Abstract:
The realm of urban design and planning is incomplete without understanding the
sociological transformations going around in the urban environment. There is always
a quest to understand the reason behind the success of certain kinds of spaces and
failure of others. This question is the vey basis of this thesis inquiry wherein there is
an attempt to delve deep into the spatial qualities of space which makes the area
robust and vibrant in nature. The answer to this question is south through the
sociological concept of third spaces. The spaces which actively engage with the
people and communities living in the immediate vicinity and bring in a feeling of
homeliness by regular usage are sought after in this thesis. Basically, third spaces are
a home away from home. This concept is explored by going through the different
resources related to third space theories, which would enable clear understanding of
the core concept. Thereafter, certain case studies related to decoding of third spaces
in the urban fabric is deeply delved into. Though there is a lack of Indian context in
these cases, they present a template to us and help us in forming a clear strategy to
read the urban fabric and identify third spaces within. This template is then applied to
studying contemporary Indian neighbourhood wherein we have a planned sector
juxtaposed with an urban village. The lack of vitality in these planned sectors due to
rigid planning approach is what forms the hypothesis of this inquiry. For this, the
planned sector 23 of the sub district of Dwarka in New Delhi has been selected
because of the availability of complexity with respect to the juxtaposition of settlements
of contrasting characters. This complexity would present to us the different typologies
of open spaces, their spatial attributes and their positive and negative impacts on the
urban fabric and people in the immediate vicinity. As we investigate the different
aspects of third spaces, we also must realise that these spaces are a result of a
complex process of social, spatial, and economic changes. The idea is to extract the
elements of third spaces which attract people and aid in community bonding, active
and passive recreation, provide opportunities for local economy and thereby we can
seek to change the popular belief regarding the public spaces in Indian cities through
creative placemaking which seeks to improve the usability of a space by utilising the
elements of third spaces and at the same time catering to the aspirational needs of
the burgeoning middle class. The intent is to start a process of spatial transformation
by examining the existing situations in a planned Indian neighbourhood with an aim to enhance neighbourhood vitality by creating a third space network. This would not only
bring about a character change in the local neighbourhood but also act as a template
for other neighbourhoods in the vicinity, thereby we can comfortably assume that this
could act as a worthy contribution to the future of urbanism in Indian cities.