Bookshops that used to sell Urdu fiction and poetry in Old city’s Gulzar Houz area in Hyderabad have given way to garment shops and eateries, owners say business has taken a severe hit. Dressed in a spotless white kurta-pajama, Nizamuddin, 57, is a picture of despair as he dusts a few books and arranges them […]
Category: Nizams Of Hyderabad
Is Nizam’s ‘Treasure’ Found Under Telangana Old Secretariat Building Debris?
The demolition of Telangana secretariat buildings had been taken up suddenly and swiftly, till the high court stalled the works on technical grounds. But the entire demolition exercise has been kept a completely non-transparent affair. All the roads in and around the secretariat complex have been sealed and traffic has been diverted. Not a single […]
Quli Qutub Shahi Yore ‘Kos Minar’ Tottering At Kulsumpura In Hyderabad
The ‘Kos’ minar in Kulsumpura changes the geographical concept of the city. This historic Kos Minar at Kulsumpura in Old City of Hyderabad may soon disappear if no conservation measures are taken at the earliest. It is one of the only two surviving Kos Minars of Qutub Shahi era. Encroachments around the Kos Minar have […]
No ‘Haleem’ During Ramzan Month Due To Covid Pandemic In Hyderabad
Casting a gloom over the festive season of Ramzan, Hyderabadis will have to forgo their yearly ritual of relishing the lip-smacking dish of haleem this year, owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Haleem Makers’ Association, an association of haleem making hotels and food joints in Hyderabad, has taken a unanimous decision not to prepare the […]
Historic ‘Khammam Fort’ – A Testimony Of Excellent Craftmenship And Pride Of Past Glory
The captivating forts dotting different parts of the State always stand as a testimony to excellent craftsmanship and remain a proof of the glorious past. Khammam city is one such part, which is embellished with Khammam Fort in Telangana. The fort holds historical significance not just for the Khammam city, but also for the entire […]
Is ‘Puranapul Darwaza’ – A Symbol Of ‘Ganga-Jamuni Culture’ Losing Sheen In Hyderabad?
Hyderabad city is known for many stone walls, which were brought down during the Mughal conquest. There were new ones constructed in their place during the Qutub Shahi rule. Many of these walls were destroyed during the Musi floods in the year 1908 and Puranapul Darwaza is one such wall that had survived. aIt was […]
How Historic Musi River ‘Being Encroached’ In Hyderabad?
Armed with satellite images of the Musi River in Hyderabad over a period of five years between 2014 and 2019, a social activist wrote to the Chief Justice of Telangana Raghavendra Singh Rathore seeking his intervention to save the river from encroachment. Satellite images show how over the course of a few years the dumping […]
Around Charminar ‘Pedestrainisation’ Failed, No Space To Move, Hawkers Troubles Tourists
People from Hyderabad and around the world were made to live on a promise that there would be no difficulty in going around the historic Charminar and its surroundings and they would not be disappointed. After about 20 years of wait it was said that a large part of the Charminar Pedestrianisation Project has been […]
Will ‘Charminar’ Too Get ‘Five Acre’ During ‘Future Of Hindutva’ Claims?
When Muhammed Quli Qutb Shah (1580-1611 CE), the fifth sultan of the Qutb Shahi dynasty of Golconda, laid the foundation of its iconic Charminar to symbolise the founding of Hyderabad. Hyderabad was intended as a citadel of Muslim power in the Deccan. Qutb Shah was an accomplished poet and wrote his poetry in Persian, Telugu […]
Heritage Structure ‘Tipu Khan Sarai’ Or ‘Nampally Sarai’ Collapsed Due To Negligence And Apathy In Hyderabad
A classic case of negligence. 100-year-old heritage structure ’Tipu Khan Sarai’ or ’Nampally Sarai’ collapsed. The Sarai was built by the sixth Nizam, Mir Mahboob Ali Pasha, in 1919 in memory of the First World War treaty. In what seems to be a clear result of government apathy, a portion of a 100-year-old structure, built […]