Balkrishna V Doshi

Balkrishna V Doshi was born on August 26, 1927 in Pune, India.

After completing his school education, Doshi enrolled at the J.J. School of Architecture in Mumbai.

After graduating from J.J. School of Architecture, Balkrishna V Doshi worked for the famous French architect, Le Corbusier, in Paris from 1951 to 1954. Thereafter, he returned to India to supervise Le Corbusier’s projects in India.

In 1955, Doshi established Vastu Shilpa (environmental design). Alongside his architectural works, he advanced his studies. In 1958, he became a fellow at the Graham Foundation for Advanced Studies in Fine Arts.

One of Doshi’s foremost projects includes the Ahmedabad School of Architecture which he both founded and planned in 1962. The building followed Doshi’s idea of creating simple yet functional spaces. The campus of School of Architecture included simple brick and concrete building that was surrounded by shaded courtyards, staircases, and open layout. The structure displayed Le Corbusier and Louis Kahn’s influence over Doshi’s architectural designing and gave a glimpse of traditional Indian townscape. The school was completed in 1966

In 1962, Doshi started working on one of the most illustrious projects of his career, Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore. Built with natural stones, the building and the campus reflects Doshi’s idealistic approach through sustainability. The ethos behind the designing is his philosophy of making spaces that have low cost maintenance and instead have a self-generating energy about them.

In 1966, Doshi designed the Tagore Memorial Hall. Built to pay tribute to the legendary writer and poet Rabindranath Tagore, the 700-seat auditorium, located in Ahmedabad, features reinforced concrete walls, broken up into wings that create contrasting planes of light and shadow. The embellished artwork, sculptural columns that frame the tiered seating arrangement make it one of Doshi’s most notable works.

While Dr Doshi has been responsible for creating some of the most iconic buildings that have been adorning the country, his most impressive work can undoubtedly be the Amnavad Ni Gufa, situated on the IIM A campus. It is one of the most experimental projects by Doshi. His creative design experience helped him bring up a juxtaposition of architecture and art in this cave-like structure that is walled by interconnected domes and tree-like columns. The underground art gallery was mainly built to serve as a museum displaying the works of legendary artist M. F. Hussain.