The Hand of Fate - An Artisan's story
Tahir Bhai takes us through his journey of self-exploration, bitter-sweet memories of his Kismat (fate) and being a spect-actor in Dharavi’s emergence as a socio-economic powerhouse.
Form follows Process
We must recognize our collective strength and resources: every locality has human capital (skills), existing constructions (assets) and a rich natural ecosystem.
Amphibious Habitats: breathing in air, breathing out water
Koliwada's are fishing hamlets in Mumbai city and unlike most settlements, they extend beyond terrestrial boundaries. The waters of rivers, creeks and seas, all form part of an amphibious habitat that is integral and deeply familiar to the Kolis.
More years, more projects
Handstorming continues!
The Third Place Project: spaces of conviviality as a form of urban heritage?
urbz Paris has started a creative participatory inquiry, aimed at discovering and narrating spontaneous spaces of sociability in neighborhoods through the eyes of their users.
Resilience and recognition of an unseen typology – part 1
Dharavi is a homegrown neighborhood, its development occurred without a master plan or construction law, emerging from the inhabitants' needs. Built structures and open spaces come in many shapes in forms – with a recurring and flexible work-home typology known as the tool-house.
Resilience and recognition of an unseen typology - Part 2
Part 2
The Village Inside / The Slum Outside
Bringing knowledge and skills from their villages, generations of Dharavi residents have pushed the slum outside of their homes, streets and neighbourhoods. Isn't it time we recognize and support their efforts? We compile and republish two texts originally published by New Village Press in New York and Strelka University Press in Moscow.
Transcending pasts
We sat with Arun, who runs Arunodaya (a rehabilitation center) to discuss his work and past.
Visual Narratives for Participatory Urbanism: Documentation as Intervention
urbz has started initiatives in Europe, that combine ethnographic participation with visual storytelling to accompany, facilitate, or initiate urban planning, heritage, and transformation projects.
1000 Voices
Dharavi has creativity and diversity deeply embedded into its landscape. It houses schools, hospitals, mosques, temples, pottery studios, craftsmen, leather industries, textile workshops, food production units
Dharavi works
Dharavi works is a series of projects designed in Mumbai by urbz in partnership with local inhabitants and contractors.
ICRC Campus
urbz is working on a comprehensive plan for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) HQ in Geneva. About 1200 people work in Geneva and another 20,000 work in over 100 conflict zones around the world
Homegrown Street
We are taking the Design Comes as We Build project to the next level - the Homegrown Street!
Gendered Mobility and Climate Action
This project is undertaken under the C40 Women For Climate mentorship program, Mumbai in collaboration with the Government of Maharashtra. The Mentee, Vidisha Dhar, is supported by Lubaina Rangwala (WRI), urbz
Entekochi Urban Design Competition
Remember the Urban Typhoon workshops in Kochi? These workshops were part of the EnteKochi citylab. We are now back with the Entekochi competition. This is a national level Urban Design Competition, aiming to
Covid-19 in Dharavi
Since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 urbz has been researching its effect on the people of Dharavi.
Habitat 100: A chawl redevelopment project
We are excited to be working on a new architectural project in Dharavi Koliwada. Our friend, collaborator, and contractor Joseph Koli, approached us to work on his latest project - the redevelopment of a chawl
Handstorm in Dharavi
Our annual Handstorm workshops in Dharavi with the "Engineers for Social Impact" from NYU Abu Dhabi generate incremental innovations that improve the quality of life in this massive settlement
Urban Typhoon Kochi, June 4-9, 2019
June 4-9, 2019
The Urban Typhoon workshop in Kochi is open to all citizens and visitors interested in working in urban areas and are willing to engage with communities participation. Together we will explore
Koliwada Charcha
The exhibition Koliwada Charcha is an attempt at understanding the essence of Dharavi Koliwada's architectural and visual language.
Point-du-Jour
Public consultation for a densification project in Geneva / Démarche de concertation pour un projet de densification au Petit-Saconnex, Genève.
Circulatory Urbanism
For the past 5 years, urbz has been following families who's lives are spread between Mumbai and their ancestral villages in the Konkan (Western India).
Make in Dharavi
This series of interviews portrays the economic life of Dharavi in Mumbai through the activities of its inhabitants.
Proyecto Escape - Cazuca
Collaborative process between communities led by Proyecto Escape and supported by different local and international organisations
Proyecto Manila
Building a Community center by understanding social dynamics and participatory planning in a homegrown neighborhood in Bogota
The Design Comes as We Build
urbz invited local builders from Dharavi to design the best possible house they could imagine. These designs were translated into physical models by artisans.
Homegrown Things
We produced everyday-life objects based on the specific needs of residents and the skills available in the Shivaji Nagar area in Mumbai.
Khotachiwadi
urbz has been involved with the heritage precinct of Khotachiwadi for nearly a decade. We have organized many events workshops there and produced a strategic plan for the area among other things.
Mashup workshops
The mashup workshops take many different forms and happen in all kinds of places. They take specific neighbourhoods as sources of inspiration and unleash a maximum of creativity onto them!
Homegrown cities
This experiment in affordable housing led to the co-designing and construction of a small house in Shivaji Nagar, in Govandi. A neighbourhood in Mumbai that is struggling against all odds to keep growing and
No Future
As part of the Future Architecture Platform, urbz was part of a series of exhibitions and lectures at the MAXXI in Rome, the House of Architecture in Graz, Oris House of Architecture in Zagreb and the Future of
Place, Work, Folk
Place, Work, Folk is a fortnightly column in The Hindu Sunday Magazine by Matias Echanove and Rahul Srivastava, which is inspired by Patrick Geddes and analyzes current urban issues in India and beyond.
Bareilly Street
Studies, workshops, street exhibition and plans towards making a small square in Dharavi children friendly
Breaking Ground
A 5 day long workshop in Geneva which produced strategies for gradual urban densification.
Urban Typhoon
Urban Typhoon is a 5 days long workshop taking place working with local associations to generate programmes and plans for the improvement or preservation of neighbourhoods.