katricks's Profile

thanks kasturi...appreciate the thought. I am hoping to do some work/documentation on chettinad architecture...

Thanks Karaye and Jacasi for the compliments. St. Joseph's college was built in 1935...it's a typical gothic stone structure. I am quite surprised they decided to demolish one section of the college to build a new building. Yup, there are historic preservation policies in India but only for certain structures that are declared heritage sites; not for all old structures sadly.

Thanks anusha and 'ciscogirl' for the kind comments. Neha - you are a saviour. My trip is pushed to next weekend; will definitely try and make the rounds of chor bazaar.

Hey Neha...The athangudi tiles cant be laid down only by masons from chettinad as it's a very traditional method! pls do let me know of any good corners in chor bazaar, iam coming this weekend to sunday and hoping to drop in there if possible.

Hey Neha! Thanks for appreciating. p.s. my apartment is also a flat in a building and not a 'house' as most people mistake it for :-) So go right ahead and salvage your antiques pls

Thanks all...hope people would look at India for their inspiration soon :-) We have many wonderful architectural stories to tell and the CHETTINAD architecture is amongst the many beautiful ones. One can also see the whole process of making these floor tiles 'called athangudi tiles' on youtube.
Attached is the link -
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D8TcEph-iB0
The houses shown in the beginning of this video are the typical Chettinad palatial houses.One would find huge eurpean influences like the stuccos at the entrance and windows, etc. coexisting beautifully with the traditional Indian stuff. You can also find many stories and pics on 'Chettinad', my native land online! This is my small attempt to revive these lost stories and traditions from my native land in India.