Charudatt Pande

Artist Statement

For the past six to seven years, my practice has explored migration, urbanisation and the ways in which cities reshape both people and places. I began by documenting everyday lives, from small business owners to people living and working on the streets, before turning my attention to the broader consequences of urban growth. My own move from a small town in Maharashtra to Pune became central to this enquiry. The transition from an independent home with a courtyard and a distinct sense of identity to an apartment in a metropolitan city was profound. In Pune, I often felt as though I were living inside a bubble, disconnected from the city around me. While exploring its older neighbourhoods, I discovered houses that reminded me of my hometown and awakened a strong sense of nostalgia. These contrasting emotions became the foundation of my architectural series. Pune’s historic neighbourhoods, including Kasba Peth, Ravivar Peth, Narayan Peth and the Camp area, reveal a compelling coexistence of past and present. My current work focuses particularly on Kasba Peth, where centuries-old wadas, once occupied by affluent families, now accommodate wholesale markets, small businesses, low-income communities and migrants from across India. Many of these structures lack basic infrastructure, yet they retain exquisite carvings, craftsmanship and traces of their former grandeur. I am drawn to this contradiction. The wadas are architectural treasures, but they also reveal the difficult realities of contemporary urban life. They stand as silent witnesses to migration, adaptation and the rapid transformation of the city. Through this continuing series, I seek to understand what is preserved, what is displaced and how new lives take shape within the remains of the old.