Feb 7, 2006
Tara Chandavarkar, inheritor of the legacy of two of old Canara’s distinguished families, has carried forward the light in her own right to shine brightly in Bangalore.
Tara, full of brightness at 78 years, has a trail of achievements that can make proud the families of Nayampalli, in which she was born, and Chandavarkar, into which she was married. The Nayampalli family contributed greatly to South Kanara in the fields of education, social reforms and improving the infrastructure of the district.
Her father, Nayampalli Rama Rao, was very keenly interested in innovative methods of farming. He went around the district teaching these new methods to farmers. Their ancestral family house in Mangalore, Shiv Bagh at Kadri, has played host to such national leaders as Mahatma Gandhi, Rabindranath Tagore and Jawaharlal Nehru. On her husband’s side, two knighted Chandavarkars, Sir Narayan and Sir Vittal, have been vice chancellors of Bombay University and have held many other coveted positions.
Tara Rama Rao, eldest of two daughters of N Rama Rao and Yamuna, was born in Mangalore on January 20, 1928. She had her education at St Agnes College until it was terminated at the second year of graduation class to marry Narayan ( Nanu ) Chandavarkar, on December 22, 1946. A qualified architect, Nanu worked with Dr Koinisburger, a German Jew, who was architect to the Government of Mysore. The young Chandavarkar couple shifted to Madras where Nanu worked with the famed architect, S L Chitale. In 1950, Nanu shifted to Bangalore to strike out on his own.
At this stage, the main focus of Nanu’s work was residential bungalows which included work for Ravi Kirloskar, member of the famed Pune Kirloskar industrial clan. It was Ravi who, pleased over the work Nanu did for his bungalow, egged on Nanu to get into architecture for industries. That is how he branched into designing for industries, including for HMT, RBI and BEL. By this time, in 1953, the Chandavarkars shifted to Palace Cross Road where their firm and residential complex make an understated landmark in Bangalore today.
A decade later, in 1963, Nanu died at the age of 39 years when Tara was just 35 years old. Pesi Thacker, an experienced architect, helped Tara to continue the firm which then became Chandavarkar & Thacker. It is in the forefront of the profession today. Tara retired from active practice in 2003. Her son continues the firm. While she was actively associated with the firm, Tara was its public face, handling administration, finance and public relations.
As early as 1960, she involved herself in a committee of ladies to showcase the State’s handicrafts through Kaveri Emporium on Mahatma Gandhi Road. She has keen interest in western and Hindustani classical music. She has teamed up with Lalita Ubhayaker in promoting and showcasing young musicians. She has also worked for music platforms like Sur Sagar, Hindustani Sangeet Sabha, The Music and Art Society and Bangalore School of Music.
Tara also joined Ann Warrier and Geeta Narayan to start a school under Ujwal Trust. It has an independent offshoot called Srishti, focusing on art design and technology. She has also been associated with Rotary since 1991 and worked with an NGO, AVAS, which has been doing slum development for the last 25 years.
Tara has four children, three girls and a boy. The son has done architecture from Delhi School of Architecture and also specialisation in US and has practised abroad. Tara finds joy in the achievements of her children and emerging potential of her grandchildren. She is generous in acknowledging the support she received from her dedicated staff and associates in her social and cultural outreach. She looks a joyful person for what she has received from the world around her and in peace with it.
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