“In Europe, modern intervention is allowed judiciously. Architect Partha Ranjan Das, who has also worked on conservation projects, says civic officials need to be more open to adaptive reuse of old buildings and flexible enough to encourage it. If you can retrofit modern amenities, an old building can be a prized possession,” he says. A member of the heritage conservation committee that drew up the graded list of Kolkata’s heritage buildings, he busts the notion. Architect Anjan Mitra says the idea of demolition emerged from the myth that modern living, or commerce, was impossible in old buildings or mansions. The owners, too, did not want to sell or demolish it,” Sen says. So, when I planned to set up a social museum, it was only natural that I did so in an old house. “I was exposed to the charm of old houses since childhood. An executive with ITC Hotels for 29 years, Sen rented his friend’s unused house and then restored it, keeping the red oxide and terrazzo floor. Rajesh Sen, who restored a 1930s townhouse at Dover Lane to set up The Z’s Precinct, an art gallery with a store, says he did not want to be situated in a modern building. At least two restaurants - 6 Ballygunge Place and The Corner Courtyard - are in restored houses. Byloom, another apparel store, opened some years ago in another restored house in the neighbourhood. The trend has gained momentum in recent years. Fabindia has been running a store at linguist Suniti Chattopadhyay’s house in Hindustan Park for nearly two decades. That is an extremely encouraging sign,” he says. In Kolkata, too, entrepreneurs are looking at properly restored houses with modern amenities to set up restaurants, cafes, bookstores and shops. That is way above what new properties command in the locality. In Mumbai’s Fort area, Zara has rented a five-storeyed property for Rs 3 crore a month. In most cities across the world, heritage properties command a premium in the commercial rental market. Only then will it lead to long-term conservation. The next step is to showcase the value of these properties by helping owners monetize them. Abin Chaudhuri, a co-founder at KAF, is enthused by what’s happening. Made aware that their homes are significant in the city’s architectural fabric, some have put off redevelopment plans. It has also changed the mindsets of some house owners in localities like Hindustan Road. These activities, along with the effort of individuals in the field of conservation, have led to a few interesting restoration projects, which is fuelling fresh interest in the subject. CAL and Kolkata Architecture Foundation (KAF), a collective of architects that is trying to revitalize the city’s public spaces and built heritage, have managed to raise awareness though discussion and debate. If you rob them, the city will lose its soul.” CAL has started a movement to raise public consciousness about preserving not just heritage properties, but architecturally significant homes that lend character to Kolkata’s paras. The soul of the city dwells in its cultural and architectural heritage. “The city,” he adds, “can actually benefit the way London, Paris and New York have by preserving their heritage buildings. “Kolkata can ill afford to go the Shanghai way,” says author Amit Chaudhuri, founder of Calcutta Architectural Legacies (CAL). Despite heritage buildings and architecturally significant houses being demolished over the years, still enough buildings remain, lending both character and flavour to the city that nearly all Indian cities of the period, other than Mumbai, have lost. Shanghai’s loss has been, in a way, Kolkata’s gain. By the time Shanghai realized its blunder, there was precious little left to be preserved. Shorn of its architectural heritage, Shanghai has become a “me-too” metropolis, one that has many equivalents in South-East Asia, the Gulf and North America. In its quest to emerge as an ultra-modern global city, most of the old buildings, apart from a short stretch along the riverfront, were torn down in a hurry to make way for skyscrapers. Till the mid-20th century, Shanghai, with its wealth of colonial architecture and hand-pulled rickshaws, could have laid claim to being Kolkata’s twin city.
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