FALAKNUMA PALACE

The city of Hyderabad is replete with imposing monuments which give a clue to the rich historical background of the land. It also boasts of the magnificent palaces like the Falaknuma palace, the Chowmohalla palace and the Purani Haveli.

Among these, the Falaknuma palace is a remarkable edifice which stands atop a 200 feet high hillock. It is located 5 kms from Charminar. Built by Nawab Vikar-Ul-Ulmara, the Prime Minister of Hyderabad, it is a stupendous palace and connotes the "heavenly abode". Observed from a distance, it appears to be floating among the clouds.

It is believed that the Falaknuma palace was gifted to the sixth Nizam of Hyderabad, Mehboob Ali Khan by the generous Nawab. The palace was constructed over a period of seven years and it covers a total area of 9,39,712 square meters.

A majestic testimony to the glory of the Nizams, it has often been referred to as the 'Mirror of the Sky'. The palace was designed by a Italian architect and follows a western architectural style. The Stables, Guesthouse, Garages, Gateways and associated structures complement each other. The interiors of the main building have an Italian marble staircase supporting marble figures and lined with portraits of British Governor Generals. The complex consists of a number of notable buildings apart from the Main Palace.

An extension was constructed by the Nizam to house the unique collection of artefacts acquired during his visit to the capital at the Delhi Darbar. Although in an architectural style distinctly vernacular, it does not clash with the pure Classical European lines of the earlier building but blends in harmoniously.

The palace is laid out in the shape of a scorpion with two stings spread out as wings on the north. The middle part is occupied by the main building and the kitchen and harem quarters stretch to the south. The Nawab being an avid traveller, various influences show on the palace architecture. The Falaknuma palace is a rare blend of Italian and Tudor architecture. Its glass stained windows throw a spectrum of colors into the rooms.

The palace also houses an exciting collection of rare treasures - paintings, statues, furniture, manuscripts and books collected by the Nizam from countries round the globe. The Jade as well as the crystal and gems collection of the Palace worth crores of rupees is considered to be unique in the world. The palace also has a library with a walnut carved roof, a replica of the one at Windsor Castle. The library had one of the finest collections of the holy Quran in India.

The Falaknuma palace has other unique things to its credit. It includes the largest Venetian chandeliers. It is said that it took six months to clean a 138-arm Osler chandelier and the palace has 40 such chandeliers adorning the halls ! The famed dining hall of the palace could seat 100 guests on a single table. The furniture is also very aesthetic. The chairs are carved rosewood with green leather upholstery. The tableware was made of gold and crystal to which fluted music was added.

The telephone and electrical system was introduced in 1883 by Osler and the palace has one of the largest electrical switchboards in India.

The ground floor of the palace houses the living quarters. The marbled staircase leads to the upper floor. It has carved balustrades which supports marble figures with candelabra at intervals. The ceiling of the reception room in the upper floor is carved with frescoes bordered with gilded relief. This floor offers a panoramic view of the city.

The ballroom contains a two-ton manually operated organ said to be the only one of its kind in the world. This apart the palace has as many as 220 lavishly decorated rooms and 22 spacious halls. The palace has some of the finest treasures collected by the Nizam.

In spite of being a modern and architecturally superior building in comparison to the other palaces of the Nizams, Falaknuma was hardly ever lived in. The brief stay of Sir Viqar and the Nizam apart, it was otherwise mainly used as a Guesthouse for visiting dignitaries and nobility.
However, the palace has proved to be fatal to those who have resided there for a long period. The scorpion-like structure is believed to be the cause of all deaths.

Prior permission is required to visit this palace. And a visit to the Falaknuma palace is an awe-inspiring experience!

I have 7 days more in Hyd... but i've still not been to the Falaknuma... if anyone has any clue as to how can i get permission to visit this place... then plz help.

The Chowmahalla & the Ustad....

It all seemed like a dream! An evening...even the Gods had no choice but to bless!

The awe inspiring venue...The Chowmahalla Palace.. beautifully restored... fountains danced, chandeliers glittered... and the musicians........

A moonlit evening sky, the surreal beauty of Chowmahalla Palace, s o o t h i n g strains of sarod flowing with the cool breeze, left the jam packed audience at the palace lawns spell bound. And why not when you have sarod maestro Ustad Amjad Ali Khan and his sons Amaan and Ayaan playing the magical sarod, there isn’t much the audience can do except close their eyes and lose themselves in the beautiful evening. The Ustad led the way, while the sons followed.

What made the evening special was the fact that every note was given time to settle in. So the programme that began at 7.45 pm went on for a good three hours. While the Ustad played like the master that he is, the young men weren’t far behind. Tabla players Shubhendu Banerjee and Sandeep Das matched every note with finesse. The evening ended with a jugalbandi, one that left Hyderabadis with lingering memories.

Oh.... by the way.. the Chowmahalla Palace is open to visitors from 10 am to 5 pm everyday (except Fridays!) I do intend to go there.. so watch out for the pictures!

Sonu Nigam non stop for 2 hrs!

If Sundays are meant to be lazy, Sonu Niigaam made sure this one wasn’t, not for Hyderabad. While the audience seemed restless at the wait, one note of the singer’s voice was enough to cool them down. Even before the man reached the stage, his voice did. As soon as ‘Kal Ho Na Ho’ began so did the ‘oos.’ With an eye on the audience’s pulse, the curly haired singer made sure he instantly delivered what the audience wanted. A breezy night, good music and a great voice...Hyderabadis were only asking for more.

So if he began with a sultry number like ‘Jal Jal Ke Dhuan Ho Rahe Hum’, he made sure the next song had loads of masti. ‘Chuk, De Chuk De’ from ‘Hum Tum’ set a peppy mood in place. While his popular ‘Mere Hath Mein’ from ‘Fanaa’ made sure the women went weak-kneed, Sonu also made sure there was a number like ‘Pyar De Kar Le Karar Soniye’ from ‘Mujhse Shadi Karogi’ that the guys couldn’t stop jumping about.

And it wasn’t long before the audience joined the singer. So if he sang, ‘Kajra Ne Leli Meri Jaan’, the audience echoed back ‘Hai Re Main Teri Qurban’. If he made sure youngsters enjoyed the bhangra beats, there was also the soft number like ‘Sathiya,’ for others.

While the singer constantly complemented the audience on their ‘josh’, they made sure they answered back with loud applause. While some swung their arms in the air, others decided to hum along with the singer. A pulsating performance it was. And if was going desi all the while, he made a surprise twist with Bee Gees ‘Staying Alive’. Of course Bollywood ruled, so did the crown prince of Bollywood, late into the night.

Article: Times of India, Hyderabad. Monday, 2 April 2007.

The Nizam's Jewels!

We were at the Salar Jung Museum a week back! It's the single largest "one man" collection, from around the world. If this one man had not chosen to remain a bachelor the world would have been bereft of one of the greatest collection of antiques. These art objects were collected by Yusuf Ali Salar Jung, the Prime minister to the Nizam. Though Salar Jung III is credited with this fantastic collections, it all started with his father and grandfather ....


Star Attraction of the trip????


The Nizam's Jewels!!!!!!!!!!!!

An unbelievable exhibition showcasing some of the biggest and the most precious jewels I (or for that matter u!) would see in this lifetime!

The Imperial Diamond (Jacob)

Discovered in the 19th century, Jacob, also called as the Imperial Diamond weighs 184.5 carats and has 58 facets. It was sold to the Nizam of Hydrabad in Rs 46,00,000 in 1891 by Alexander Malcolm Jacob.

Emeralds

The Nizam’s collection has 22 emeralds of different sizes. Most of them are octagonal with few rectangular cut. Total weight of the collection goes to 413.5 carats.

http://www.eastbeads.com/galleryofnizam.asp

It was wonderful to see the treasures displayed: The sarpech and kalghi ornaments meant for the turban, made up of dazzling diamonds and rubies and pendant emeralds; the multi-stringed necklaces strung with pearls of lustrous hue; ruby-and-emerald-and-gold bracelets; diamond-studded paizeb-anklets; sarpattis and finger-rings and bazubands; even the fabled Jacob Diamond of 184.5 carats which, according to legend, the late Nizam used to keep on his work-table as a paper weight.

There was a fairly expensive entry ticket, but this did not keep anyone from coming. In fact, so large has been the visitorship that tickets had to be issued for specific timings, and all that a visitor was allowed to spend in the gallery was something like half an hour. It is clear that it was not any kind of connoisseurship but the sheer glamour of the collection, the thrall in which jewellery holds most of us Indians in any case, which was bringing the crowds in. One could see whole families in awed silence, in that darkened and discreetly-lit gallery, moving starry-eyed from showcase to showcase, pointing things out to one another, stopping sometimes to read a label, sometimes to gaze at the mystifying finger-ring whose alexanderite stone naturally changes colour as the light around it changes.

Attention: This exhibiton has moved to Delhi and is currently housed at the National Museum! Its most definitely worth every paise! Do not miss it!!!!

Its been 3 weeks since I came here....

Well... I came here on the 27th of Feb for my summer internship.... I've been pleasantly surprised all the way!!!!

Hyderabd truly represents India... a melange of the old and the new! On one side u see the Charminar, the Nizam's palaces (i really want to get into one..... someone plz help me!)... on the other side are the ultra modern buildings in Hi-Tec City & Gachibowli!!!!

All in all its a beautiful place... looking forward to exploring it!