THE WALL THAT WAS

Tracing the Origins of Bangalore

A project report submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements

for the degree of
BACHELOR OF ARCHITECTURE (B.ARCH.)

by
MADHAV SHARMA
1RV14AT050

R V COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE
(Affiliated to the Vishvesvaraya Technological University, Belgaum)

Site CA-1, Banashankari 6th Stage, 4th Block, Near Chikagowdanapalya Village, Off Vajarahalli
Main Road, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560062

JANUARY- MAY 2018

 R V COLLEGE OF ARCHITECTURE
(Affiliated to the Visvesvaraya Technological University, Belgaum)

Site CA-1, Banashankari 6th Stage, 4th Block, Near Chikagowdanapalya Village, Off Vajarahalli
Main Road, Bengaluru, Karnataka 560062

CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that the thesis project entitled

“The Wall That Was : Tracing the Origins of Bangalore”
is a bonafide work carried out by
Madhav Sharma 1rv14at050

towards partial fulfillment of the requirements for the

Degree of Bachelor of Architecture
JANUARY TO MAY 2018.

Guides

Ar. NAME: BAKUL JANI

Ar. NAME: VAGISH N

Ar. NAME: HIMADRI DAS Dr. OM PRAKASH BAWANE

Principal
Ar. NAME: SEEMA ANAND
R V College of Architecture
Ar. NAME: ANKUR C BENGALURU

EXAMINERS: INTERNAL EXTERNAL 1 EXTERNAL 2

Signature:
Date:
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I am deeply indebted to my teachers for their invaluable guidance and

constructive criticism rendered during the course of the project and especially
Bakul Jani Sir for being a constant pillar of support and motivation and for staying
with us in the studio till late hours.

I wish to express my gratitude to Dr. Om Prakash Bawane, Principal, R V College

of Architecture and Prof. Suresh Murthy, Dean, R.V. College of Architecture,
under whose encouragement all possible facilities were provided for the
successful completion of the project.

I wish to express my sincere gratitude to my friends Sarah Mariam Teekay,

Sachet Kiran, Raghunandan Bung, Megha Shetty, Anentt Shukla, Ishani Goel,
Aditya Badheria, Ankeeta Ray and Aditi Shaw without whom this project would
not have been possible.

I would also like to thank my parents, Dr. Anupam Sharma and Dr. Mridula
Sharma, my brother Captain Raghav Sharma and my sister-in-law Captain Nikita
Srivastav for their constant support and encouragement.

I also wish to acknowledge Rao enterprises and Print-on for being available at a
moment’s notice even during late hours.

MADHAV SHARMA
1RV14AT050
Table of Contents

• Introduction 6-9

• Aims and Objectives 10

• Methodology 11

• Idea/Context 12 - 18

• Functions & Activities 19

• Design 20 - 36

• Conclusion 37

• Appendices 38

• Bibliography 39
 INTRODUCTION
Bangalore has been called a ‘hub of technology’ where professionals flock from all
over the world. The city is a diverse mix of cultures from all over the country. It is
called the ‘Silicon Valley of India’. But before it attained its modern avatar, it went
through a series of transformations making the city as we know it today.
The project aims to trace and give significance to such transformations that have
occured since the origin of the city and continue to exist around us, hidden away
amongst the modern menace.

1.1 Map of Bangalore and outlying areas.

The above map shows the position of the fort close to the highest point of the
outlying area. The fort was constructed by ‘Kempegowda I’ in Mud 1537. Later, under
the rule of Haider Ali the mud fort was replaced by a Stone Fort in 1761. The defeat of
Tipu Sultan in 1799 and the spread of malaria in Seringapatam (modern Srirangapat-
tana) gave rise to Bangalore as the new centre of British military. With the setting up of
the Civil and Military Station in 1806, the city was no longer a mid stop between My-
sore and Madras (Chennai) but a final destination for travellers and merchants. Soon,
the urbanisation shifted north-eastwards and the pete and the fort were left to grow
unadministered. The Civil and Military Station had planned layouts with bunglows
and churches while the the pete and the fort were allowed to grow without any control
over them. Over the years, the fort wall was torn down to expand the city and now
only the ‘Delhi Gate’ remains.
6
 Introduction

1.2 Map of Bangalore c.1900

1.3 Map Titled ‘Plan of Bangalore (with the Attacks) taken by the English Army under the
Command of the Rt. Honble. Earl Cornwallis KG etc. etc. etc. March 22nd 1791.

7
 Introduction

1.4 Zoom in of the fort showing the fort wall, the ‘Delhi Gate’ in the north, the palace
in the centre and the ‘Mysore Gate’ in the south.
The map shows the ceremoninal path from the entry of the fort at the northern gate
called the ‘Delhi Gate’ (Pic. 1.6) to the Venkataramanaswamy Temple and then
moving south-westwards towards the square and the entrance to the Palace (Tipu
Sultan Summer Palace, Pic.1.7,1.8). This path defined the primary axis of the old
‘Bengaluru’. The axis continued further to the southern gate called the ‘Mysore Gate’.

8
 Introduction

1.5 ‘North View of Bangalore from the Pettah shewing the Bastions that were
breached’.

1.6‘The Delhi Gate Of Bangalore’

With the destruction of the wall

during the seige of the fort, the
1.7 ‘The Square And Entrance Into Tippoo’s torn down part of the fort became
Palace, Bangalore’ the main access into the fort and
the ‘Delhi gate’ lost its relevance.
Thus, marked the first change of a
sequence of changes which trans-
formed the axis of ‘Bengaluru’ into
the axis of ‘Bangalore’. The axis
further lost its relevance with the
British keen to shift the importance
to the Cantonment and the newly
created markets inside it. With the
need for urbanisation growing at
a very fast pace and an unwilling
British Government the fort was
torn down completely leaving just
1.8 ‘The Old Palace in the Fort, Bangalore’ the ‘Delhi Gate’ in its place.
9
 Aims & Objectives
The aim of the project is To revive the axis of ‘Bengaluru’.

Objectives

• To create a link between the Bangalore fort, Sri Venkataramana Swamy Temple and
the Tipu Sultan Summer Palace.
• To make people aware of the rich history of the area.
• To increase the pedestrian accessibility.
• To provide celebration spaces for the community.
• To create a pedestrian link between the K.R. Market Metro station and the upcoming
Kalasipalayam bus stand.

10
Methodology

K eywords

• Integration
• Axis
• Community
• Celebration
• Congregation
• Local Economy
• Transit Node

11
IDEA / CONTEXT

Study Area - Kalasipalayam,

Bangalore
Latitude - 12°57’40.57”N
Longitude - 77°34’29.50”E
Climate - Moderate

12
 Idea/Context

Clockwise from Top : Panorama of the site over

metro station in front of Vani-Vilas Hospital;
Bangalore Fort ; Market in front of Shani Temple
; Metro exit opposite the Vani-Vilas Hospital ;
Panorama of the market opposite the Vani-Vilas ;
Metro exit on the side of Vani-Vilas Hospital ;
Venkataramanaswamy Temple ; Tipu Sultan
Summer Palace;

13
Idea/Context

I dea 1 - Integration of the area with the

community through a central
celebration space which becomes a major
a major node of the neighbourhood con-
necting the people of the local community
with the tourists and daily travellers.
The initial idea dealt with going through
the community with 3 tiers of access paths
cutting across the residential area. The end
points of the access paths were the K.R.
Market metro station land and the Kalasi-
palayam bus stand currently under
construction.
The land above the metro station could be
developed as a transit hub with the local
bus stops and the metro station(currently
existing). The access paths would take the
people from this transit hub to the bus
stand 300mts accross.
Idea 1 had a wide scope as with the
community intergrating with the transit
the local economy gets a boost and newer
developments along the access paths would
eventually add a local character to the
overall experience.
It had its limitations because of the width
of the access roads which were were poorly
designed and would not support the traffic

14
Idea/Context

I dea 2 - Integration of the area with a

sub-terrainean system between
the metro and the bus stand with the cele-
bration space at the centre of the residen-
tial area becoming the mid-point of the
underground access.
The underground system could become a
commercial hub for the whole neighbour-
hood and could serve as a subsidiary to the
K.R. Market.
Idea 2 did not have a huge scope for the
community development but it offered an
extension to the government proposal to a
subway connection.
The idea might not have worked out
because of safety issues prevailing in the
area. The underground system might be-
come a nuisance for the community
instead of binding them with the tourists
and the daily travellers.

15
Idea/Context

I dea 3 - All the spaces could be created

on the site above the metro
station as it is empty and served as the
ideal spot being on the axis of ‘Bengaluru’.
The site would have a celebration space in
the centre with a historical interpretation
centre 12m on top of the celebration space
such that the bottom plane and the top
plane with the supports frame the view of
the Vani-Vilas hospital. The axis starting
from the palace and ending at the fort
would have an open market at the ground
on both sides of it. 2 forecourts one in
front of the palace and other in front of
the fort would serve as promenades. A
skywalk connecting the 2 forecourts would
take people to the historical interpretation
centre on top and would become the only
space with views of both the palace and the
fort.
The idea had a limited scope as taking the
structure 12m high would mean a lot of
supports and the celebration space would
have a heavy object on top contradicting
the spirit of open space.

16
Idea/Context

I dea 4 - Creating a open celebration

space in the centre which would
serve not just the area but all of Bangalore.
It would provide bangalore with a
celebration space that is lacks such as the
Jantar Mantar in Delhi and the Tiananmen
Square in Beijing, China. The space called
the ‘Kendriya Chowk’ would be open for
all and would become the centre of all
activities in the neighbourhood.
The two built stuctures to the north and
the south would serve as a community
centre and a commercial space respectively
and frame the space between them. The
two built spaces act as visual extensions to
the buildings behind them to further
extend the forecourt of the Vani-Vilas
which is inaccessible to the public and acts
a buffer between the open public space and
the hospital building. The historical inter-
pretation centre happens under this
forecourt. The two courts in front of the
palace and the fort, called the ‘Mysore
Chowk’ and the ‘Delhi Chowk’ as a
memory of the ‘Mysore Gate’ and the
‘Delhi Gate’ respectiely.

17
Idea/Context

I dea 5 - The fort wall is used as a

memory to bind the whole
neighbourhood together. The road to the
side of the the Kalasipalayam bus stand
is totally pedestrianised and a market is
included to create a car-free pedestrian
domain which caters to the local
community as well as the whole city. The
market acts as an extension to the al-
ready existing market, the roof of which is
accessible to the public as a walkway with a
water canal on the other side to create the
feeling of walking on the fort wall with a
moat on the outside.
The shani temple land is made accessible to
the public with a market added along the
periphery to create a public square. An el-
evated walkway acts as an extension to the
fort wall connecting it to the other side of
the road serving as a connection between
the market on the axis and the already
existing ones. This makes the ‘Delhi Gate’
relevant again.

18
Functions & Activities

19
 DESIGN
Scheme

20
 21
Exploded Axonometric View
Design

22
Exploded Axonometric View
Design

23
Axonometric
Axonometric
View
Design

24
Axonometric View
Design

25
Axonometric View
Design

26
Axonometric View
Design

27
Perspective Section
Design

28
Perspective Section
Design

29
Perspective Section
Design

30
Longitudinal Section
Design

31
Longitudinal Section
Design

32
Cross Section
Design

33
Longitudinal Section through The
Historical Interpretation Centre
 34
Photomontage
 35
Photomontage
 36
Photomontage
 Conclusion
The thesis ‘The Wall That Was : Tracing the origins of Bangalore’ longs to give back
Bengaluru the identity it was known for. It aims to reach out to the people on a local
scale and make them realise the true identity of Bengaluru and how it transformed
from ‘Bengaluru’ to ‘Bangalore’. Now, when the city aims to be ‘Bengaluru’ again
this project aims for a future generation to build it up on the wall that was.

37
 Appendices
1.1 Map of Bangalore and outlying areas. Source - British Library(www.bl.co.uk)

1.2 Map of Bangalore c.1900. Source - Pinterest(www.pinterest.com)

1.3 Map Titled ‘Plan of Bangalore (with the Source - British Library(www.bl.co.uk)
Attacks) taken by the English Army
under the Command of the Rt. Honble.
Earl Cornwallis KG etc. etc. etc. March
22nd 1791.

1.4 Zoom in of the fort showing the fort Source - British Library(www.bl.co.uk)
wall, the ‘Delhi Gate’ in the north, the
palace in the centre and the ‘Mysore
Gate’ in the south.

1.5 ‘North View of Bangalore from the Source - British Library(www.bl.co.uk)

Pettah shewing the Bastions that were
breached’.

1.6 ‘The Delhi Gate Of Bangalore’ Source - British Library(www.bl.co.uk)

1.7 ‘The Square And Entrance Into Source - British Library(www.bl.co.uk)

Tippoo’s Palace, Bangalore’

1.8 ‘The Old Palace in the Fort, Bangalore’ Source - British Library(www.bl.co.uk)

38
 Bibliography
• www.bl.co.uk
• www.britishcouncil.in
• www.proquest.com
• www.google.com/books
• www.scribd.com
• www.goodreads.com
• www.jstor.org

39
40