Andhra Pradesh
Once upon a time there was a State called Hyderabad, Indias most magnificent kingdom, a land from the Kohinoor
diamond was mined, and whose fabulous wealth was legendary.
Charles Allen in his
book, Lives of the Indian Princes quotes V.K. Reddy, whose
family was closely linked with the Nizam, thus about its exalted
ruler: He had a chip on his shoulder and rightly so I think.
When you are controlling a country the size of France with a
population of fifteen million and you are the riches man in the world
then who the hell is the Viceroy? The Nizam didnt need
anything from the British and as a faithful ally of the
British government he believed he should deal directly with the king.
There was a British Resident in Hyderabad who represented the
British, but he was so rude to the Resident that they rarely saw
him
Historically, power in
the Deccan moved from its earliest Hindu ruler to the Chalukyas
followed by the Cholas, and finally to the hands of the Mughal
Generals under Emperor Aurangzeb. The death of the Emperor in Delhi
in 1707 created a power vacuum, and so the last General simply had
himself proclaimed the ruler of the Deccan. Comments Charles Allen:
Communications were bad in those days and rather than go back
to Delhi and report to Aurangzebs successors this gentleman
stayed on with his little army.
But that was before
independence, long before it. In fact, when the merging of States
under Mountbattens vice regency started, Hyderabad gave the
British and the Indian leaders a difficult time, vacillating not
about freedom for itself but because of the Nizams tilt towards
Jinnahs promised land. In Highness, Ann Morrow writes:
No amount of clubby
blustering or flattery persuade the Nizam of Hyderabad to accede.
Not only was he the riches man in the world, he was the Moslem ruler
of the largest state in the world, he was the Moslem ruler of the
largest state in India
The Nizam had the money and the wisdom to
employ the finest legal brains
One of the Viceregal tem was sent
to Hyderabad in a last attempt to persuade the Nizam to accede
The
most telling moment was when the Nizam said, Young man, there
is no one to whom I have to pay courtesies
(Sardar) Patel
was determined that there would be no question of Hyderabads
being a dissident State or acceding to Pakistan but, in the end, it
was force and not persuasion which hurled this final apple into his
basket.
The erstwhile Hyderabad
State, and bits of Tamil Nadu, went to form the provincial State of
Andhra Pradesh. Today the Nizams heir and successor has made
his home in Australia, his marriages the stuff of newspaper
headlines, but the ancestor who signed the Instrument of Accession,
the last Nizam who held in his hand the power of life and death, was
delightfully eccentric. Charles Allen says:
During its last
four decades of existence Hyderabad possessed a ruler in Nizam Osman
Ali Pasha who was as much of an enigma the world, with more than 400
Arabs of coinage in his coffers (about 30 million Pounds),
jewellery estimated to be worth at least as much again, roms full of
gold bullion and land that brought in 35 crores of rupees annually.
Yet he was always slouching around in a very dirty pair of old
shoes and dirty pyjamas and wearing a rumi topi (fez) which always
had an inch of grease around the bottom. He chain-smoked local
Golconda cigarettes and he really didnt care about his
appearance. But to describe him simply as a miser was to do
human injustice, argues V.K. Reddy. Osman Ali Pasha was a
poet, a philosopher and an eccentric. At the same time he was a
shrewd judge of men and a very capable administrator.
He spoke abruptly, but
that was his manner, for by nature he was a very kind man and a
tolerant one
And so too is Andhra
Pradesh, so reminiscent of the kingdom from which it is carved, so
much a part of its last rulers diverse, often mystifying,
personality. Andhra Pradesh, redolent with spices, identified with
pearls, represented by the flavour of a cuisine. A State where the
past never quite made way for the present. And yet, a region where
celluloid fantasy Kakinada on the coast is supposed to have had, in
the heydays of cinema, the countrys larges number of cinema
halls-rules the roost, oblivious of its historic and cultural past.
That too is Andhra: a land where the everyday and the fantastic
co-exist to rub shoulders without the one out of place with the
other.
The state offers a wide
spectrum of cuisines, cultures, religions and traditions, and as one
travels through it, the landscape unfurls a bewildering variety of
terrain. From the dense forests in the north, near the Bay of
Bengal, to the Deccan plateau towards the south, and along a
coastline dotted with port cities, the Andhra countryside differs
from that of other states. Two important rives, the Krishna and the
Godavari, flow through it fertile-though often rocky-soil towards the
sea.
The weather is warm and
humid throughout the year, with only slight variations in temperature
along the coastline coconut palms flourish (the sea and the coconut
unite in its cuisine too), as do mango groves. However, what it
makes up for in natural wealth, it loses in mineral wealth, for the
State has few resources, and so has enjoyed relatively limited
industrial development. Quite resourcefully, however, a large
population is employed in the states cottage and handloom
industries. Andhra Pradesh is also home to the Lambada gypsies, to
the classical Kuchipudi dance, to the coveted Pochampalli saree
Hyderabad, once the
Nizams capital, still remains its premier position as the first
city of the new State. While its Banjara Hills form pockets for
contemporary lifestyles best evinced in the extraordinary
architecture, its antecedents date to the sixteenth century. It was
built by Sultan Muhammad Kuli in 1589, when he was forced to abandon
his earlier capital, Golconda, due to an acute scarcity of water.
Since that early date, Hyderabad has been a centre of Muslim culture
and learning.
Situated along the banks
of the river Musi, and with a strong tradition of Persian
architecture, the city is laid out in clean lines in the shape of a
tropezoid. Pathargatty, a broad street, divides the city from north
to south (Afzal Gate to Aliabad Gate). And situated at an important
crossroads, a symbol for the city, is Charminar, a four-ached
monumental gate around which Hyderabad pulses with the radiant energy
of one of the countrys most important cities.
Charminar, literally Four
Minarets, has sometimes been referred to as the Arc de Triomphe of
the East, and not without reason. Its central structure soars to a
height of 180 feet; four minarets grace its four corners. Around the
Minar, the old bazaar throbs the way it did when it was first laid in
1591, with hectic trading in pearls, lac and glass bangles, textiles,
and in other accessories fit for a bride. Close to Charminar is
Mecca Masjid; to its south lies the private palace of the Nizam.
Among Hyderabads
more recent buildings is the Falaknuma Palace. Built in the grand
oriental style, and rarely open to visitors (it was recently
renovated for a tourism festival), its interiors are spectacular, and
its chandeliers among the countrys best. The Salarjung
slightly eccentric collection, the doing of one man with a full
wallet in his pocket and the sometimes not-too-discerning taste who
collected fads rather than taste. However, some of the objects dart
in the museum are rare pieces, and would rank as international
tresures.
And there is so much to
interest oneself with in Hyderabad: fine restaurants, a visit to
osmania University with its blend of Hindu and Muslim architectural
styles, and the more recent of the citys acquisitions in the
shape of a temple and a planetarium.
But before there was
Hyderabad, the Deccan was ruled from Golconda. Just outside the city
rise the forbidding ramparts of one of Indias bloodiest forts,
and close by, tellingly, the tombs of the Qutab Shahi kings. The
fort itself sprawls over a complete hillside, its bastions
impregnable even centuries after having fallen into disuse.
Golconds, to most Indians, is synonymous with diamond mines, and the
countrys, and some of mankinds, finest diamonds were
found here, but it was once the strong capital of the Qutab Shahi
kings. History says Goldconds fort never fell to an enemys
onslaught, not till Emperor Aurangzeb took it by deceit, that is.
Thereafter, Golcondas, and Hyderabads, fortunes were
linked with the Mughals in Delhi and Agra. The graves of the Qutab
Shahi kings are surrounded by well-laid, beautiful gardens. Some of
these have their own mosques or minarets adorning their sides.
Some 82 kilometres from
Hyderabad is another ancient fort, that of Bidar. Though technically
in the provincial state of Karnataka, it was traditionally a part of
Hyderabad State, and it has gone on to give Andhra Pradesh one of
its most important cottage industries, that of bidriware, or
the inlaying of silver into objects of jet (an alloy of lead and
zinc).
After the capital its
time to explore the state and visit its smaller towns. If one
were to begin from the east, the travellers first voyage would
be in the direction of Waltair. With its sylvan, wooded
surroundings, Waltair has a perfect beach and enjoys a pleasant
climate, making it particularly salubrious during the winters.
Moving south from here,
one arrives at Visakhapatnam, an important port and with a lovely
beach. A centre for the ship-building industry, and for
oil-refining, the region has vast stretches of undiscovered beaches.
A city with a thriving business community, it is now becoming popular
as a holiday resort, facilitated by the arrival of hotels which also
offer leisure facilities (and some exciting dining options!)
Another off beat beach
city is that of Masulipatnam, located at the mouth of the river
Krishna. An ancient historic centre on account of its location, this
rarely-visited beach town is the centre of kalamkari painting on
fabric.
Before reaching
Vijayawada one has to cross the mighty River Godavari at rajamundhry.
The bridge over the Godavari is almost two miles long, making it the
second largest in India. A centre of pilgrimage for Hindus,
Rajamundhry has an unusual cottage industry, that of hand-made and
crocheted lace.
Vijayawada is an
important commercial town, a premier city after Hyderabad, and is the
base for a thriving trading community. Though industrialized, one of
its more exciting industries is that of toy-making in light wood, and
these make excellent souvenirs too. Well worth visiting is the
Victoria Museum which houses, among other rarities, a colossal statue
of the Buddha in granite, found in the nearby hills.
West of Vijayawada lie
two ancient centres of Deccan culture, Amravati and Nagarjunakonda.
Amravati is situated on the right bank of the Krishna, once the
capital of an ancient kingdom. Buddhism flourished here as is
evident from the well preserved ruins of Buddhist relics found in the
countryside. A Hindu temple here which dates back in time to the
hoary past, attracts pilgrims in the thousands, while lovers of
archaeology flock to the remains of a Buddhist stupa located to the
north, on the same bank of the river, but located in the twin city of
Nagarjunakonda. The strong influence Buddhism cast here is evident
in the plethora of ruins of monasteries and stupas, and even a
university, clearly identifying it as a seat of learning. Today, a
temple of another kind, as Jawaharlal Nehru would have
called it, is located near this historic site: this is Nagarjunasagar
Dam that irrigates the dry, parched lands of the State in the
sizzling summer months.
Every Indian knows of
Tirupathi, and it is the wish of every Hindu to cross the threshold
of this temple-town at least once in his lifetime. Situated towards
the extreme south of the State, and located at the base of the
Tirumala Hills this ancient temple is dedicated to Venkateshwara, the
Lord of the Seven Hills. One of the countrys richest shrines,
from barons and tycoons to the poor leave behind offerings that fill
its coffers. A trust looks into its management and administrative
affairs, and this is no easy task for thousands pour into this temple
town every day. Many have their locks shorn off as an act of piety.
The fervour that Tirupathi evokes in people has spun off a strong
industry of its own: posters of the Lord, or calendars with his
image, souvenirs, hymns sung before him
Legend has woven in the
countryside into the myths associated with his incense-laden
presence. The seven hills of Tirumala, for example, are the seven
coils of the immortal serpent Adishesa on whom the Lord rests.
Talking of temples,
another interesting one worth exploring is the Thousand-Pillared
temple in Warangal. Though it has far less than the thousand pillars
that give it its name (this was a popular name for many pillared
temples in the medieval ages), this 12th century temple
has rich carvings on its walls and is dedicated to Lord Shiva. Here,
Shivas mount, the bull Nandi, is carved in black basalt.
Warangal, where we started our exploration of the State, lies beyond
the oft-beaten track, its visitors usually those with a strong
interest in archaeology. For Warangal was an industrial town way
back when the Kaketya kings held sway over the land.Today their
double-walled fort lies in splendid ruins, the sculptures have eroded
with time, but the past lives on.
For, as in much of Andhra
Pradesh, the past and the present jostle in the same lanes, each
matched step for step as they march towards a confident future.
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