Ninth International Conference on The Constructed Environment

Abstract

Colonial urban edifices of Poona mark political statements and demarcate commencement of the early modern age in the setting of “native” Maratha architectural character. Those were key components helped in constructing the image of the city in late nineteenth century. Those religious structures, educational buildings, and offices built, which were the first of their kind, emerged as colonial public architectural landmarks in the Pune context utterly following western notions. The concept and its manifestation in architectural form both could be out of context in a typical Maratha-Peshwa town in various ways. There were several oppositions from local reformists and communities for constructing structures such as covered markets at the heart of indigenous towns, which were eventually constructed under supervision of local contractor Vasudeo Kanitkar under the guidelines of royal engineer, Walter Ducat. The paper emphasizes the architectural models followed as a powerful symbol during the reign of the British, in Pune especially in the case of public architectural edifices eventually intervened strongly as colonial public landscapes. These religious, educational structures ultimately helped British “Raj” to build an image as ruler and to control on existing economic, social, and cultural system. These colonial landmarks are neglected from their significance as vital cultural resources and seen as alienated structures from the locals’ point of view. With the help of qualitative research methods and archival resources, this paper examines the importance of these erections as a manifestation of power by sovereign imposed on numerous classes, castes of Pune.