PUTTING PEOPLE AT THE CENTRE OF THE DESIGN OF CITIES
In a rapidly changing world, architect Rahul Mehrotra explores new ways to design and plan cities; a task that requires looking beyond the physical and material aspects of architecture to include consideration of the patterns and rituals of life as they influence individuals and urban environments.
Rahul Mehrotra
Architect and Professor
RMA Architects, Mumbai, India and Harvard University, Cambridge, USA
Culture in Vibrant Communities
Rahul Mehrotra is a Professor of Urban Design and Planning and the John T. Dunlop Professor in Housing and Urbanization at the Graduate School of Design at Harvard University. He is the founder principal of RMA Architects which has studios in Mumbai and Boston. RMA Architects, was founded in 1990 and has designed and executed projects including government and private institutions, corporate workplaces, private homes, and unsolicited projects driven by the firm’s commitment to advocacy in the city of Mumbai. In 2012-2015, he led a Harvard University-wide research project with Professor Diana Eck, called The Kumbh Mela: Mapping the Ephemeral Mega City. This work was published as a book in 2014 and the research extended in 2017 in the form of a book titled Does Permanence Matter? Mehrotra’s also co – authored a book titled Taj Mahal : Multiple Narratives which was published in Dec 2017. Mehrotra’s most recent books are titled Working in Mumbai (2020) and The Kinetic City and other essays ( 2021). The former a reflection on his practice evolved through its association with the city of Bombay/Mumbai. The second book presents Mehrotra’s writings over the last thirty years and illustrates his long-term engagement with and analysis of urbanism in India. This work has given rise to a new conceptualisation of the city which Mehrotra calls the Kinetic City.