This masterclass is jointly offered by the Scottish Centre for Conservation Studies and the Institute for Historic Buildings Conservation – IHBC Scotland Branch.

Urban heritage conservation in India started out as a separate discipline, distinct from monument conservation in the late 1990s. The idea and nuances of working in the complex Indian city, juxtaposed with its dynamics and intertwined realities, make it almost impossible to apply European conservation ideas on the Indian landscape directly. Having been trained in the UK, my experience has been that of learning, unlearning, adapting and innovating theories and practices to suit the Indian context. This lecture shall draw from real life projects as case studies and highlight the dilemmas faced by the Conservation Professional working in the Indian landscape. It will put forth my personal learning, perspective and open the discussion on what are the bottlenecks that can help enrich the pedagogical processes further.