The
Government of the People's Republic of China has promised to construct
nine flyovers in different traffic zones of the Kathmandu metropolis in
the near future. The news has made the 'critical' citizens here wonder
about the look - - the contours and colors of such flyovers. It has
also made us review the nature of the construction projects carried out
by donor nations as part of the developmental support to Nepal. China
has remained as one of the most important donor nations especially in
the domain of constructing buildings for various purposes. The Birendra
International Conventions Centre where the Constituent Assembly has
been taking place is one important example of China's help to Nepal.
Many modern buildings stand in Kathmandu as tokens of help by the donor
nations to this country. Ironically, such buildings do not much evoke
the architectural heritage of the Kathmandu Valley. Despite all the
modern and functional features of such buildings designed to offer
great help to this nation, I think, they negate some genuine things
about the art and culture of the Valley. Like the palaces of the former
Rana rulers and the Shah kings, buildings constructed by donor nations
stand indifferent to the Newa architecture of the city.Now
questions arise, will the proposed flyovers evoke the heritage of art
and architecture of the Kathmandu Valley or will they be like any other
flyovers that one does come across in the metropolitan areas of China,
for that matter, in any other metropolises in the world? I think it is
the right time to draw the attention of the urban planners as well as
the guardians of art and culture of the Valley and the Chinese minds
that are going to be involved into this important project for the
Kathmandu city. One may argue that the concerned Chinese designers have
every right to construct the proposed flyovers with any formats and
designs as they like. Why should the Chinese authorities, for that
matter, any donor nations bother about the local architecture of the
Valley, and who are we to impose them to do this or that since it is
not our money that is involved into such projects? One may wonder why
to bother about art and aesthetics in highways since they are used for
commercial purposes not for any creative and cultural purposes? The
problem starts from here.
Despite
all that we argue that the proposed plan must address the heritage of
Newar architecture of the Valley. My belief is that the heritage of
traditional Newa architecture must remain the principal moot of every
step of the urban planning either carried out by the locals or by the
donor nations in the present as well as the future Kathmandu. This is a
matter of great significance. In fact, Kathmandu's architectural
heritage is in severe crisis. Some great efforts need to be made not
only to rescue and renovate traditional buildings and temples but also,
which I think is very important, to create something new out of the
'grammar and vocabularies' of the traditional Newa architectural
aesthetics in contemporary times. It is high time that we defined
traditional Newa performing arts in the new social, developmental and
political contexts of Nepal, for that matter of Kathmandu.
Flyovers
may be new for the Kathmandu city. But they can not be taken as objects
beyond the grasp of architectural outfit of those trained in the
traditional form of art and crafts of constructing bridges, houses,
pillars, bricks, railings and so on. We can argue here that the
proposed flyovers can be an architectural text written or constructed
out of the bricolage of traditional architectural order of the Valley.
Such flyovers can become a modern interpretation of traditional
architectural heritage of the Valley too. Such act will also be of
significance for both the developmental as well as intellectual efforts
made to address the spirit of Nepal as a nation now going through a
process of federal restructuring. Moreover, flyovers have universal
forms of global architectural deigns, and any global phenomena can be
'taken up, struggled over, and refracted for site-specific purposes' as
the postmodern cultural theorists would argue. Therefore, the Newa
traditional architectural poetics can interpret the flyovers in its own
'grammar and vocabularies', and by doing so it can prove itself as an
active local agent in a global context. Such will be a powerful act of
evocation of the glorious history and heritage of Newa art and
architecture in the present times.
The
proposed flyovers can open a new era in the history of urban planning
in Kathmandu if they are to be designed according to the poetics of the
Newa architecture. They can send a powerful message to the locals as
well as to the donor nations about the possibilities of performing the
traditional architectural forms in the new modes of the contemporary
times. They can influence the minds involved in the
construction-business in Kathmandu. Moreover, they as strong visual
signs of the metropolis that can help transform the look of the city as
well. Therefore, this developmental event can be used as an important
opportunity.
Interestingly,
the proposed Chinese support can be taken as an evocation of the
history carved out by Araniko, an architect of the medieval Newa:
nation. Araniko was a very powerful architect who spread the Newar
architectural form chaitya in China. The very chaitya is taken as an
important metaphor of the Nepal-China diplomatic as well as cultural
relationship by both countries even to this day. The proposed flyovers
can also be given a hybrid look, i.e. they can be composed out of the
traditional Chinese and Newar architectural forms. As a result, they
can create a new discourse not only in the history of Kathmandu's urban
planning but also in the annals of China-Nepal cultural and
developmental relationship. They can, metaphorically speaking, be the
new route in the diplomatic and cultural relationships between Nepal
and China, or any donor nations, for that matter. The proposed flyovers
will not only help the vehicles and passengers reach their destinations
in time but can also lead us to the realization of the new modes of
urban aesthetics and cultural activism in Kathmandu. Let's make a
creative use of this opportunity.