HYDERABAD- THE CITY OF PEARLS



Charminar in Hyderabad

HYDERABAD-THE CITY OF PEARLS

 The team include Prof. John Kurakar, Manu Kurakar, Mr K.P Joseph, Mr Krishna Prasad, Mr Aravind Prasad,Sujith Rajan Thomas. The team visited ACE Academy and other historical important places. The team also participated the inaugural ceremony of the "Saraswati" pearl's & Jewellery on 10th July,2011.  Hyderabad is the capital of the state Andra Pradesh. It also goes by its sobriquet City of Pearls As of 2010 it is the  sixth most populous city Hyderabad was founded by Muhammad Quli Qutb Shaw in 1591 on the banks of Musi  Today the city covers an area of approximately 650 km. The twin cities of Hyderabad and Seconderabad come under the ambit of a single municipal unit.Kurakar Cultural Forum visited Hyderabad and Seconderabad on 7th July,2011 to10th July.

Hyderabad has developed into one of the major hubs for the information technology industry in India which has earned it the additional sobriquet "Cyber bad". In addition to the industry, various biotechnology and pharmaceutics companies have set up their operation in Hyderabad owing to its established Public sector in Life Science Research end Game Valley. The city houses the most expensive residential real estate in Andhra Pradesh in  Banjara Hills and Jubilee Hills. The city is home to the Telugu Film Industry, which is among the largest in India, known popularly as Toll wood Residents of Hyderabad are generally called Hyderabadis. Located at the crossroads of North and South India, Hyderabad has developed a unique culture that is reflected in its language and architecture.

Hyderabad has done quite well for itself in the past 430 years. While Golconda lies as a magnificent ruin, Andhra Pradesh's capital towers over the Deccan, proclaiming its vitality and zest for life. Hyderabad has overcome wars, invasions and disease, emerging stronger from each trial. Today, as it faces another test, it seems to be charming its hot-blooded claimants into submission. As the Telangana agitation reaches a crucial phase, Hyderabad is back in the spotlight. The proponents of Telangana, where Hyderabad is located, say the city should be the capital of a new state that they hope will be carved out of Andhra Pradesh. For the people of the rest of Andhra Pradesh, there is deep unease. They have huge stakes in the form of emotional, cultural and financial investments in the city. But as the agitation has ebbed and flowed, the debate about the fate of Hyderabad has transformed too. Where once there was passionate rage and possessiveness there is now a more sanguine, inclusive mood. "Hyderabad has accepted different cultures. People from the coastal region have migrated here and contributed to the development of the city just as people from other parts of the country

The Charminar in Hyderabad was constructed in 1591 by Mohammed Quli Qutab Shah. He built the Charminar to mark the end of plague in the Hyderabad city. Since the construction of the Charminar, the Hyderabad city has almost become synonymous with the monument. The Charminar is a massive and impressive structure with four minarets. In the evening, with illumination, the great Charminar looks even greater. With the passage of time the Charminar occupied so much importance that it became the heart of all bustling activities. It is in the bustling bazaars around the Charminar that you find the traditional nahari stalls and kulchas of Hyderabad. Hyderabad is one of those few cities, which have a fine blend of modernity and tradition.

The Charminar has four imposing arches, which face the four main directions. A row of small vaulted niches ornament each of the four arches. The Char Minar is a two-storied building with the first floor being covered. The balconies on this floor provide a great view of the surrounding areas. A small mosque adorns the top floor of the Charminar. This mosque is situated on the western side of the Charminar facing Mecca, the holy city of the Muslims. This mosque is said to be the oldest surviving mosque in Hyderabad city. Charminar, the hub of Hyderabad city, has four wide roads going in each direction. The Charminar is square in shape, each side measuring 100 feet, with a central pointed high arch at the center.

The four minarets of the Charminar dominate the landscape of the region. The minarets, their domed finials rising from their lotus-leaves cushion, rise to 180 feet from the ground. The whole structure contains various small and ornamental arches arranged in vertical and horizontal fashion. The cornice on the first floor upholds a series of six arches and capitals on each portico, rising to the double-story gallery of the minarets. The projected canopy, decorative brackets and decoration in stucco plaster add graceful elegance to the Charminar. On the upper courtyard, a screen of arches topped by a row of square jalis or water screens provides a delicate charm to the muscular look of the Charminar.

Hyderabad public park

       Sultan Muhammad Quli Qutb Shahthe, 5th ruler of the  Qutb Shahi dynasty built Charminar in 1591 AD shortly after he had shifted his capital from Golkonda to what is now known as Hyderabad.He built this famous structure to commemorate the elimination of a plague epidemic from this city. He is said to have prayed for the end of a plague that was ravaging his city and vowed to build a  masjid (Islamic mosque) at the very place where he was praying. In 1591 while laying the foundation of Charminar, Quli Qutb shah prayed: "Oh Allah, bestow unto this city peace and prosperity. Let millions of men of all castes, creeds and religions make it their abode, like fish in the water." Charminar was given to a contractor by the name of Sanamvenkata Balaya to construct it and today one can see the city as evidence of the prayer being answered. The  Mosque became popularly known as Charminar The structure is made of granite, limestone, mortar and pulverised marble. Initially the monument with its four arches was so proportionately planned that when the fort was opened one could catch a glimpse of the bustling Hyderabad city as these Charminar arches were facing the most active royal ancestral streets. There is also a legend of an underground tunnel connecting the Golkonda to Charminar, possibly intended as an escape route for the QutbShahi rulers in case of a siege, though the exact location of the tunnel is unknown



Hyderabad "Pearls' Jewellery owner Subhash Sharma



    The Charminar is a square edifice each side with 20 meters, with four grand arches each facing a cardinal point that open into four streets. At each corner stands an exquisitely shaped minaret, 56 meters high with a double balcony. Each minaret is crowned by a bulbous dome with dainty petal like designs at the base. A beautiful mosque is located at the western end of the open roof and the remaining part of the roof served as a court during the Qutb Shahi times. There are 149 winding steps to reach the upper floor. Once atop, the solitude and serenity of the beautiful interior is refreshing. The space in the upper floor between the minarets was meant for Friday prayers. There are forty-five prayer spaces.

Charminar has the signature style of Islamic architecture This great tribute to aesthetics looks sturdy and solid from a distance but as one moves closer, it emerges as an elegant and romantic edifice proclaiming its architectural eminence in all its detail and dignity. Charminar looks equally spectacular at night when it is illuminated. Apart from being the core of the city’s cultural milieu, it has become a brand name.



Manu Kurakar,Sujith,Aravind,Krishna Prasad



Charminar is a beautiful and impressive square monument. Each side measures 20 m, and each of the corners has a tall, pointed minaret. These four gracefully carved minarets soar to a height of 48.7 m above the ground, commanding the landscape for miles around. Each minaret has four stories, marked by a delicately carved ring around the minaret. Unlike the  Taj Mahal Charminar's four fluted minarets are built into the main structure. Inside the minarets 149 winding steps guide the visitor to the top floor, the highest point one can reach, which provides a panoramic view of the city The actual mosque occupies the top floor of the four-storey structure. Madame Blavatsky reports that each of the floors was meant for a separate branch of learning - before the structure was transformed by the Imperial British administration into a warehouse for opium and liqueur A vault that appears from inside like a dome, supports two galleries within the Charminar, one over another, and above those a terrace that serves as a roof, bordered with a stone balcony. The main gallery has 45 covered prayer spaces with a large open space in front to accommodate more people for Friday prayers.

It is said that, during the Mughal Governorship between Qutb Shahi and Asaf Jahi rule, the south western minaret "fell to pieces" after being struck by lightning, but "was forthwith repaired" at a cost of Rs 60,000. In 1824, the monument was replastered at a cost of Rs 100,000.



"Saraswati" the pearl & Jewellery- newly opened shop



The monument overlooks another beautiful and grand mosque called Makkah Masjid The area surrounding Charminar is also known by same name. A thriving market still lies around the Charminar, attracting people and merchandise of every description. In its heyday, the Charminar market had some 14,000 shops, today the famous markets known as Laad Baazar and Pather Gatti, near the Charminar, are a favour,the of both tourists and locals alike for jewellery, especially known for exquisite bangles and pearls respectively. In 2007, Hyderabadi Muslims living in Pakistan constructed a small scaled quasi-replica of the Charminar at the main crossing of the Bahadurabad neighbourhood in Karachi. 

                                                                                                                                                         Prof. John Kurakar