1. http://ontheroad.danielmarkiewicz.com/2012/03/04/58delhisri-ram-arts-centre/
2. Interview of Prof.KT Ravindran (SPA) in Hindustan times by trisha gupta
3. "Concrete master works" online from the blog of Rrishi Raote / New Delhi / June 06,
2009
4. "A concise history of modern architecture in India" by John T Lang
5. "Modern architecture of Delhi" by Ravi Khanna
6. Photo Album Records from library at Tibet House Museum
7. http://www.tibethouse.in/content/museum