Architectural Assault

EVERY disaster, be it a natural one or manmade, brings an opportunity for all the money-grubbers. They keep waiting for the opportunity, and line up their facilitators in the right places to become a partner in the plan for making money; more money. We have lost many heritage buildings to this very menace.
These fateful buildings were razed to the ground during the last 50 years to make way for architectural monstrosities called ‘shopping complexes’ and ‘luxury apartments’, blotting out architectural beauties and giving way to Orwellian horrors: Bliss & Company at Elphinstone Street, Chopsy Building at Pakistan Chowk, Jehangir Kothari Hall at Victoria Road, Ispahani Building at McLeod Road, Victoria Mansion at Victoria Road, almost all cinema houses in Karachi, North Western Hotel at Beaumont Road, Duarte Mansion in Saddar, Gul Mansion at Burnes Road; the list is long; quite long.
The ever-eager mafia had set its eyes on Flag Staff House as well, but it was spared, thanks to protests by citizens, activists, Sindh Historical Society members and many other concerned citizens.
As such, the first sustained campaign to save Karachi’s architectural heritage was launched 41 years ago in 1983 by this scribe. It ran for eight months in the The Star and other newspapers. The builders’ strategy was simple: let the building decay, then slowly start to demolish it from the inside. They would leave the façade intact, which was naturally without any support, and it was easy to declare it a hazard for life and property.
Finally came the demolition, and of course, the plan to raise a high-rise on its debris was always ready. The plan has not lost its efficacy even today. Perhaps the next target may well be the Frere Hall, which is being denuded of its wrought iron roadside railing for some time.
With such a background in mind, it is distressing to note that the National Academy of Performing Arts (Napa) housed in the beautiful Hindu Gymkhana building, is in a precarious condition after the recent rains. Only immediate repairs can save it.
Unfortunately, the recent rains, which were not torrential by any means, have caused the 1927-built Hindu Gymkhana develop dangerous cracks in its roof and walls, and the lovers of art and culture are apprehensive about its future.
Immediate attention to the repair of this heritage building housing a national institution is necessary for its survival.
S.M. Shahid
Karachi