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WADAS OF PUNE
• Social life centered around the village

community.
• The village communities were economically
self-reliant and self-sufficient units, each
SOCIAL having it’s own set of ethics and residential
STRUCTURE enclaves, shops, temples etc.
• The administration was autonomous.
• Town had a multinucleated structure.
• The society of Pune was divided into the four
traditional castes based of the Hindu Caste system.
These were:
The Brahmins – who were responsible for the
Public Administration and ministerial affairs of
the state.
SOCIAL The Kshatriyas – who were the warrior class and

took care of the fortification and security of the
STRUCTURE Empire.
The Vaishyas – who were the business class and
took part of the trade and business in the
Empire.
The Shudras – the supposed servant caste of
society doing menial labor
• The historic core of Pune divided into seventeen wards or
Peths.
• Most of the Peths were named after the days of the
week because it was said that depending on the day of
the week, bazaars or markets were held on those streets.
• Peths was lined with beautifully constructed Wadas with
SETTLEMENT carved balconies overlooking the streets below.
• Most other houses lining the street were of a mixed-use
PATTERN variety –
• *shops or offices on the ground floor and
residential quarters above.
• A majority of the Wadas, including the Shaniwar Wada

are located within the historic core of the city.
• Each neighborhood had one or two large mansion-
like courtyard houses (each called Wada)
surrounded by smaller houses and huts of the
lower caste members of society.
• Each of the Peths were almost self-sufficient in
terms of administrative duties.
SETTLEMENT • Each had a vast array of civic amenities from parks
and gardens to temples.
PATTERN • These Peths also had a well-defined public utilities
and infrastructure system.
• As such, there were no elaborate tree – lined
avenues and most of the street grid was simple,
pedestrian, and animal-drawn cart friendly
• Map indicating the various Peths within the historic core of Pune.
WADAS
Variation in Wadas due to differences in
• Economic status
• Culture
• Lifestyle
• Dissimilarities in site
ARCHITECTURE
• Most significant contributions to

architecture of the Maratha empire was
the construction of Wadas or courtyard
houses of the royal family and upper
echelons of society
• Most Wadas feature the combination of
wood, brick and stone with beautifully
carved arches, jharokas like windows,
ceilings and columns
• Colorful murals decorated the interior
walls of Wadas . They offered an
interesting contrast materially from
texture to color.
Interior facades of the Vishrambaug Wada.
Interior courtyard of the Vishrambaug Wada. Trim details (wooden carving) at the Vishrambaug Wada.
ARCHITECTURE
• Usually the Wadas were two or three stories tall but in the case of richer citizens, they were as
high as five stories. While all Wadas are designed around a courtyard, some of them also had
multiple courtyards, gardens, and temples depending upon the wealth of the owner.
• The Wada was divided into a series of rooms based on their functions.
• The front of the house was usually for public purposes
• The back of the house and the upper floors for the family’s private use.
• Most of these elements have been destroyed in case of Shaniwar Wada but can still be visible in
case of some of the other Wadas that dot the skyline of Pune city such as in the case of the
recently restored Vishrambaug Wada
CONSTRUCTION
METHOD
• Brick, stone, wood and mortar structure Built upon stone
foundation
• Plinth – 4 - 6 feet in length & up to 4m in height ; built with
dressed sandstone in lime mortar
• Structural framework built in wood
• Entrance north-facing
• Doors- mainly wooden doors with metallic supports
• Kitchen wall provided with shaft for better ventilation
• Courtyards Provided
SPATIAL
ORGANIZATION
• Courtyard- climatological function provides – light

and ventilation through the house
• Also serves as - convective thermostat,
moderating extreme diurnal variations in
temperature
• Therefore courtyards -usually sufficiently narrow-
allow for a shaded area that provides protection
during summer - wide enough to receive winter
wind.
• Courtyard is an omnipresent feature
1. Open quadrangle formed the chowk
2. A pillared, semi-open corridor called sopa
formed the intermediate layer around chowk.
3. Rooms beyond constitute the built form
•Plan arrived from a open quadrangle
• A pillared semi open corridor around the chowk
•Rooms beyond the corridor
• Central facade has an opening
• Plinth of central structural bay
has steps
• Every structural bay on upper
floor has a long window
• Windows allow people on 1st
floor to participate in the
courtyard below
• Rooms receive indirect light through courts
• The outer courtyard formed the center of all
activities
• Semi public male dominated spaces were
organized around the court
• Water fountains placed at the center
ZONING
• Distinct zoning
• Separate entrances are provided.
• Privacy for the women given a
priority
• main courtyards.
• The most significant features of
the wada was the way it’s zoning
of public, private and semi-
private spaces was done.

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WADAS OF PUNE

• Social life centered around the village

SOCIAL The Kshatriyas – who were the warrior class and

• A majority of the Wadas, including the Shaniwar Wada

• Most significant contributions to

• Courtyard- climatological function provides – light

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