NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON INDO-SARACENIC HERITAGE OF CHENNAI

16 th and 17 th February, 2013 (Saturday)
Exemplarr Auditorium, OMR, Chennai

Marg Institute of Design and Architecture Swarnabhoomi
Velur Village,Cheyyur Post 603 302 Kanchipuram Dist Tamil Nadu
Tel: 044-27538009 Fax: 044-27538024 E.Mail: balaji.v@midas.ac.in/admin@midas.ac.in

Preamble

Architecture as an emblem of power was for centuries endorsed through patronage. Numerous
outsiders who invaded India created an architectural style reflective of their respective culture.

The European colonizers created an architecture that symbolized their mission of conquest, dedicated to
the state or religion.
The victory of British in the last Carnatic war in 1751 AD paved the foundation for the empire in 1858.
The centuries they reigned over India, produced a range of colonial architecture and “Indo-Saracenic”
style is one among them. This style of architecture was so unique that the British were successful in
exporting it to their other colonised nations.
This “Indo-Saracenic” heritage began to represent a synthesis of a diverse architectural knowledge
derived from Hindu, Muslim and Gothic styles with cusped arches, domes, spires, tracery, minarets
and stained glass, in a creative manner. Later the Indo-Saracenic Revival (also known as IndoGothic) was an architectural style developed by the British architects during the late 19 th century .

Objective:
The fact remains that this interesting movement of architecture in history is one of the less
explored in the field of academia. The ‘National conference on Indo-Saracenic Heritage of
Chennai’ to be hosted by MIDAS intends to create a platform for exploration, debate,
discussion, publication, exhibition and research of this less explored area by facilitating
healthy interaction between the experts, academicians, practicing architects, historians,
students of architecture and enthusiasts.

Themes:
The conference welcomes all relevant contributions in form of technical Papers (Around 2000
words) from academia and practitioners to address the themes outlined below:
1. History and Evolution of Indo-Saracenic Heritage in Chennai (Formerly known as Madras)
2. Definition of the style known as ‘Indo-Saracenic Architecture’.
3. Relevance of Indo-Saracenic heritage in Contemporary India
4. Heritage Conservation strategy and the need for a cultural identity in today’s
exploding urban India.Conference Committees
Chief Patrons
Sri. GRK Reddy, Chairman and Managing Director, Marg group of companies
Mrs. Rajini Reddy, Founder and Managing Director at Exemplarr Worldwide Limited
Co-Patrons
Mr. Ganeshram, CEO, Swarnabhoomi Academic Institutions
Mr. MK Padmanabhan, Advisor, Swarnabhoomi Academic Institutions
Organizing Chairman
Prof. Jaffer AA Khan, Director, Marg Institute of Design and Architecture Swarnabhoomi
Organizing Secretaries
Balaji V, Assistant Professor, Marg Institute of Design and Architecture Swarnabhoomi
Niraj Pillai, Assistant Professor, Marg Institute of Design and Architecture Swarnabhoomi

Important dates
Conference date: 16 th February 2013
Tour of Indo-Saracenic heritage Sites: 17 th February 2013
Closing date for Registration: 31 st January 2013
Submission of abstract for peer review: 31 st December, 2012
Notification of acceptance: 10 th January, 2013
Submission of final paper : 30 th January, 2013
Registration Fee Rs.1000/-

Photographic Competition:
It is proposed to have a photographic competition relevant to the theme of the conference. The
conference will coincide with an exhibition of the entries
Itinerary
Inauguration
Conference Chair: Mr. GRK Reddy, Chairman & Managing Director at MARG Group of Companies.
Chief Guest: Prof. Kaliraj, Vice Chancellor, Anna UniversityExhibition Inauguration: Nawab Ghulam Muhammad ‘Abdu’l ‘Ali Khan Bahadur, Prince of Arcot
Keynote Speech : Dr. S. Muthiah, Eminent Historian, Chennai
Special Address : Dr. Deborah Thiagarajan, Chairman Dakshinchitra Chennai
Guests of Honour:
Mrs Rajini Reddy, , Founder and Managing Director at Exemplarr Worldwide Limited, Chennai
Prof. Nalini Thakur, Head of the Dept. of Architectural Conservation, SPA, New Delhi
Prof. Ranee Vedamuthu, Dean, SAP, Anna University, Chennai
Sriram V, Convenor, INTACH, Chennai chapter

PROGRAM
1. 16 TH FEBRUARY, 2013 – NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON INDO-SARACENIC HERITAGE OF
CHENNAI
a. 09:30am to 10:30am – Inauguration
b. 10:30am to 10:45am – Break
c. 10:45am to 01:00pm – Session 1: “History, Evolution and Defining the style
Indo-Saracenic Architecture in Chennai (Formerly known as Madras)”
Prof. Ranee Vedamuthu Chair
- Keynote Speech by Prof. Ranee Vedamuthu, Dean, SAP,
Chennai
- Paper presentation 1 – Dr. Anuradha Naik, Historian
- Paper presentation 2 – Nandhini S, Asst.Prof.MIDAS
- Paper presentation 3 – Other Institutions
d. 01:00 pm to 02:00 pm – Lunch Break
e. 02:00 pm to 04:00 pm – Session 2: “Relevance of Indo-Saracenic Heritage in
Contemporary India and Conservation Strategy”
Prof. Nalini Thakur – Chair
- Keynote Speech by Prof. Nalini Thakur, Head of the Dept.,
Dept. of Architectural Conservation, SPA, Delhi- Paper presentation 1 – Suryanarayanamurthy,
Conservation Architect
- Paper presentation 2 – Balaji, Asst.Prof. MIDAS
- Paper presentation 3 – Dhushyanth, Asst.Prof.MIDAS
- Paper presentation 4 – Other Institutions
- Student presentation – 4th sem Students of MIDAS
f. 04:00 pm – Tea Break
g.04:30 pm to 05:30 pm – PANEL DISCUSSION ON CHEPAUK PALACE
Panel members:
Dr. G. Maheshwari, Superintending Archaeologist, ASI, Chennai circle
Prof. Nalini Thakur, Head of the Dept. of Architectural Conservation, SPA, New Delhi
Deborah Thiagarajan, Chairman and Founder of the Madras Craft Foundation (MCF)
Shanna Dietz Surendra, Cultural Affairs Officer US Consulate Chennai
Prof. Ranee Vedamuthu, Dean, SAP, Anna University, Chennai
Kalpana Ahmed, Conservation Architect,Chennai
Sriram V, Convenor, INTACH, Chennai chapter
Dr. A Srivathsan, Deputy Editor, The Hindu
Valedictory (5.30-6.30pm)
17 TH FEBRUARY, 2013 – HERITAGE WALK TO INDO-SARACENIC HERITAGE SITES IN CHENNAI

Contact
V.Balaji, Co-ordinator: +919488623138
E.Mail: balaji.v@midas.ac.in

Visit :http://www.midas.ac.in