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A look at India’s first modernist building, Golconde in Pondicherry

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Golconde in Pondicherry was completed in 1945. It was built as a dormitory for members—ashramites, as they are called—of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram. It might be easily overlooked from the street, but walk through the singular discreet wooden door with a lotus engraving on it, and it stands tall as if in silent contemplation. This modernist beauty, the first reinforced-concrete structure in India, pr

Golconde in Pondicherry was completed in 1945. It was built as a dormitory for members—ashramites, as they are called—of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram. It might be easily overlooked from the street, but walk through the singular discreet wooden door with a lotus engraving on it, and it stands tall as if in silent contemplation. This modernist beauty, the first reinforced-concrete structure in India, predating Chandigarh’s and Ahmedabad’s modern architecture, was designed by American architect Antonin Raymond and later completed by George Nakashima, who also became a member of the ashram.…

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