Nashik’s All-Black Stone Temple Is A Design Marvel

Vikrant Dashputre via Design Boom

Published on:

08 Jun 2021, 12:27 pm

2 min read

Nashik, an ancient city in the heart of Maharashtra, is well-known for its colourful Kumbh Mela celebrations. It is also home to the infamous Maruti temple that has always played a significant role in the lives of the village people in the area. Being part of their socio-economic structure, the temple has been appreciated by the architecture firm Within ‘N’ Without, which has given it a new all-black revamp. The building was previously dismantled and had lost its repute, however providing people with an affordable and accessible place to worship, this update was well overdue.

Perched on the same site of the previous temple, the architecture firm decided to create an ode to the secret space and the weight it carries. Using locally sourced black stones, the team created a new temple that remains visually and geographically separate from the rest of the village community. The firm, known for its unusual take on design, has created a stepped progression to balance out the earlier domination that the temple had on its surroundings, so that it looks smaller amidst the temple’s all black frontier. Within the premises of the temple, Within ‘N’ Without has created interaction and motion with the worshippers. Taking into consideration the movement of people within the temple while planning the layout of the area, the design team has used an intricate play of light for worshippers moving from the entrance towards the core of the building.

Although the temple has been constructed with notions of complexity as the design approach moves beyond form and shape, the harmony between the various designs evolved out of concerns of addressing the diverse user groups effectively. The effort and skill put into refurbishing the Maruti temple says so much about the heritage it carries, and yet in all its glory, the black facade remains humble and out of sight, so that it is not easily seen from outside of its surroundings or the road approaching it.