While walking in the narrow bustling streets of Shahjanabad in the old city of Delhi, one is awed by the number of people concentrated in those streets with narrow pavements, small shop fronts and houses above. Frequently one brushes with or bumps into the local people. Unlike the over-polite English, here an apology is not expected. And in case an unassuming foreigner offers his, it usually baffles natives and leaves them confused about how to react. The truth is that Indians don’t mind proximity and here the sense of personal space is almost nonexistent.
Indian culture is strongly built around communities, neighborhoods and a close family network. All festivities involve getting together large circles of acquaintances, friends, neighbors and families, a large scale of gathering that usually comes together in a comparatively small space. The explanation can be found in our traditional daily rituals. Our architecture too has evolved in response to these habitual needs.
The contrast to western culture is so great that understanding the loud, unmannerly, hospitable and food obsessed Indian culture cannot come easily. Nor is the significance of the traditional dark narrow streets, courtyard houses and absence of open spaces immediately clear. But on a closer look, the traditional architecture of the old city can be seen to meet the socializing needs of people. At every level the built fabric responds to the culture of congregation, celebration and food, where notions of privacy or segregation are almost non-existent.
The narrow bendy streets of Shahjanabad are also the heart of commercial activity. These streets are formed by three to four storey houses on both sides with small shop fronts on the ground floor. The shop and house front is traditionally placed on a meter high plinth. A pedestal of sorts, this is used for various activities throughout the day, in the morning it’s used by the shop owners to sit and observe the activities on the street while sharing tea and debating politics. In the afternoon it’s used by prospective customers waiting to get inside the very small and tight shops and in the evening it is transformed into a place where children play or women of the house sit to interact with the neighbors. It is common to see this space used for activities that don’t ordinarily need to leave the house. Women can be seen cutting vegetables, embroidering cloth or enjoying their evening tea on the street.
The houses on the floor above are also in dynamic interaction with the street. The height of these residential floors helps shade the street from scorching sun and the façade of the houses respond to the street with small, colorful and ornate openings called Jharokhas. Somewhere between a small window and a balcony, these recessed windows with shutters are the means by which the residents interact with people on the street or in other houses. These Jharokas are used sit and observe daily activity on the street. And it’s also fairly common to see people screaming out loud from their windows to someone on the street or in the house in front/opposite?. The street is always alive with noisy and apparently chaotic commercial and social activity. However under the seeming chaos, everything works in perfect order and unison.
The traditional house is called a Haveli, which is a courtyard building formed by small rooms opening into it. It has[evolved as a response to the cultural and climatic needs of the region. Traditionally the Haveli is for a joint family that houses up to ten nuclear families. The courtyard is shaded by two three storied room on all sides and becomes an ideal place for children to play and men to idle around. All the daily activities of cooking, washing, eating are usually carried out in the open courtyard. So the courtyard functions as a kitchen, living room and family room at different times of the day. Since Indian women spend most of the day cooking, socializing for them involves doing this activity with relatives, neighbors and friends in their courtyard. And on a usual morning and evening, the haveli courtyard is as crowded and as loud as the street, with whistling pressure cookers, chatting women, playing kids and arguing men. The rooms are not used much, except for sleeping. The act of keeping to yourself in your room or wanting privacy is considered rude and is looked at with suspicion. The most private areas of the house like bathrooms are conspicuous by their absence. And it’s only recently that owners have started converting their store rooms into toilets, as traditionally these activities were not to be housed within the residential areas.
The intensity of activity, noise and crowd can be appalling to someone who’s foreign to Indian Culture. And the lack of civility might seem shocking, but the next time you bump into a local at Shahjanabad, instead of apologizing and walking past, try and make a conversation and it won’t be surprising if you end up spending the rest of your holiday with their extended family in the ancestral Haveli!
