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| Bright red on a grey morn |
We just decided to go for the Heritage Walk (Charminar to
Chowmahalla) and didn’t much dwell on what to expect. Raes our interpreter for the walk came in
casually and right on time. Till the second before she started addressing the
group one wouldn’t be able to figure out that she was going to lead us through
the day.
She started by giving us a brief history to the city, its
rulers and how the different settlements came up. I’m not a history buff, but
am a fairly enthusiastic audience to a good story teller. Raes was good with
that, telling stories and telling them without assuming a stature that would
become greater than the story itself.She started from the Kakatiya rulers and came upto the last
Nizam in a fairly lucid narrative in which, one could see the Golconda grow
from a mud fortress to the giant it is currently. Feel the growth of the walled
city area and much more.
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| Aflutter on the clock tower |
A little after the clock tower we
came across a large poultry market and we turned a corner and found ourselves
confronted by a bird bazaar of a different kind. Pigeons , drongos , common
crows and jungle crows were a few I recall. Of course I was blinded by the psychedelic
colours that some chicks were dyed in. As each person turned the corner we
heard muttered exclamations or expletives in a few cases. There was not much to
be said and thankfully no one attempted to either. We moved on with uneasy
minds.
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| One of the views from Charminar |
Its history and while we ignore its debris and half standing structures, it does occasionally assert itself. While I walked down a few lanes between Charminar and Chowmahalla, Raes kept stopping at non-descript points to speak with the group I’d throw a casual look around and wonder what she was going talk about. In one spot she pointed out to the crescent moon and star on a building which was left as is and a symbol of Vishnu close to it. The Vishnu symbol had been put up later by new inhabitants without destroying what existed. She says the hoopla absout the tense atmosphere was created politically and day to day lives of the two communities in the region was peaceful.
I was reminded of Sushilama a lady who comes to help us in
the house. Last August she told us that her companion needed a couple of days off as it was “Rakhi ki Eid” and later in the year that she would need time off as
it was “Christmas ki Eid”. It was priceless. Then again I’m nagged by reminders of
uncles in shorts and a vests telling me that the house would be let out to
Brahmins only or rude enquiries from others on our food habits (veg or never
mind).
I enjoyed the walk and the overall quite reflective feel that washed over me. Wondered how the years, rulers and influences have layered this city and so
many others. The wooden balconies, arches, domes and different motifs which to
me are just ignorantly “historical” but hold in themselves such insights into times that
shaped us. I look forward to many more walks, accompanied and otherwise and pray that the summer sun shows some mercy to this restless soul.
The 2 tourism police personnel who accompanied us during the
walk were very warm and pleasant. Overall a big thumbs up to APTDC.
