Representation of Vernacular Architecture in the mainstream

Kannada films between 2006-2019

Piyush Padwale, Aishwarya Bhover, Farah Khan
Student, 6th Sem, B.Arch., RUSOA
Student, 6th Sem, B.Arch., RUSOA
Student, 6th Sem, B.Arch., RUSOA

Guide- Prof. Kinjal Sheth

Email ID: piyush.padwale@gmail.com, aishwaryabhover810555@gmail.com

INTRODUCTION

Vernacular architecture is often misunderstood as something more rural and is concerned with
domestic and functional rather than public or monumental buildings. We have seen that most
research related to anything vernacular deals with documentation, analysis and conservation of the
several tangible and intangible features but on the other hand, this research has a comparative
approach and also getting a tiny glance at how the Kannada Film Industry, popularly identified as
Sandalwood has blossomed over the years and has managed to have its own identity in a country
which has been glorified by just one single commercial industry identified as Bollywood all across the
world.

ABSTRACT

Vernacular architecture is closely related to its context and is aware of the specific geographic features
and cultural aspects of its surroundings, being strongly influenced by them. For this reason, they are
unique to different places in the world, becoming even a means of reaffirming an identity.
Cinema is one such medium to achieve and preserve this identity. but through this paper, we first
delve into the concept of vernacular architecture in the state of Karnataka and then study 4 movies
which help in co-relating the several features and further aim to bridge the gap between the reel and
real, identifying the commonalities, analyzing the differences.

Keywords: Representation, Vernacular, Identity, Cinema, Sandalwood, Architecture, Mainstream

Kannada films

LITERATURE REVIEW

Vernacular is native, built by people. Paul Oliver points out that even though time changes, certain
distinct forms and styles stay, achieved through the availability of resources, certain construction
techniques, skills etc. (Oliver, 2006) . Sharing the same view as him here as distinctive building types
and forms are a standout symbol that gives the place its own identity which is reflected through its
architectural style.
Vernacular architecture provides various techniques and methods which can be incorporated in
modern architecture to achieve sustainability, energy efficiency and cultural values (Krishnan, 2001)
(Halıcıoğlu, 2012).
Jonathan Raben calls cinema an imaginary city filled with illusion, myth and doesn’t need to
systematically prove its link to reality (Raben, n.d.).

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On the contrary, this research deals with aiming to assess the link to reality and further bridge the gap
between reel and real.
A. Tarkovsky comments that cinematic observations are selective, out of which an integral part of the
image is rationalized (Tarkovsky, 1984). Couldn’t agree to more to this as to create an ideal viewing
experience with a certain time bracket of 2-3 hours, creators tend to focus on emphasizing on
important features to make the best product.
Cinema teleports you to an entire new world and it’s up to the designers to have the ability to create
that visual connect throughout the movie’s plotline (Sheth, 2019). If done in the right way, it enhances
the visual narrative (Trivedi, 2016). One could easily say that these are some of the biggest strengths
of this medium.
But having said that, architecture is a part of our daily lives, and it becomes necessary to understand
the impact on the audience that gives them the ability to analyze the perception of a virtual world
with the real world (Froehlich, 2018).
Giving it a summarized context, it can be said that vernacular as a whole reflects the character of a
place and to be able to reflect that huge character within a limited set time frame is nothing short of
a challenge, but with an overall collective effort, cinema has the magical ability to transport you into
different worlds and create that impact which gives them the opportunity to question several aspects
of how they can bring together the on screen beauty with the real world scenarios.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Basic thought behind the choice of movies were to get a glance at several different geographical
regions in Karnataka to cover a wide range of architectural typologies ranging from the coastal region,
hills and flat lands seen in the northern parts of Karnataka.
The movies range from a timeline between 2006-2019, so not only does it reflect the vernacular
architecture but also takes a little glimpse at how the moviemaking has evolved in the Kannada
industry over the years.

The movies gone through as part of our research are as follows:

1) Mungaru Male (2006): Typical Kodagu architecture in Coorg
2) Avane Srimannarayana (2019): Fictional tale based in the 1980s, fort typologies in North
Karnataka
3) Pancharangi (2010): Udupi

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MOVIES CASE STUDY

1) Mungaru Male (2006)

Directed by Yogaraj Bhat

Written by Yogaraj Bhat

Preetam Gubbi

Produced by E. Krishna

Starring Ganesh
Pooja Gandhi

Cinematography S. Krishna
Art Director Ismail

Figure 1: Movie Poster Table 1: Notable Credits

INTRODUCTION

Preetham loves Nandhini but gets heartbroken when he comes to know that her marriage is already
fixed. Things change when she challenges him to win her heart

One must watch this movie if they really want to see Karnataka in a rainy season. Approximately 80%
of the scenes were filmed in the rain. Shooting locations included a major part in Sakaleshpura,
Madikeri, Jog Falls, Sagara, and Gadag.

FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS

Figure 2: Nandini’s Home where most of the shooting has taken place

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FRAME DESCRIPTION

This scene is when Preetham drives to Coorg with his mom to Colonel Subbaiah’s home for Nandini's
wedding. This is the picture of Nandini’s home also where most of the shooting has happened.

Location: Shot at Coorg Town, Kodagu (Coorg) District, Karnataka, India

Elements of Vernacular Architecture: This house is built in Kodagu architecture style,

The Kodavas from Coorg housed their large families in homes they called ainemane is one among
such homes where walls were built with a combination of mud, rice husk and resin which was
shaped into blocks. These blocks were laid to a height and then the walls were plastered with
coloured mud mixed with resin, cow dung and other components.
Sloped roofs to drain rainwater according to the climatic condition of the Kodagu (Coorg)

Figure 3: Old Lady’s Hut

FRAME DESCRIPTION

This scene is perhaps the turning point in the movie where Preetham in a drunken state cry for his
broken heart when stuck in rain and the old lady calls them in to take shelter in her small hut.

Location: Shot at river Hemavati, Karnataka, India

Elements of vernacular architecture: Sloped roof to drain rainwater.

The hut is built of readily available material such as grass, wood, fabric, and mud, using techniques
passed down through generations

TYPICAL OBSERVATIONS

Coorg or Kodagu, located amidst the mighty and misty Western ghats, this famous coffee-producing
hill station is well-known for its gorgeous scenery, diversity, and architecture. The people of Coorg
are racially and culturally quite diverse people. However, ethnically, and racially, they still stand
apart for their unique culture, traditions and their style of dressing which is quite royal and warrior.
Coming to the Architecture there are three major types of buildings found in Coorg: The Ainmane
(heritage house), the temple, and the independent house, the first two are typically built in Kerala
style.
What is quite unique about Ainmane is prayers are offered at the shrine which is called as
Kaimada.
Kaimada is the place of worship where prayers are offered to Guru Karana i.e., the
clan’s first ancestor, though there is no physical representation. Every Ainmane has a

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“Nellakki Bade” which is in the central or the main hall of Ainmane and the lamp is lit every
morning and evening in honour of Guru Karana.

Figure 4: Typical Ainmane

CONCLUSIONS

Most of the representation in the movie stays true to its character and all typologies are very rightfully
portrayed on screen. It successfully created a product where one could easily find similarities between
the reel and real for the common audience and provides an insight into this beautiful world for
someone who’s just been introduced to the place.

2) Pancharangi (2010)

Directed by Yogaraj Bhat

Written by Yogaraj Bhat

Pawan Kumar. B. P

Produced by Yogaraj Bhat

K Subramanya
Starring Dignath
Nidhi Subbaiah

Cinematography V. Thiyagarajan

Art Director Shashidhar Adapa

Figure 5: Movie Poster Table 2: Notable Credits

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INTRODUCTION

The film has very simple storyline, but it throws light on various aspects of life such as parents, friends,
goals, success, failure, love, marriage, kids. It is all about a lazy boy's lazy love story. Bharath travels to
Mangalore with his family to look for a bride for his elder brother, Lucky. During their stay, the bride's
cousin falls in love with Bharath.

The film was shot mostly in the coastal areas of Karnataka, especially in the village Ucchila, Kaapu in
the Udupi district. St Mary's Island near Malpe was used for song picturization, with some additional
scenes in Bangalore.

FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS

Figure 6: Entrance of village where the most film is shot

FRAME DESCRIPTION

This scene is when Bharath and his family come to Mangalore to look for the bride. This is the picture
of the entrance of the village in the Udupi district where most of the shooting has happened.

Location: Shot at a village Ucchila, Udupi Karnataka, India.

Elements of Vernacular Architecture: The traditional houses of Mangalore have spacious porticos but
clustered layouts red cement or terra cotta floors and are topped with Mangalore tiles with fruit trees
and coconut plantations surrounding the house. This style of house has been borrowed from the other
Mangalorean communities and are only observed in Mangalore. Sloped roofs to drain rainwater.
Mangalore Tiles or Mangalore profile roofing tiles is the most popular and oldest profile of roofing
tiles used in such coastal areas

Figure 7: A Scene from the movie

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FRAME DESCRIPTION

This scene here shows one of the Guthu mane or Bunts courtyard which are found in typical Dakshin
Kannada homes. This scene is when Bharath and his family enter Ambika’s home for the first time

Location: Udupi, Karnataka

Elements of Vernacular Architecture: Sloped roof to drain rainwater -Materials used in the
construction were clay and hard wood, which was mostly used in making doors, windows, stairs, pillars
etc. and exclusively skilled carpenters were assigned for the task.

Figure 8: A scene from the movie

Figure 9: Badilu Guthu House

FRAME DESCRIPTION

This scene shows the courtyard and the Tulsi Katte where Ambika’s mother prays in the morning.

Location: Udupi Karnataka

Elements of Vernacular Architecture: The house where Ambika lives is a popular Guthu house is
(Badila Guthu). This house was built in 1909 and has completed its 100 years. It was designed by skilled
architects from Kerala. The house is very large and has 21 rooms and separate spaces for paddy fields,
cattle sheds etc. The house was built by the famous architect Dooma Rai

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Guthu House of Udupi

Figure 10: Typical Guthu House

The big houses of coastal landlords were known as Guthu house. Constructions of these houses were
done at such a place where there would be a clear view of green fields. The manor consisted of
separate places for household, cattle shed, servant quarters and places for other necessary activities.
Since this type of a house was a costly one to be constructed, only a wealthy landlord could afford and
maintain such a house. A point was made to make these houses attractive and catchy in their designs.
The Dakshina Kannada climate was kept in mind while chalking out the design of the house. The
people who used to make these types of houses were intensively trained and talented traditional
artisans. Materials used in the construction were clay and hard wood, which was mostly used in
making doors, windows, stairs, pillars etc. and exclusively skilled carpenters were assigned for the task.
The owner of a Guthu house used to live the most luxurious style and had servants for every type of
work; like separate ones to take care of household work and separate ones for looking after the cattle
reared.

Elegance of Guthu Houses

Figure 14: Badila Guthu House

One such example of such a lavish Guthu house is the Badila Guthu where the movie Pancharangi
movie has been shot. This house was built in 1909 and completed its 100 years recently. It was
designed by skilled architects from Kerala. The house is very large and has 21 rooms and has separate
spaces for paddy fields, cattle sheds etc. The house was built by the famous architect, Dooma Rai. He
was the founder of Bunts Community; a community that brings together owners of such houses. There
was a private judiciary system brought into action by the Badila Guthu house and this also holds the
right to run the temples as per old rituals. There was a grand ceremony organized to facilitate the
family members. The paddy fields of the Guthu House produce rice and other crops in abundance.
Many people visit the house to look at its elegant architecture. Even film producers have used this
house in many of their films. Famous actors like Rajinikanth, Chiranjeevi Sarja etc. have done shooting

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of their films here. It is believed that over 310 families and more than 700 hundred family members
are linked with this house and its history.

Now constructions of new Guthu Houses have ceased and only the houses which are already in the
being are taken care of and maintained properly. If you are planning a vacation to Udupi, then do not
forget to visit the coastal areas and Guthu houses. It will really make you feel attached and very close
to the tradition. It is an amazing experience which cannot be described by mere words. A huge house
with numerous rooms, an open area; it almost seems like a separate hotel. After visiting the place,
you can take help of local people or an area guide to know about the place and Guthu house in more
detail.

CONCLUSION

In terms of portrayal, manages to capture the essence of Udupi architecture successfully and
completely created a world where the local audience feel at home and on the other hand, it gives
people a firsthand experience if you were to introduce somebody to Udupi and its architecture.

3) Avane Srimannarayana (2019)

Directed by Sachin Ravi

Written by Rakshit Shetty

Chandrajith Belliappa
Anirudh Kodgi
Abhijith Mahesh
Nagarjuna Sharma
Abhilash
Produced by Pushkara Mallikarjunaiah
H.K. Prakash
Starring Rakshit Shetty
Shanvi Srivastava

Cinematography Karm Chawla

Art Director Ullas Hydoor
Figure 6: Movie Poster

Table 2: Notable Credits

INTRODUCTION

Narayana attempts to solve the mystery behind the treasure that has gone missing. However,
Jayaram, a gang leader, places several obstacles in his way

Rakshit Shetty said while promoting the film,” North Karnataka’s Kannada is very different, and only
someone from there can do justice to it in a film. Films are a documentation too, and I believe every
dialect must be explored in some way in cinema”.

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The pub, forts and forests would not have been possible in ‘Avane Srimannarayana’ without sets, says
director, editor, and scriptwriter Sachin Ravi. “You can create a certain vibe, and fantasy with a touch
of reality to sets”.

KEY POINTS

- Fictional tale based of a fictional place called Amravati in Northern Karnataka

- Visuals of the typical fort typologies found in that regions
- Mildly inspired by the American Westerns in terms of a few sets’ pieces
- Cultural features of the travelling theatre group performing stories based on the Vishnu
Purana
- Typical residential typologies seen in the given region with the usage of locally available
materials
- Hugely reliant on VFX and practical sets than on location shoot

FINDINGS AND ANALYSIS

Fort Typologies as visualized in the movie. Can be observed that it’s a completely fictional and a
digitalized representation of a typical fort found across different regions in Karnataka, mainly the
Northern side

Figure 7: Creative Visualization of a typical fort typology

Figure 8: Creative Visualization of a typical fort typology

Karnataka has a long history of fort construction. No other region of India has forts as the region of
Deccan which includes parts of Maharashtra, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh.

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The Gangas, Rashtrakutas, Kalyana Chalukyas and Hoysalas built innumerable forts from 8th to 12th
centuries C.E. Practically all the towns Bidar, Raichur, Belagola, Chikmagalur, Talaguppa, Halebid,
Bellary, Kolar, and many more had forts. With the medieval period there was great progress in the
art of warfare.
From 13th century C.E. up to 18th century C.E., Karnataka forts show Persian, British and French
influence. We see such forts at Hampi, Gulbarga, Bijapur, Raichur, Chitradurga, Kittur,
Srirangapatnam etc. These forts have canals and walls round the forts, embellished with high domes,
hole in the front walls to fire guns.

CONCLUSION

Being a creative visualization of a typical fort and a slightly commercial and over-the-top filmmaking
approach, it doesn’t necessarily match reality in terms of its portrayal and has taken a lot of creative
liberties to match the context in terms of its storyline. On the other hand, its visual treatment rightfully
enhances the viewing experience as a whole and shows the evolution in the filmmaking process after
the introduction of VFX.

OVERALL ANALYSIS AND CONCLUSION

MOVIE LOCATION TANGIBLE INTANGIBLE CONCLUSION

Mungaru Male Coorg Ainemane Traditional Realistic portrayal
(2006) (Sloped roofs, Rituals, and captures the
made from mud, Hunting, true essence of the
resin, rice husk Outfits etc. place
etc.)
Passed through
generations

Pancharangi Udupi Guthu Houses Traditional Portrayed real

(2010) (Large rooms, Rituals, Outfits, character of the
separate rooms Festivals etc. place, carries the
for cattle sheds, essence of the place
paddy fields etc.) throughout the plot
Made from clay,
hardwood with
skilled carpenters

Ulidavaru Udupi Guthu Houses Yakshagana, Truly depicted the

Kandanthe (Large rooms, Krishna several typologies
(2014) separate rooms Janmashtami, and rightful
for cattle sheds, Dialect representation of
paddy fields etc.) the place
Made from clay,
hardwood with
skilled carpenters

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 Avane Amaravati Fort Typologies Travelling Fictional take on a
Srimannarayana (Digital theatre groups, real place, digital
(2019) recreation) Depiction of recreation attempts
Typical rural tales from at a more creative
houses (locally Vishnu Purana take of the place
available adding extra
materials) elements for visual
enhancement

After going through all the movies and undergoing a proper in-depth analysis, we can conclude that
vernacular architecture holds an important spot in this vast varieties of architectural styles and
through such movies, it has made the audience much aware of its immense contribution and
educating them about the overall influence and impact it has garnered over the years and successfully
stood the test of time and still stayed relevant and adapting with the contemporary world. Cinema
has played a huge part in acknowledging this interesting form of architecture and with time has kept
its values and traditions intact and will hopefully do so for many more years to come.

It can be observed that the movies timeline range between 2006-2019, so we can see that the
introduction of VFX has enhanced the visual treatment of the movies and its portrayal has also proven
to bring in a broader change in terms of filmmaking and capturing the essence of a place. The shoot
process and methodologies have been gradually getting better over the years and the introduction of
VFX has paved a new path towards the growth of the Kannada industry.
The filmmaking in the 2000s was standard and followed a regular methodology and it was constant,
but a huge shift was seen after the gradual increase in the usage of VFX around the mid-2010s and
that shift has helped the Kannada industry and its mainstream films to hold its ground and create an
identity of its own.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We would like to express our very sincere appreciation to Prof. Kinjal Sheth and Prof. Pooja. C.
Ugrani for their valuable and constructive suggestions during the planning and development of this
research work. Their willingness to give their time so generously has been very much appreciated.
We would also like to take a moment to sincerely thank our respected Dir. Vidya Srikanth for giving
us an opportunity to get involved within the world of architectural research and truly has helped us
in a lot of ways to widen our thought process. It has been a wonderful learning experience and all
the knowledge we have been able to gather throughout this research has proven to be very
wholesome and provided us with a new lens through which we can view cinema and has made us
even more curious to explore many such research topics which would give us an opportunity to
delve deeper into this vast world of research.

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