On-going Research
The development of the ashwath katte as a sustainable urban space: the role of social capital in minimising deterritorialisation
This research will look at the practice of tree worship which continues to be a part of the everyday life of the people in the city of Bangalore. Specifically, it will look at how the Peepul tree (Ficus Religiosa) shrine and the raised platform around it, locally called the ashwath katte has developed into a sustainable urban space. The study will look at 20 ashwath kattes in the city of Bangalore. It will try to understand the conditions under which social capital increases in the neighbourhood through the ashwath katte.
Time frame:
Nov 2018 - Oct 2019
This project has been awarded an APU Research Grant for 2018-19. We have two full-time Research Associates working on it. If you would like to be a Volunteer & put in a min. 6-8 hrs/week, do write to us.
Completed Research
The logic of design: its role in understanding the antecedents of urban informality
August 2018 Journal of Urban design
The everyday life of a city can generate informality in urban space, particularly in emerging economies. Using the Grounded theory approach, this paper looks at how urban space in a market precinct is negotiated through tactics of street vendors and strategies of the government. It suggests a theoretical framework to understand the relation between the logic, decision and action of stakeholders, to resolve the conflict between urban planning criteria and ground reality. See Publication
The Practice of Tree worship and the Territorial Production of Urban space in an Indian neighbourhood
February 2017 Journal of Urban design
In urban India, there are religious practices intersecting with the process of urbanisation at various levels. This paper looks at the practice of tree worship which continues to be a part of the everyday lives of the people. Specifically, it looks at how the Peepul tree shrine contributes to the territorial production of urban space in the city of Bangalore. See Publication
Territoriality in Urban space: The case of a Periodic marketplace in Bangalore, India
January 2015 Co-authored with Suresh Bhagavatula. In Informal Urban Street Markets: International Perspectives Eds. Clifton Evers & Kirsten Seale, Routledge ‘Studies in Development and Society’ Series
The objective of this chapter is to probe the intersection of the informal economy and urban space. The context is an annual peanut fair in Bangalore, India. The chapter specifically addresses the question: How do street vendors mark and defend their territory as they appropriate urban space? See Publication
Sustainable Island Strategies
April 2012 . Architecture+Design, Media Transasia Pvt.Ltd, Delhi
The Contribution of Building Centres to Low-cost Housing in India
1997 Building Research and Information – Vol. 25, Number 1, Taylor & Francis, UK