Charles Correa, one of India's greatest architects and urban planners, passed away after brief illness late on Tuesday night. He was 84.
Winner of several national and international awards, Correa was known for adapting his designs to local climates and building styles.
Correa designed landmarks like Gandhi Smarak Sangrahalaya Ahmedabad, the Handloom Pavilion in Delhi, Bharat Bhavan and Vidhan Bhavan in Madhya Pradesh, Jawahar Kala Kendra in Jaipur, the Permanent Mission of India at the U.N., New York, Kala Academy in Goa.
He was the chief architect of Navi Mumbai, the satellite suburb of Mumbai.
Despite his illness, he completed projects like the Ismaili Centre in Toronto, the Brain Science Centre at MIT, Boston and the Champalimaud Centre in Lisbon.
Born in Secundarabad in Andhra Pradesh in 1930, Correa studied at St. Xavier's College in Mumbai and went on to study at the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge.
He was honoured with the Padma Shri in 1972 and Padma Vibhushan in 2006. In 1984, he founded the Urban Design Research Institute (UDRI) in Mumbai, dedicated to protecting the environment and improving urban communities.
Many took to Twitter to pay their last respects to the master architect:
Mr. Charles Correa's architectural marvels are widely cherished, reflecting his brilliance, innovative zeal & wonderful aesthetic sense: PM
— PMO India (@PMOIndia) >June 17, 2015
My deepest condolences on the passing away of the noted architect, Mr. Charles Correa. May his soul rest in peace: PM >@narendramodi
— PMO India (@PMOIndia) >June 17, 2015
Charles Correa once said that architecture must first be about human dignity. RIP, genius Moidekar.
— Jerry Pinto (@mahimkajerry) >June 17, 2015
shocked & sad to hear about Charles Correa's passing. One of India's & the world's great architects, brilliant artist and human being...
— Mira Nair (@MiraPagliNair) >June 17, 2015
Farewell, Charles Correa, visionary architect, former neighbour, and a personal hero.
— Shobhaa De (@DeShobhaa) >June 17, 2015
Deeply saddened to hear of the passing of Charles Correa, modern India's greatest architect and a dear friend. >pic.twitter.com/fT8u4FdvQG
— Amitav Ghosh (@GhoshAmitav) >June 17, 2015
My condolences on the passing of Charles Correa, one of India's finest architects. His works stand tall in form of iconic buildings. RIP.
— N Chandrababu Naidu (@ncbn) >June 17, 2015
