Eight firms shortlisted to design the controversy-ridden Museum on Prime Ministers

The firms were shortlisted this week by the Nehru Memorial Museum and Library. They are likely to send their proposals by early November.

The blueprint of the museum | Nehru Memorial Museum and Library

New Delhi: The Nehru Memorial Museum and Library (NMML) has shortlisted eight consortia of architectural, design and technology firms to design the interiors of the Museum on Prime Ministers of India in Teen Murti Bhavan, ThePrint has learnt.

The eight were shortlisted this week out of a total 15 applications received by the NMML. 

Delhi-based A.B. Design Habit, experiential marketing agency Tagbin Services, London-based Museums and Expos, Abha Narain Lambah Associates, Hyderabad-based Visual Quest, Archohm Consultants, film production company Optimystix Entertainment, and Bengaluru-based FI Design and Developments have been shortlisted.

“The eight were chosen based on how many museums they had worked on previously, qualifications of the team and the size of their projects,” said NMML’s director Shakti Sinha.

The firms are expected to send in their design proposals by early November, after which one will be selected to do the job. The museum is scheduled to open in October 2020, but is likely to be delayed.

The blueprint of the museum | Nehru Memorial Museum and Library

Bids were opened this month

The NMML had originally opened bids for the project in April this year. But that time, none of the firms that had applied for the project met the requirements of the museum. Bids were again opened on 9 September and the shortlist was finalised on 25 September.

“We underestimated the task and slipped up, leading to the delay. But now that we are clear about what the museum needs and what we will require from the applicants, we are back on track,” Sinha told ThePrint.

Museum to have everything — tech, sound, lights

The construction of the museum — located behind the Nehru Memorial Library in Teen Murti Bhavan — began in January this year and is nearing completion. The exterior is being designed by Sikka Associates Architects.

The project is estimated to cost Rs 226 crore. It will be a circular, three-storey structure, spread across 10,000 square feet. The ground floor will be dedicated to display the tenures of all the prime ministers since independence — barring Jawaharlal Nehru.

“We’re collaborating with as many memorials from across the country to collect information about each prime minister,” Sinha said, adding that the NMML had collected images and videos worth Rs 5 crore from the I&B Ministry’s film and photo division, and Doordarshan.

“Most of the memorials are classic museums in the sense that they rely heavily on text and old photographs. Here, we want to include everything — technology, sound, lights — to make it an immersive,” Sinha added.

The museum will also act like a library, making it possible for people to search for every speech by each prime minister. Curators in the NMML have already prepared a first “draft” containing details of each prime minister, and will approach private parties and specialists to collect rare information.

Controversy

The project courted controversy when it was first proposed in July 2018 as it was said that India’s first PM Jawaharlal Nehru will be left out.

Six members of the NMML society — Congress leaders Jairam Ramesh, Mallikarjun Kharge, Karan Singh, historian Nayanjot Lahiri, economist Nitin Desai and bureaucrat B.P. Singh — opposed the project and said it would undermine Nehru’s legacy.

Nonetheless, then Home Minister Rajnath Singh approved the project and the foundation stone for the museum was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in October 2018.