When 90-year-old Balkrishna Vithaldas Doshi was named the 2018 winner of the prestigious Pritzker Architecture Prize, the news was welcomed in India with more a sense of smugness than with absolute jubilation. The reasons are not too complicated; Indians were already well aware of his genius and felt the global acknowledgment was coming a little late. Doshi — the first Indian to get the highest honor in the field — is renowned for a wide-spectrum of works, ranging from low-cost housing projects to iconic institutions that are landmarks in their own right, and his rise mirrored the rise of the new country.Born on August 26, 1927 in Pune, Doshi began studying at the famous Sir JJ School of Architecture in Mumbai in 1947, the year India became independent. His career grew alongside the nation — his works became an integral part of the needs of a new country with unique problems and requirements. Where there was a need to create affordable housing for the millions in the low-income category, there was also a need to create long-lasting institutions of higher education that would stand up to the aspirations of a young country and match global standards. He delivered both. Some well-known examples are the Aranya low-cost township near Indore in central India and the A-list Indian Institute of Management in Bangalore. What made Doshi’s work unique was the fact that despite changes in India’s capacity to build over the decades, and despite changing requirements, the architect never lost sight of what would work best in a country where summer temperatures can go up to 122 degrees Fahrenheit (50 centigrade). The cool brick-and-stone buildings that he created so many decades ago in various parts of the country are in sharp contrast to the in-your-face glass architecture of a post-economic liberalization India. In fact, many of the young Indians born after 1990 when the country started witnessing a construction boom may not be familiar with Doshi’s work. They have grown up in a world where skyscrapers with glass facades have and continue to sprout up with shameful speed all across the country. Glass buildings in a sun-drenched country do little to save energy or help the environment with their all-pervasive need for air-conditioning. But that’s another story.The Pritzker Prize recognizes this very strength of Doshi’s oeuvre as it states in the award citation: “Balkrishna Doshiconstantly demonstrates that all good architecture and urban planning must not only unite purpose and structure but must take into account climate, site, technique, and craft, along with a deep understanding and appreciation of the context in the broadest sense. Projects must go beyond the functional to connect with the human spirit through poetic and philosophical underpinnings. For his numerous contributions as an architect, urban planner, teacher, for his steadfast example of integrity and his tireless contributions to India and beyond, the Pritzker Architecture Prize Jury selects Balkrishna Doshi as the 2018 Pritzker Laureate.” His strengths have been recognized before with other awards, such as Padma Shri, the distinguished civilian honor by the government of India; Ordre des Arts et des Letters from the French government; and the Sixth Aga Khan Award for Architecture, to name a few.A few weeks after the announcement of the prize, Doshi spoke to BLOUIN ARTINFO’s Art+Auction over phone from Sangath, his well-known office in Ahmedabad in western India, about the prize, its impact on younger generation of architects in India, his journey as an architect and more.How important is Pritzker Prize for your practice?It’s a prestigious prize and no doubt, important. There are a few things involved here — as a practitioner of a profession that doesn’t have much publicity, it helps to make your work known to a broader audience. Besides, it reiterates your bond with the larger professional group that you belong to. And, it’s a recognition for a country too.However, the value of the prize goes beyond all of this. It helps in slowly filtering down the essence of your work to the classroom and teaching in the entire country, which is in the process of developing various professional practices. It helps students who are beginning to ask a whole lot of questions. The significance of the prize lies in the fact that it nudges the students and practitioners to compare various role models available around them. Just as we look forward to a good movie, a good book, a good piece of music, so is the case with architecture. We should be able to look forward to something that will add meaning to our existence. The indirect benefits of a prize such as this are immense, and it does not benefit just me, but an entire profession, an entire country.What is your take on the construction frenzy in India for the past two decades, which has given rise to a huge number of glass buildings in the country? How suitable is glass in a hot, tropical country like India?It is an inevitable process. It is not about whether you like it or not, whether I like it or not.If somebody with money goes outside and sees a building that he or she wants to come back and make an imitation of in India, can anybody stop them? He is not thinking of climate, environment, etc. He wants to make something iconic, impressive, so that people are in awe of his creation. It has got nothing to do with what is suitable for a country. Human beings are generally selfish individuals. They think short-term, about themselves. It has got nothing to do with what is right for the society. A change is possible when there is social recognition of the implications of any move. It is possible in a country like Japan, perhaps, where people think collectively about their future. Otherwise, nobody can become a preacher against the natural flow of things.Could you tell us about the people who have influenced you the most in your career?Le Corbusier and Louis Kahn remain the two most important influences on my career. I was very impressed with their work and worked with them in the early years of my career. [Doshi worked withLe Corbusier in Paris and returned to Ahmedabad in the state of Gujarat to supervise the iconic architect’s works in India. And, he assisted Kahn and others in the team when they designed the Indian Institute of Management in Ahmedabad]. Apart from them, I’ve been hugely influenced by the works and philosophy of Gandhiji and Swami Vivekananda. What they both said were so relevant for India, for the multitude of Indians and I continue to derive inspiration from them. Then, there have been many other people who have influenced me throughout my life; that includes my parents too.You had a fruitful collaboration with Maqbool Fida Husain that resulted in Ahmedabad Ni Gufa. Could you talk about that collaboration, and your relationship with other visual artists? I had a deep friendship with Husain that lasted more than 50 years. We worked together only on Ahmedabad Ni Gufa. We liked to challenge each other. And I designed Ahmedabad Ni Gufa [also known as Husain-Doshi Gufa, an underground art gallery that Doshi designed and Husain painted permanently] as a challenge for him. When he saw it, he ended up painting the entire ceiling to fulfil his promise of taking up the challenge. He was a very generous and polite friend and created a beautiful work in the Gufa. Apart from that, I did not have any artistic-architectural collaborations though I did have great friendship with many creative individuals.What do you advise young architects setting out on their practices?I only tell them to keep in mind if what they are going to do would be meaningful and long-lasting. I want them to ask themselves if what they are going to do will bring comfort and quality of life to the people who will live in it? If they have answers for these, rest of the things will take care of themselves.— The Pritzker Architecture Prize 2018 will be awarded at the Aga Khan Museum, Toronto, this May.— This article appears in the May 2018 edition of Art+Auctionhttp://www.blouinartinfo.comFounder: Louise Blouin p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 17.0px Georgia; color: #d81e00} p.p2 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 32.0px Arial; color: #232323} span.s1 {text-decoration: underline ; font-kerning: none} span.s2 {font-kerning: none}   p.p1 {margin: 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px 0.0px; font: 18.0px Times} span.s1 {font-kerning: none} Read more