![From Colonization to Le Corbusier: Was Modernism in India an Imposition or an Invitation? - Featured Image](https://snoopy.archdaily.com/images/archdaily/media/images/6797/6a4f/e4b3/5801/8aa5/a305/slideshow/from-colonization-to-le-corbusier-was-modernism-in-india-an-imposition-or-an-invitation_7.jpg?1737976406&format=webp&width=640&height=580)
When India gained independence in 1947, the nation faced a decision that would determine the course of its architectural future: brick or concrete. A seemingly mundane choice of material was rooted in a deeper philosophical divide between two potential outcomes for post-colonial India's built environment. Pioneering figures in India's struggle for independence held opposing views - Mahatma Gandhi advocated for traditional craftsmanship while Jawaharlal Nehru embraced modernism. The architecture one sees in the subcontinent today is a mosaic of both, begging the question: was modernism in India a foreign imposition or a celebrated import?