BV DOSHI: THE DOYEN OF INDIAN ARCHITECTURE WILL LIVE ON

BALKRISHNA VITHALDAS DOSHI - 1927-2023

- A TRIBUTE BY PROF. RAJNISH WATTAS

On Doshi's passing away on 24th January 2023 at the grand age of 95, Prime Minister Narendra Modi lead the condolences. "BV Doshi ji was a brilliant architect and a remarkable institution builder. The coming generations will get glimpses of his greatness by admiring his rich work across India. His passing away is saddening.  Condolences to his family and admirers. Om shanti." And just two days later the nation's second highest civilian award Padma Vibushan was conferred on him posthumously.

India's iconic architect, educator and visionary might have gone gently into the world beyond-his light will eternally illuminate the skyline of Indian architecture.

In his passing away it's the end of an era for post-Independence Indian architecture. Foremost, among the pioneers of the profession in the country, he formed the core of top Indian architects like Charles Correa, Achyut Kanvinde, Anant Raje and Raj Rewal among others, who trained abroad in modernism, but impassioned by the excitement of participating in nation-building exercise, came back home to set up their own practices.

Doshi, was unique among this group in numerous ways. Not only did he intern at the office of Le Corbusier in Paris, he also worked along with another global master of architecture, Louis Kahn who designed the Indian Institute of Management at Bengaluru. While in Paris, Doshi was the only Indian architect who worked on the Capitol Complex at Chandigarh and on return to become his site architect for the High Court and projects at Ahmedabad.