Charles Correa: A master architect and urban planner

In the late 1960s, G.V. Raja was immersed in his work to turn Kovalam into a major tourist destination. The India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) was then planning a hotel up the cliff, beside the Halcyon Castle. Raja contacted his friend and the then Union Tourism Minister, Karan Singh, asking him to suggest architects for the project. That was how legendary architect and urban planner Charles Correa first came to Kerala, a place which remained close to him until his passing on Tuesday.

The Kovalam Beach Resort, with the iconic design slanting towards the sea and marked by the array of sun decks in front of each room, remains the most identifiable ‘Correan’ touch in the Kerala landscape. It stands much like a textbook of his architectural philosophy, of buildings which blended and communicated with the world around them, unlike the imposing and emotionless glass palaces of the present, which he hated.

S. Gopakumar, the head of the architectural firm Kumar Group, was doing his final year project at Kovalam, when Mr. Correa arrived.

“I used to correspond with him even before he came here. Even being the big architect that he was then, he used to respond promptly to this unknown student’s letters. When he came here, he called me up and asked me to join him. He involved several local artistes and architects in the work. I remember him asking me to design a ‘fish lamp’ for the beach cottages. He also made a ‘beach basket’ using palmyrah leaves, which became an instant hit. Even the Time magazine came down to write about the hotel’s design,” says Mr. Gopakumar, who has since then been a close friend of Mr. Correa.

Another Correa design which turned quite a lot of heads was the highly unconventional design for the Parumala church. It has a circular design with an inner diameter of 39 metres, which can accommodate more than 2,000 worshippers. The initial design by Mr. Correa was rejected and four years later, in 1993, the new design was finalised. In the initial days, many worshippers did not warm up to the design, but it came to be accepted later on.

In Thiruvananthapuram, Mr. Correa also was responsible for the initial design of the Saphalyam Shopping Complex. But, he was not happy with the slow pace of the work and it was handed over to others. In Kochi, he famously lost out in a ‘competition’ to design the Marine Drive.

There is another list of projects that he refused or never took up. He came up with a beautiful design for a housing project for an export company in Kochi, but it was never built as the Coast Guard acquired that land. Recently, he refused to take up another housing project in Kochi, saying that the floor area ratio was too much. He also had a complaint that Keralites have been building too much.

Inspired by Mr. Correa’s revolutionary ‘tubehouse’ model, Mr. Gopakumar had built such a house for his brother in Thiruvananthapuram. According to architect Sarath Sunder, ‘tubehouse’ is the perfect design for linear blocks of land where construction is otherwise impossible. It is an Agraharam-like design, making all use of the plot’s length.

“Mr. Correa loved Kerala and the people here very much. He used to blend in with the crowd easily. During the Kovalam resort construction, he used to take trips to the local toddy shop to drink and speak to the local people. He paid occasional visits here for relaxation and Ayurvedic massages. His favourite building in this region was the Padmanabhapuram Palace,” recalls Mr. Gopakumar.