MANSINH M.

RANA
 Born in Kantharia, Gujarat M.M. Rana did
his schooling in Porbandar and studied
architecture at the JJ School of Arts in
Mumbai. Towards the end of his education he
came across the works & writings of the great
American architect Frank Lloyd Wright. He
was so inspired that he wrote to Mr. Wright
and was accepted as an apprentice at Mr.
Wright’s studio and office at Taliesin in
Wisconsin and Arizona. His journey of
discovery started in 1947 and lasted four
years.  A chance meeting with Prime Minister
Jawaharlal Nehru in Chicago in 1949
eventually pulled him back to India in 1951
and he settled in Delhi. Among the early
projects was Bal Bhawan (1953) soon after
which he joined the Government of India.
The significant projects that followed were
Buddha Jayanti Commemoration Park
(1956), Shanti Vana Samadhi (1964), India
Pavilion at New York World’s Fair (1964),
India Pavilion at Montreal Expo (1967),
Nehru Memorial Library (1974), Nehru
Planetarium (1980), Nehru Memorial Library
Annexe (1983), and The National Library at
Kolkata (2005). He received a Padma Shri in
1967 for his contribution to architecture.  His
greatest legacy however is as an educator. He
was instrumental in setting up The Sushant
School of Art and Architecture in Gurgaon in
1989 and nurturing it for many years and was
actively involved with it in many avatars up
to 2012.
 Shanti Vana Samadhi

India Pavilion at New York

World’s Fair

Nehru Memorial Library

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India Pavilion at Montreal Expo

 Nehru Planetarium

https://www.delhievents.com/2013/10/m-rana-1921-2012-celebrating-architect.html

Buddha Jayanti Commemoration Park