British Universities Film & Video Council

moving image and sound, knowledge and access

Imperial City

Synopsis
An account of the building of New Delhi over three decades. Discusses the commissioning of Edwin Lutyens and Herbert Baker and the difficulties they faced. Shows how architecture, as an instrument of the Raj, attempted to reconcile imperial rule with Indian nationalism. The commentary outlines Lutyen’s and Baker’s attempts, despite their prejudices against the Indian and Mogul styles, to form a blend of European and Oriental architecture.
Language
English
Country
Great Britain
Medium
Film; Video; Film. 16mm. sd. col. 45 min. Videocassette. Standard formats. col. 45 min.
Technical information
Black-and-white / Sound
Year of production
1980
Availability
Hire
Sale
Uses
Undergraduate students of architecture for a general ‘overview’ of British colonial architecture: general interest for students from developing countries.*
Subjects
Architecture
Keywords
architectural design; Baker, Herbert; India; Lutyens, Edwin; New Delhi; town & regional planning

Credits

Director
David Rowan
Producer
Margaret Williams
Writer
Eric Rowan

Distribution Formats

Type
Film
Format
16mm

Production Company

Name

Arbor Films

Distributor

Name

Arts on Film Archive, University of Westminster

Notes
Arts on Film Archive offers on-line access to a large range of films on art produced in the United Kingdom since the 1950s, and is a unique record of British and international post-war art, as well as of documentary film-making in the UK. In its first phase, the archive offers a complete database and an on-line video streaming of all 450 films made by the film department of Arts Council England between 1953 and 1998 and several films produced till 2003 by the dance Department of ACE. The collection is only available streamed to ac.uk domain addresses.

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