India, March 30 -- "Today our architecture is banal, partly because of contemporary existence is so, but also perhaps because we do not seek to express anything profound (or deeply felt) about ourselves, or the society in which we live," wrote Charles Correa in an essay titled The Blessings of the Sky. This roots his entire architectural philosophy, visible across most cities of the country.

When urbanism was being defined in a newly independent country - especially in the shadow of the colonial building programme - Correa built Indian futurism rooted in regionalism. This regionalism wasn't aesthetic; it was climatic. His futurism was flexible and incremental, achieving great spatial richness through minimalist means. In Delhi, among man...