Design Challenge

The design program revolves around redesigning the Pathu Thoon Lane in Madurai (Tamil Nadu, India). Pathu Thoon Lane, also known as "10 Pillar Street," features a row of ten granite pillars, each with a circumference of 1.20 meters. The historically significant 10-pillar lane is steeped in a rich heritage of weavers and silk craftsmanship; now occupied by textile shops and residences.

The design challenge is to restore and integrate the lane's cultural heritage, emphasizing its pillars and proximity to key structures like temples and palaces. Proposed interventions include showcasing silk weaving artistry, preserving the Shivalingam sculpture, and incorporating the lane into a heritage walk. The design must respect the lane's narrow width and mixed-use character, balancing retail and residential needs while enhancing its historical value.

Timeline

TDB 2024 Launch

15^th July (Monday)

Final Submission

7^th October (Monday)

Finalist Announcement

14^th October (Monday)

Masterclass

25^th October (Friday)

Finale

26^th October (Saturday)

Jurors

Prof. Durganand Balsavar
Goa, India

Prof. Durganand Balsavar grew up in Goa and graduated from SA-CEPT Ahmedabad with an exchange Studio at ETH Zurich. After working in Zurich and Paris, Balsavar was invited as visiting faculty at CEPT and the atelier of B V Doshi.

Balsavar has been faculty for India Studios of Bartlett, Helsinki School of Architecture and involved in diverse cultural contexts - the Chandigarh Lab, IUAV Venice, Auckland, Indonesia, Nepal. He founded Artes-ROOTS Collaborative, which has been involved in an environment-appropriate architecture as a community participatory process. Artes ROOTS has engaged in a diverse range of projects from advocacy, policy, practice and research in future cities, disaster-mitigation , AMB-Barcelona UN Habitat III, Berlin Climate Policy 2050 Program, Future Cities Cambridge Univ-UK (VIT) Summit and several more. Balsavar has been a jury member at IIT-Gandhinagar, IIA National Awards and several other International competitions. The projects of Artes-ROOTS have been published in DOMUS, Routledge Press, MIT Press-Boston, CSE, Ekistics. Balsavar has written extensively on ecological architecture and its larger context.
He has curated the CoASocial READS Dialogues and has authored several publications. Artes ROOTS was nominated as best practices for participatory housing by UNDP. (www.artesroots.com)

Ar. Henri Comrie
Cape Town, South Africa

Henri Comrie is a minimalist architect and urban designer who enjoys working through complex problems to arrive at simple and logical solutions that hold wide appeal. This skill has been demonstrated in a series of awarded and internationally published projects that range from modest individual houses to city precincts.

He was listed in Taschen’s 40 architects under 40 and Wallpaper Magazine’s design directory, both representing reputable and independently vetted international shortlists of recognizable design talent.

Ar. Sachin Agshikar
Mumbai, India

Sachin Agshikar studied Architecture from Sir J.J. College of Architecture, University of Bombay and was awarded Gold Medal in 1991 for his final year design thesis.

Before setting up his own practice in 1999, he worked with Ar. Charles Correa for eight years.

He further worked as an associate to Charles Correa on Cancer Research Centre in Lisbon, R&D Centre for Mahindra & Mahindra, and Extension to Kala Academy and IUCAA