Hyderabad: Well known heritage architect Yeshwant Ramamurthy said in an open letter to Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao that with conservation technologies and adaptive re-use, Errum Manzil can be revitalised and included in the master plan for a new Assembly complex. “Our past complements the future in a successful architectural narrative and can set a template to rethink heritage in the national matrix,” he said.
He said that the emergence of Telangana state in 2014 and the consequent revival of its cultural ethos, the concept of ‘Ganga Jumna tehzeeb’ was often cited as a barometer of its syncretic sensibilities. “Looking beyond the obvious religious connotations of this term, can we not apply the same term to describe a co-existence of traditional and contemporary architectural vocabularies to interpret our regional identity?” Mr Ramamurthy asked.
“The old need not make way for the new, but co-exist in harmonious mutuality. The intention to preserve architecture is not detrimental to growth. Indeed, it should be perceived for its divination of unbroken succession,” he said.
Mr Ramamurthy asked how many cities enjoyed an unbroken past.
Hyderabad is one of the few where one can travel across 450 years of recorded history within its urban footprint, he pointed out. “Today, a state-of-the-art Metro Rail system connects medieval minarets with multi-level modernity. As it traverses this transition through timelines, can we pause at the commas of heritage instead of hurtling mindlessly to a full stop?” he asked.
He said that the foundation stone installed recently by the Chief Minister heralded the commencement of a unique project where an architectural dialogue between old traditions and emerging trends could define Telangana’s vernacular modernity. Using conservation technologies and adaptive re-use, Errum Manzil can be revitalised.
He said that the contentious move to demolish the Errum Manzil for constructing a new Assembly building had dismayed many. "It appears that the demolition of this edifice will not merely arouse emotional injury to its surviving feudal bloodline, but smear the collective consciousness of Hyderabad's anguished citizenry by its disregard for our bygone times. Errum Manzil is more than a silent palace. It is our urbanity and deserves reverence," he wrote.
Mr Ramamurthy contended that heritage is a gift that people inherit. “Like the stories told lovingly by grandparents, old buildings are fantasies in which reality is rooted. Heritage is indeed the past from which the present emerges and the journey into the future begins. As the scaffolding of continuity, heritage isn’t a redundant blister to be erased, but the dormant offset of Telangana’s
modern architectural vocabulary.”
Dr Lubna Sarwath who challenged government’s decision to demolish the Errum Manzil in the High Court, said that Hyderabad is more than 450 years old and not five years when the state was formed.
She said, "The CM should learn from the ex-rulers of Hyderabad who did not destroy existing edifices of their times. They expanded the city from the south of the Musi to the north. A unique feature of all heritage structures is that the Nizams constructed all public utility structures with the same aestheticity and decorativeness as they constructed their own palaces.”
Dr Sarawath said Mr Rao had the constitutional responsibility to preserve the historicity of Hyderabad.
