does the city have a future? what kind of future do you imagine it to have?
Prasad KV:
To perceive the city as separate from ourselves is to overlook the profound reciprocity between human identity and urban existence. it reflects the way we shape our thinking, our lives, and our living spaces. In the same way, we shape the city. It is a collective effort—a continuous cycle of cause and effect.
The question is, "what kind of future are we building?"
If growth continues without considering ecology, resources, and the people who inhabit the city, the future could become increasingly controlled and devastating. The city may continue to expand while nature, human connections, and relationships gradually disappear.
At the same time, the future is not predetermined. The city can also become a place where development and ecology coexist. For me, the uncertainty between these two possibilities is what makes the future interesting. The future city could either become a monument to our excess or an opportunity to rethink how we live with the environment.
If everything is driven by capitalisation and monetisation without consideration for ecology and human well-being, it will ultimately become harmful to everyone. What begins with individuals shaping the city eventually returns to affect those same individuals. This cycle reflects the 'Tragedy of the commons', where individual interests and unchecked consumption can gradually destroy the shared resources on which everyone depends. This is alarming.
We cannot exclude ourselves from nature because we are nature. Our existence depends on interdependence, coexistence, and symbiosis. The African philosophy of Ubuntu, often expressed as “I am because we are,” highlights human interconnectedness, compassion, and shared community.
Ultimately, the future of the city is also a reflection of the future we choose to create together.
Kapil Jangid:
I believe the city definitely has a future, but that future will be constantly changing and complex. For me, a city is not only about buildings, roads, and infrastructure; it is also shaped by people, migration, dreams, memories, and the environment. People migrate to cities in search of better opportunities and to fulfil their dreams, and in this process, the character of the city keeps changing. I imagine the future city as a living organism where planned architecture exists alongside informal settlements, abandoned spaces, construction sites, and migrant communities. In my art practice, I explore these transformations and contradictions—what the city creates and what it erases in the process of development.
For me, the future of the city will be meaningful only when development also leaves space for nature, communities, memories, and human aspirations.