Charminar

I guess being in Hyderabad and not displaying it’s iconic image would be a sin. I know it is an old structure, that’s why upto now I haven’t taken the stairs up to the gallery (don’t get me wrong). Anyway it is located in the old city and the place is like a huge market with I guess from bangles to pearls are being sold dirt cheap and maybe a lot more of other stuffs too. I have been here only a couple of times and that also to show my friends what “Charminar” looks like and below is an extract of what Charminar is from the net, however the photo was taken by me:

Hyderabad’s most popular landmark Charminar is located at the center of the old city and surround by lively bazaars. It was built by Sultan Mohammed Quli Qutb Shah in 1591 in honour of his wife Bhagmati, shortly after he had shifted his capital from Golconda to what now is known as Hyderabad. It is popular as the Arc de Triomphe of the East and considered as the legendary masterpiece of Qutub Shahi’s.

Charming structure define as its name from four intricately carved minarets, the four graceful minarets which means ‘Four Minars’. Charminar is in square shape with four towers in the four corners of the square, each side is 20 metres long. Every side opens into a plaza through giant arches, which overlook four major thoroughfares and dwarf other features of the building except the minarets. Each arch is 11 metres wide and rises 20 metres to the pinnacle from the plinth. The minarets soar skywards by 24 metres from the roof of Charminar. Each minaret has four storeys, each looking like a delicately carved ring around the minaret. From the ground to the apex, the minarets cover a length of 48.7 metres.

Charminar is surrounded by markets and many other structures which adds to its grace. It boasts Chow Mohalla palace, Shahali Banda, Laad Bazar, Kali Kaman and Patthar Gatti and Mecca Masjid. The structure of Charminar show both Indian and Mughal architectural styles. You can see good views of all over the old city from the top of the minarets.

Want to join the force?

Look at the ancient dumb bell and it looks pretty heavy right? I tried lifting it and it didn’t budge an inch. This is what you see in Golconda Fort in Hyderabad which was built in the 13th century by the Kakatiya Kings and the existing structure was built by Qutub Shahi Kings into a massive fort with granite walls having eight gates and 87 bastions spread upto 7 kms, in circumference over a span of 62 years. Golconda Fort, popularly known in Telugu as “Golla Konda”, which means “Shepherd’s Hill”, has an exotic story behind it.

What I was impressed with was when the guide told me regarding the criteria those days in joining the guards or sentry, you have to lift the dumb bells and I hope you don’t have to run with it too (they would die of hernia). If only they had this same kind of qualifying exercise now I guess the Hyderabad police force would really be a super fit crime fighting force to reckon with and not with their pot belly and scary looking moustaches. You don’t need guns and all you have to do is stare at the criminals and they would surrender or crumble in fear. God only knows what sort of diet they had to be on (just a thought). Below is a section of the fort taken from one of the Towers.

Distractions or delight?

This photo was taken yesterday afternoon at a junction near the Rajiv Gandhi statue coming in from Begumpet (I was in my Scorpio) in Hyderabad and just look at the billboards and I am sure it is a distraction for motorist. There are so many of this larger than life hoardings advertising just about anything. I would love to have a collection of photo’s made up of the hoardings which I believe gives Hyderabad it’s flavour next to Briyani and Haleem. And mind you some of these adverts does seem to be have a double meaning to it but who cares anyway as it’s the pictures that captivates the poor (excited) motorist.

I will try to capture those double meaning ones for my future posting if time permits.

Nice sculpture

This was taken at Ramoji Film City at Hyderabad. I think it is a replica of some sculpture from some part of the world (correct me if I am wrong). Anyway it was done tastefully and I guess they would not use this backdrop in any bollywood movies as it might not get through the censor board.

What I like about this Ramoji Film City was the landscapping and the vastness of the place and with it’s laid back atmosphere. Be prepared to do a lot of walking and I guess the best time to visit this place would be during the winter season in Hyderabad i.e. from November to January.

What a view?

It looks beautiful right and it also cost a bomb staying here in this beautiful Hotel in Mumbai. The food is superb and the service is impeccable. Well I guess I won’t name the Hotel as then it would be free publicity to them right. It is a breathe of fresh air compared to the maddening chaotic rush with the traffic jams in Mumbai. Well this Hotel is rated five star and it is very close to the Mumbai International Airport. It belongs to the Sheraton group and that’s about all the information that I am giving and if you are from Mumbai I am sure you would have guessed the Hotel’s name by now.

I remember I had my lunch in the city in a Goan restaurant and I had Bombay Duck which I guess is made off salted fish and the stuffing was in a crab shell, boy it was good. On my other trip to this Bollywood capital, I had the local fish curry which instead of using tamarind, they had used some sort of berry to give that sour taste and it was heavenly.

Shopping on a Sunday morning

I parked the car in Town (Kuala Lumpur) and went for a banana leaf lunch at a Chettiar’s mess in Lebuh Ampang before embarking for the shopping trip at Sogo with my wife. The picture taken above was from a bridge behind Jalan Masjid India and you can see the Twin Towers in the background. And below is the snap shot of the shopping complex taken at Jalan Tuanku Abdul Rahman. There was a sale going on and it was like a fish market inside the mall. I guess people were shopping until they drop…..

Temple elephant

This is the real thing unlike the green elephants at Ramoji Studios. This was taken outside the temple in Pondicherry. I think the elephant was kinda cute but I always have the fear of getting close to an elephant as one never knows when they would stomp on you.

Unique looking Church

This photo was taken in Chennai the capital of Tamil Nadu.

This church has really a unique façade and it looks like the “gopuram” of a hindu temple. I was driving through and got my driver to stop so that I can take a snap shot of it.

Sultan Abdul Samad Building

This is a snap shot taken during one of my visits back home for my holidays. I had my relatives from US and they wanted to see Kuala Lumpur and I had the privilege to show them Sultan Abdul Samad Building and “the building has long been a landmark for Malaysia and Kuala Lumpur. Its predominantly Moorish appearance suitably reflects the cultural background of Malaysia”.
The Sultan Abdul Samad building was constructed in 1897 and has long been a landmark for Malaysia and Kuala Lumpur. The unique Moorish-style building has a 41m clock tower, dubbed ‘Big Ben’.
The design of this building was undertaken by a British architect, A.C Norman, who worked for the Public Works Department at that time. In designing this building, he took into consideration some of the features of buildings in several Islamic countries. The predominantly Moorish appearance of the building suitably reflects the cultural background of Malaysia.
The site of this beautiful building was carefully chosen. It is conveniently located at the centre of the old mining town of Kuala Lumpur. It once served as the Colonial Secretariat offices, but now houses the Supreme and High Courts.

Paddy fields

It’s always nice to see a green background and I stopped at the paddy fields at Mahabalipuram, we were from Pondicherry and on the way to the rock-cut and monolithic temple by the seaside. I took the photo of my ex-colleague taking snap shots of the paddy field, little did she realise that I was taking her taking the shots.
Here is what wikipedia has to say about this little South Indian town:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mahabalipuram