Suruma Writes On...

                                                                                                                                                                                                                             The Koh-e-Noor diamond was kept here                                                                                                                                                 The rooms inside the palace

What captivated me most throughout the trip to Hyderabad was the Golconda Fort.It has its name from the Telugu words Golla meaning shepherd and Konda meaning hill.It initially served as a grazing area for sheep. The hill was once a territory of the Kakatiyas of Warangal.They constructed a small mud fort in Golconda and handed it over to the Bahmani kingdom in A.D 1363.The fort then came to be known as Mohammednagar.Later in the 16th century,the Qutb Shahi dynasty took control of Golconda and it was the first 3 kings of the dynasty who constructed the fort in a period of 62 years.It then served as the capital.                     Built completely on granite without any foundation,I think it is worth being a world heritage site.Its acoustic properties,water canals and systems and security measures will no doubt take any 21st century man in for a surprise!The entire buildings that includes the the palace had no doors except for the giant door in the Balahisar entry point(main entrance).

 A carriage in display at the Salar Jung Museum       The Salar Jung Museum    Hyderabad railway station in the film city  An inside view of Charminar    A view of the old city from Charminar    The Mecca Masjid      The Charminar in all its grace Views from the Village museum at Shilparamam                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          

Bustling towns,rattling bazaars,flyovers at every other intersection,metros under construction,traffic jams,structures that date back to more than a century,mosques,minarets,temples,lakes,parks and museums.That is what Hyderabad is all about.It seemed to me as though it were a  different world.A completely different atmosphere,yet spell binding.                                 Our one week trip to this city of the Kakatiyas,Yadavas,Mughals and the Nizams turned out to be one of my best experiences.We reached the city by noon on the 14th of April,the day of the Baisakhi festival that is widely celebrated by Sikhs across the world.We were lucky enough to see the sword fighting and other festivities associated with Baisakhi since there had been a Gurudwara adjacent to our hotel.                               On the 15th,we made a trip to the Birla Mandir temple, made of Rajasthani marble, built in the 1970s and the Birla planetarium,which were close neighbours.We also took time off to

We visited the Ramoji Film City,the world's largest film studio,the next day.It indeed was quite large.It had replicas of the Eiffel tower,The Statue of Liberty,Mughal Gardens,Hawa Mahal and much more.We were taken on a bus ride through the entire film city that extends to over 2000 acres.They also hosted shows on how films are made,on the earthquake effect and a play based on action and stunts.Throughout the entire length and breadth of the play there were crackers,bullets and water pouring out at you(if you're in the front row)!The studio also had rides,parks and rain dances to captivate young audiences.It did cost us a lot of time,but I guess it was worth watching.                       It was about 8 in the evening when we returned to the city,and it was our cab driver who suggested to us the idea of visiting Lumbini park and Hussain Sagar artificial lake.We did not spend much time there and headed straight to Hotel Paradise where they said you get the best dum biriyani i

 On the 17th we visited the Nehru zoological park along with Charminar,Hyderabad's identity.The open zoo was really good,one of the best I guess,cuz' it rather looked like a forest then a zoo.We got an autorickshaw to Charminar and were extremely fortunate to have climed the spiral stair case to the first floor of the building constructed in 1591 by Mohammed Quli Qutb Shah,the then ruler to commemorate the end of plague in the kingdom.Although there is a mosque in the second floor,entry was restricted.But what we saw from the first floor was well,not magnificent but had some beauty of its own.You could see the entire Laad bazaars surrounding Charminar and the Mecca masjid believed to have  been built using the soil of Mecca.We also payed a visit to the bazaars which were literally crowded and bustling with vehicles,camels and burqa clad women.You could get almost everything from utensils to bangles,clothes and sandals at really cheap rates.

                       On the day that followed we visited one of my dad's college mates who worked in a hospital in the city.After spending time with her in her O.P room we left for Shilparamam craft village near the hi-tech city. The place had a village museum with statues of village bazaars, craftsmen, blacksmiths,carpenters and others you could get a glimpse of in a village in India.There was bullock cart riding,there "had been" boating trips from what I've understood from the guide maps because now there seems to be hardly enough water to boat!There were also innumerable shops selling clothes,artefacts,bags,accessories,footwear and toys at cheap prices that an average Malayali cannot believe.We had planned to visit General bazaar so as to buy stuff for our family and friends but finally ended up buying everything from Shilparamam.                        But it seems that we've developed this very strange attitude of bargaining by leaps and bounds to such po

Well,that was technically the last day of our trip.We boarded our flight by noon,the next day and we reached Trivandrum by 6 in the evening(the flight travelled via Chennai). When we were flying over Hyderabad and Chennai,all you could see were tall buildings,flats and skyscrapers.But the moment we reached Trivandrum,it seemed as if we were flying over a forest.No tall structures in sight,all green, quite and calm.There is indeed substance when travel guides and sites say that Kerala is worlds away from India's bustle.For me,back to Kerala means leaving memories and experiences and lots of love and friendly people in Hyderabad.But it also means back to peace,freshness,greenery and yes,talking in Malayalam!

I do not exactly know why I was thinking about 3 Idiots.The film conveys the importance of pursuing your dreams besides being a complete Bollywood entertainer.Well,I thought I would blog about that because what the film speaks about, has virtually turned into a dreadful reality.Looks like we're bumping into a doctor or an engineer or an IT professional every other minute(at least in India).Have all the others vanished into thin air?Our singers,photographers ,sportsmen and the likes have been sidelined.Have educated India become so insane as to believe that the medical and the technical professions are the only sane and lucrative ones?                                 Well,it is time we look ahead.The world gives you a myriad of possibilities.You only need to keep your senses alive.Staying safe and out of risks are no more the norms,if that's what you're up to.There's no use staying in one corner of your cabin and boasting that you make a lot of bucks.Because what mat

The kites are a sure treat for your eyes. Spongebobs,Chotta bheem,the cricket world cup logo,birds and butterflies in black,blue,yellow,orange and other colours you can think of with their white satin tails dancing to the whistles and trebles of the breeze.As you walk further on through the dark corridors of the monstrous house built in the 19th century,a young girl clad in a yellow frock standing beside gunmen in brown and black and a boy,drained by the woes of life with an impoverished dog disturbs you.And yes,a pair of legs wearing anklets,garbed in black rags,chained to a corner awaits you inside the cell.Towards the end, a drawing of Kathakali, Jack Sparrow and a young boy in tears all drawn with oil pastels makes you wonder about the innumerable possibilities of art.                          The art exhibition organised by the TINT Academy for Art(where I go for art classes) by 135 Artists here in Trivandrum was one of its kind!Being a volunteer of the show I experience the gr

The sound of the drones and shells and mortars have made the world numb.Indeed numb.We thought they were aberrations..First Palestine then Syria,Iraq and now Yemen.They no more are aberrations.They seem more to be the customary song that every man has to wake up with.There's no use trying to comfort yourself saying that it has happened in some far corner of the world, some far corner that it does not affect you in any manner.The rivalry.the cries of pain and the grievances have no geographical bounds.Then why differ?Why fight in the name of religion?Why make people suffer?Why be the cause of their pain?You may be able to answer the before me.But not before God.Never will you be.Never.....