Balkrishna Doshi Becomes The First Indian To Win Pritzker Prize

Renowned architect Balkrishna Doshi has been named the first Indian to win the field's highest honour, the Pritzker Architecture Prize. He, in seven decades, has shaped the discourse of Indian architecture and design. Doshi has worked for 20th century modernists Le Corbusier and Louis Kahn and is celebrated for designs that transform their language and material.

Doshi “constantly demonstrates that all good architecture and urban planning must not only unite purpose and structure but must take into account climate, site, technique, and craft, along with a deep understanding and appreciation of the context,” the nine-member jury that awards the prize said in its citation, according to this report. He was also appreciated for creating “an architecture that is serious, never flashy or a follower of trends”.

Doshi was born in 1927, in Pune. He began studying architecture in 1947 and moved to London. He came back to observe the projects of projects by Le Corbusier. Doshi said, "My works are an extension of my life, philosophy and dreams trying to create treasury of the architectural spirit. I owe this prestigious prize to my guru, Le Corbusier. His teachings led me to question identity and compelled me to discover new regionally adopted contemporary expression for a sustainable holistic habitat”.

Memories of his grandfather's home and Indic aesthetics and philosophy have fueled his imagination and work. "Childhood recollections, from the rhythms of the weather to the ringing of temple bells, inform his designs. He describes architecture as an extension of the body, and his ability to attentively address function while regarding climate, landscape, and urbanization is demonstrated through his choice of materials, overlapping spaces, and utilization of natural and harmonizing elements," the Pritzker jury says.

Some of his popular projects include the Tagore Memorial Hall, Aranya Low Cost Housing Township, The Center for Environmental Planning and Technology, the Indian Institute of Management in Bangalore and Amdavad ni Gufa. He was significantly involved in the design of Chandigarh. It gave him a chance to explore his interest in producing basic and low-cost spaces for people.