Tune into this conversation between author Lakshmi Swaminathan and architect Chitra Vishwanath as they discuss the extraordinary life of Didi Contractor. This discussion will cover Lakshmi's experience of compiling and editing the life and values of Didi Contractor, in her latest book A CALL TO RETURN: A JOURNEY WITH DIDI CONTRACTOR .This book is published by Banyan Tree, an alternative book publisher known for publishing books on farming, food, non-formal education, small scale economy, alternative architecture and so on.
About the speakers:
Lakshmi Swaminathan
Lakshmi Swaminathan is an architect from Chennai. After graduation, she worked in a conventional architecture office, taught in design schools, and pursued her passion for khadi textiles through weaving and block printing. In 2017, seeking inspiration for her own practice, she came to Kangra valley to spend a day with Didi in 2017. She ended up living with her for the next four years, and assisting her on multiple projects. Currently, Lakshmi lives in Tiruvannamalai where she continues her independent architectural practice, undertaking projects in earthen building techniques. She also focuses on disseminating Didi's work through different publications.
Chitra Vishwanath
Chitra Vishwanath is the founder and senior architect at Biome Environmental Solutions- an architectural firm based in Bangalore. Biome Environmental Solutions is a multidisciplinary firm working on ecological architecture and intelligent water and sanitation designs, and through their work they strive to showcase that an ecological design practice can be mainstream and relevant in various contexts, including geography, typology and scale, balanced by the client’s aspirations for aesthetics, functionality and budget.
Details of the event are as follows:
Date- 13 July
Time- 5 PM
Venue- Champaca Bookstore
