India’s big cities are racing towards a sprawling homogeneity, devoid of history, culture and personality. Old cafés, storefronts and buildings — with their Art Deco, Indo-Saracenic, Gothic styles — are disappearing, often replaced by a big retail chain. It’s getting harder to find those elements that once differentiated a Delhi from a Mumbai, or a Kolkata from a Chennai.
While there are rules surrounding the preservation of old buildings and heritage structures in the country, they vary. The Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act of 1958, for instance, provides for the preservation of old and historical monuments, but it may not apply to the colonial building down the street. “There is a huge lack of awareness around old buildings and heritage structures in India,” says Nitin Kumar, a conservator with INTACH (Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage). “People like to have new things, but they forget: how can you build the new without the foundation of the old?”
Interestingly, Instagram is now becoming an archive of sorts. Urban sketchers are meticulously documenting streetscapes and architecture quintessential to their cities. Their motivations range from love for their cities to a nostalgic trip down memory lane. In the process, what’s being created is a living, evolving portrait of a city.
