Exhibition on Udupi Sub-Jail marks beginning of World Heritage Week celebrations by INTACH

The inauguration of a week-long exhibition, “Udupi Sub-Jail that Survived Demolition Verdict” marked the beginning of the World Heritage Week celebrations by the Mangaluru Chapter of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) here on Sunday.

The inauguration of a week-long exhibition, “Udupi Sub-Jail that Survived Demolition Verdict” marked the beginning of the World Heritage Week celebrations by the Mangaluru Chapter of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) here on Sunday.

Inaugurating the exhibition at the Kodialguthu Centre for Arts and Culture at Kodialguthu, Mangaluru District Prison Superintendent B.T. Obaleshappa underlined the importance of such documentation in changing the negative public image towards jail buildings. He said, “Just as prisons are indispensable to society, prisons also need the cooperation of social organisations in their upkeep. We should preserve such beautiful old buildings and restore them to create spaces where awareness programmes for students and youngsters can be conducted.”

Introducing the programme, INTACH Mangaluru convener Subhas Chandra Basu highlighted that the documentation of the Udupi Sub-Jail began after the demolition tender was approved. “Our aim is not only to document the Udupi sub-jail but also to propose adaptive reuse methods for its restoration to contemporary use,” he said.

Architect Sharvani Bhat, sharing the experience of documenting the Udupi sub-jail, said, “We started the documentation in late June, completing it in a week with a team of four from Udupi. Our goal is to sensitise the public to the existence of such buildings and demonstrate ways to preserve and revitalise them.”

The exhibition is open to the public from November till November 25 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. and from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.

Every day, there will be talks at 5.30 p.m., staring with “The heterogeneous layered urbanism of the Old Port of Mangaluru” by architect Caroline D’souza on Tuesday; “Kattes in Mangaluru City” by architects Sindhushree and Sitara on Wednesday (November 22); “Traditional temples and houses in Tulunadu” by Subrahmanya Bhat on November 23; “Zamindar Bari at Raipur” by architect and Intach Mangaluru convener Subhas Basu on November 24 and “Heritage as collective memory” by writer William Pais on November 25.