Historic library buildings of India - my story

When I was in middle school, I'd spend all my break time in my school library. I would prefer reading small books that could be finished reading in break time in the week. I would never issue them though, because it was sitting in the library that was more fun for me. My school library was octagonal in plan, double storey, with an atrium in the centre. A statue of Jesus sat in the centre of the room, lit from the overhead skylight. The desks were aligned radially so that the light from windows would brighten the reading spaces. The time i spent in middle school recess reading books in my school library would guide the way I would think about spaces all my life. This was especially true when that small library influenced the Academic library design I took up for my bachelor’s thesis in Architecture. Three years later while researching for my master’s thesis on historic library buildings of India, i would remark on how much my school library design resembled the Bodleian library’s Radcliffe Camera. There are innumerable such instances of iconic structures influencing our everyday architecture.

The spaces inside the libraries are a result of the changing modes of manuscripts and the rate at which we can reproduce them. Their Architectural Styles, like elsewhere, are closely related to the styles of Public Architecture of a time and region.

Public libraries are buildings that are there for public recreation, unlike other public buildings which can’t expect as recurring and lingering footprint as the library does. Despite the advent of internet, the library footprint only keeps on increasing with time.

While mass production of books has made it possible for us to have libraries even in villages, Archives still need to be preserved and so is the case of historic and iconic library buildings.

These library buildings themselves are an extension of their collections - an archive that speaks of the history of libraries in India.

The history of Library Architecture has been studied in much detail in the western countries, but that is not really the case in India. While in India, understandably the library collections and information sciences have been heavily studied and developed, the library buildings have not found as much attention as an identity to warrant study. Which is surprising since India has never stopped churning out library buildings. Only from mid 19th century till independence, libraries have been housed in 44 of these buildings, out of which only five libraries have been taken up for conservation projects.

The management neither has the expertise nor the funds to take care of their buildings. Keeping them habitable and in use, is a task we have consistently been failing at.

The pandemic is going to largely redefine public spaces, especially libraries, where the common public comes and spends an elongated amount of time. What then is to happen to these libraries in the immediate future? How will they be remembered (and maintained) in a country that has a rich history of libraries and people who have depended on them?

Our past influences our present. Perhaps this is the reason why we need a better understanding of our libraries built in the past and their impact on our present.

My thesis (2019) for the Master's course in Architecture (Conservation) was called Historic library Buildings of India and in it, listed the historic library buildings that were built between mid 19th to mid 20th century in India, establishing their significance. Synopsis can be read here.

The further step would be to explore their relevance today and see how they can be sustainably taken into the future.