ChuriyaVille
The Glass Industry of Firozabad provides livelihood to over six hundred thousand people, of which over two hundred thousand are directly involved in the bangle industry. Every single bangle crafted here is created through a combination of grit, sacrifice, and sheer artistry. Multiple intricate steps are performed in a time-tested manner by the bangle makers for whom this process is a tradition that goes back centuries. These bangles are exported all over the world as symbols of femininity and marital felicity, adorning the wrists of women of all ages, while their makers are trapped in an endless cycle of drudgery and ill-health. Making these delicate ornaments ultimately renders many of its makers blind, or suffering from lung or skin ailments. Most of these health issues are rooted in the spaces they inhabit, with large portions of their daily life intertwining with their work routine. Separating these live and work spaces to some degree while also retaining the intimacy of their work pattern was one of my foremost challenges. The other task I set myself was improving the lighting and ventilation in their homes by using passive design strategies. I wanted my design to follow a philosophy of “waste not want not.” Since my design process involved demolishing parts of the existing structure to improve the structural strength of the overall design, I decided to use this demolished debris as structural walls in my communal buildings, experimenting with composition percentage, overall materiality, and cost-effectiveness, along with ease of construction. Most of my construction processes do not require skilled labour, since I want this project to be a form of participatory community architecture where the users of the space are active participants in how it is crafted.
