Last month, I visited Hyderabad. I stayed overnight in Secunderabad. My impressions of the city and a memorable visit to the Salar Jung museum are described below. Since today is Independence Day, writing about the history and culture associated with the museum is particularly apt, I feel !
I landed in Hyderabad at 9:20 a.m. The Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Shamshabad is about 38 k.m. away from the hotel I stayed, which was in Secunderabad. My first thought was that just like Bengaluru, the approach to the airport looks classy compared to the rest of the city ! The taxi driver took the P. V. Narasimha Rao expressway. In Bengaluru, the Hosur Road expressway is 10 k.m. long, which has made reaching Electronic City a lot simpler. The Narasimha Rao expressway is 11.6 k.m. long according to http://www.businessinsider.in/be-it-intracity-orinter-city-these-5-expressways-make-travelling-a-breeze/PV-Narasimha-Rao-Elevated-Expressway-Hyderabad-Andhra-Pradesh/slideshow/30984915.cms. To me, the curving road felt longer, which may be because I was new to the city.
The main roads in Hyderabad appear to be wider compared to Bengaluru, based on my one day stay. Traffic was heavy in the morning.
I passed the Husain Sagar lake on my way to the hotel. The lake covers 5.7 sq. k.m. and looks huge. From my hotel room, I could see the Indian tri-colour flutter in the lake. Watching the flag flutter from the window on the fifth floor, I felt that it moved in slow motion. This may have been because of the distance of the hotel from the lake. Still, it was a curious observation.
In the night, I went for a small walk around the hotel. It was drizzling. The roads were water logged. The city looked like any other Indian city, with the usual traffic and people.
The next morning, I checked out of the hotel at 11 a.m. and went to the Salar Jung museum for a visit. My plan was to spend time until lunch time at the museum. http://www.salarjungmuseum.in/html/history.html is the website of the museum. I reached the museum at around 11:40 a.m. I kept my back pack in the cloak room and entered. Minutes after I entered, a heavy downpour started.
The museum was the palace of the Salar Jungs. http://www.salarjungmuseum.in/html/galleries.html# shows the plan of the museum, which is also put up near the lobby. Despite the map, simply because of the size of the rooms and galleries, one can easily lose one's bearings, particularly in the first floor. I could see one gentleman in the first floor asking the security man how to reach the staircase to go down ! I followed the numbers on the entrances of the rooms.
I am interested in history, but my knowledge of Hyderabad was meager. I knew that it was Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel who ensured that Hyderabad became a part of India, though the Nizam of Hyderabad wanted otherwise. I recalled that the Nizam's forces the Razakars unleashed a reign of terror, which was countered by the "Police Action". This was the extent of my knowledge of Hyderabad's history.
A thought struck me : Was Salar Jung III, the ruler who collected the artifacts in the museum this same Nizam who was so cruel? It was a strange contradiction, if so. After returning back home, I read more about Hyderabad. http://www.thehindu.com/books/how-the-nizam-lost-hyderabad-in-1948/article3765710.ece reveals the thinking of Qasim Rizvi and the rise of the Razakars. It was Rizvi who was responsible for the atrocities perpetrated by the Razakars.
The dark side of this history is the way in which retribution was exacted by the affected people after the police action. This Times of India blog by Swaminathan Anklesaraia Aiyar in 2012 suggests that thousands of people were killed : http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Swaminomics/declassify-report-on-the-1948-hyderabad-massacre/. The exact number of people may be debatable, but one needs to be aware that excesses lead to further excesses. Unfortunately in the world over, this is a lesson that we have yet to learn and apply. On Independence Day, I feel that this is one major lesson worth emphasising.
Returning to the Salar Jung dynasty, this dynasty and the the Nizams were different people. The Salar Jungs were a noble family. It was primarily Salar Jung II and Salar Jung III who collected most of the art objects in the museum. In a way, that was comforting to me. Having seen the variety of art collections in the museum, it would have surprised me how such a man (or such a family) could become so cruel and intolerant towards his (or their) own people later. On the other hand, I suppose that there are rulers in the world do who show the trait of being connoisseurs of arts but who could also be extremely ruthless when it came to battle and conquest and subjugation of their own people: the case in point being the French rulers in the 18th century !
The museum has a collection that all Indians should be proud of. In fact, I will extend that statement further and say that it is something that all humanity can be proud of. There are paintings, sculpture, porcelain work and other works of art from different places in the world that engrossed me. I spent more than an hour in the rooms in the ground floor.
As I finished viewing the galleries in the ground floor, I recognised that I would have to hurry to complete my visit to the museum. My original plan was to search for a restaurant nearby, eat lunch by 2:30 p.m. and leave for the airport at 3:00 p.m. so that I could catch the flight back home at 5:20 p.m. After completing the ground floor, I realised that I would not be able to leave and search for a hotel given the lesser amount of time at my disposal. I decided to eat lunch in the canteen in the museum itself.
I read what I have written until now and see that I have not yet written of the works of art that made me write this blog ! For example, I saw superb bronze statues of Hindu deities. The web page http://www.salarjungmuseum.in/html/galleries.html has some information about the collection.
The statue "Veiled Rebecca" is undoubtedly a highlight of the museum. The web page http://www.salarjungmuseum.in/images/statuebig.jpg has both a photograph and a write-up about the statue. It was the write-up that stimulated my interest in the statue. Carved by Giovanni Maria Benzoni, I coould almost sense the light material of the dress that Rebecca adorns. Her pose and her trepidation on meeting her prospective husband are indicated by her right arm. The statue is amazing art ! The good part is the way in which this work of art has been placed in the museum. There is a glass case and mirrors all around it so that one view the statue from all angles.
In the Indian section, the collection of bronzes and paintings captivated me. I could not look at all the Mughal miniature paintings due to inadequate time. However what I saw already made me marvel at the artists who created these works of arts. One statue of Hanuman in the Anjali mudra interested me in particular. If I fold my hands in a prayer (the Anjali mudra), apart from the thumb I see four fingers. Zooming into this statue, one can see that Hanuman is shown with FIVE fingers (or at least it looks like five fingers !) I don't know the story behind this curiosity.
I saw a weapons gallery with many esoteric weapons. What equally interested me was the collection of walking sticks in the ground floor.
Another painting that interested me was where the Sun God is shown as a woman ! I know of the Sun God as Surya, Bhaskara or Ravi - all male names in Hindu mythology. This painting showed the Sun in a woman's form. Unfortunately, at high zoom, my unsteady hand has ruined the photo.
The room of ivory collections mesmerised me. I could not believe that ivory could be carved with such finesse. What was a revelation to me was that ivory art was practised in Japan and European countries too.
The first floor has collections from China, Japan and other countries. Besides, one can view collections of silverware and jade. One silver spice box is less than the size of my fist, but the art work in the pattern in the leaves is so intricate, it is mind-boggling. Similarly, the Arabic calligraphy in the jade work captivated me. The collection of bidriware was a treat for the eyes as well.
I saw an unusual hybrid of glass and metal in one of the rooms.
In another room, I saw a translation of the Ramayan - in Persian ! We tend to think that it is only our generation that has seen the world shrinking but even in the 18th century, the healthy trade between nations resulted in a lot of cross-cultural exchanges. I marvel at the spirit of that times: perhaps, it would be an interesting exercise to record exactly how the translation came about !
By the time I rushed through the Chinese and European galleries in the first floor, it was already well past 2 p.m. I ate lunch in the canteen. This is the only area where I have a complaint. I paid Rs. 120 for the lunch but I feel that it was worth probably Rs. 60 only. The taste was ordinary.
I hired a taxi at around 3 p.m. The rain which had started at around 12 p.m. still continued to pour, with brief pauses. My driver left me at the airport at 4:20 p.m. using a new route to avoid blocked roads. My last purchase in Hyderabad was biscuits from the Karachi Bakery outlet at the airport. At home, we enjoyed the delicious biscuits until a week later.
Long after the memories of the taste have disappeared, every time I think of the silver work or the veiled Rebecca, my mind pauses. I mentally salute the artists who have created these works of art. In retrospect, the decision to visit the Salar Jung museum was a good one. The visit has broadened my mind. I strongly urge a visit to the museum for people interested in art and culture.
I landed in Hyderabad at 9:20 a.m. The Rajiv Gandhi International Airport in Shamshabad is about 38 k.m. away from the hotel I stayed, which was in Secunderabad. My first thought was that just like Bengaluru, the approach to the airport looks classy compared to the rest of the city ! The taxi driver took the P. V. Narasimha Rao expressway. In Bengaluru, the Hosur Road expressway is 10 k.m. long, which has made reaching Electronic City a lot simpler. The Narasimha Rao expressway is 11.6 k.m. long according to http://www.businessinsider.in/be-it-intracity-orinter-city-these-5-expressways-make-travelling-a-breeze/PV-Narasimha-Rao-Elevated-Expressway-Hyderabad-Andhra-Pradesh/slideshow/30984915.cms. To me, the curving road felt longer, which may be because I was new to the city.
The main roads in Hyderabad appear to be wider compared to Bengaluru, based on my one day stay. Traffic was heavy in the morning.
I passed the Husain Sagar lake on my way to the hotel. The lake covers 5.7 sq. k.m. and looks huge. From my hotel room, I could see the Indian tri-colour flutter in the lake. Watching the flag flutter from the window on the fifth floor, I felt that it moved in slow motion. This may have been because of the distance of the hotel from the lake. Still, it was a curious observation.
In the night, I went for a small walk around the hotel. It was drizzling. The roads were water logged. The city looked like any other Indian city, with the usual traffic and people.
The next morning, I checked out of the hotel at 11 a.m. and went to the Salar Jung museum for a visit. My plan was to spend time until lunch time at the museum. http://www.salarjungmuseum.in/html/history.html is the website of the museum. I reached the museum at around 11:40 a.m. I kept my back pack in the cloak room and entered. Minutes after I entered, a heavy downpour started.
The museum was the palace of the Salar Jungs. http://www.salarjungmuseum.in/html/galleries.html# shows the plan of the museum, which is also put up near the lobby. Despite the map, simply because of the size of the rooms and galleries, one can easily lose one's bearings, particularly in the first floor. I could see one gentleman in the first floor asking the security man how to reach the staircase to go down ! I followed the numbers on the entrances of the rooms.
I am interested in history, but my knowledge of Hyderabad was meager. I knew that it was Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel who ensured that Hyderabad became a part of India, though the Nizam of Hyderabad wanted otherwise. I recalled that the Nizam's forces the Razakars unleashed a reign of terror, which was countered by the "Police Action". This was the extent of my knowledge of Hyderabad's history.
A thought struck me : Was Salar Jung III, the ruler who collected the artifacts in the museum this same Nizam who was so cruel? It was a strange contradiction, if so. After returning back home, I read more about Hyderabad. http://www.thehindu.com/books/how-the-nizam-lost-hyderabad-in-1948/article3765710.ece reveals the thinking of Qasim Rizvi and the rise of the Razakars. It was Rizvi who was responsible for the atrocities perpetrated by the Razakars.
The dark side of this history is the way in which retribution was exacted by the affected people after the police action. This Times of India blog by Swaminathan Anklesaraia Aiyar in 2012 suggests that thousands of people were killed : http://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Swaminomics/declassify-report-on-the-1948-hyderabad-massacre/. The exact number of people may be debatable, but one needs to be aware that excesses lead to further excesses. Unfortunately in the world over, this is a lesson that we have yet to learn and apply. On Independence Day, I feel that this is one major lesson worth emphasising.
Returning to the Salar Jung dynasty, this dynasty and the the Nizams were different people. The Salar Jungs were a noble family. It was primarily Salar Jung II and Salar Jung III who collected most of the art objects in the museum. In a way, that was comforting to me. Having seen the variety of art collections in the museum, it would have surprised me how such a man (or such a family) could become so cruel and intolerant towards his (or their) own people later. On the other hand, I suppose that there are rulers in the world do who show the trait of being connoisseurs of arts but who could also be extremely ruthless when it came to battle and conquest and subjugation of their own people: the case in point being the French rulers in the 18th century !
The museum has a collection that all Indians should be proud of. In fact, I will extend that statement further and say that it is something that all humanity can be proud of. There are paintings, sculpture, porcelain work and other works of art from different places in the world that engrossed me. I spent more than an hour in the rooms in the ground floor.
As I finished viewing the galleries in the ground floor, I recognised that I would have to hurry to complete my visit to the museum. My original plan was to search for a restaurant nearby, eat lunch by 2:30 p.m. and leave for the airport at 3:00 p.m. so that I could catch the flight back home at 5:20 p.m. After completing the ground floor, I realised that I would not be able to leave and search for a hotel given the lesser amount of time at my disposal. I decided to eat lunch in the canteen in the museum itself.
I read what I have written until now and see that I have not yet written of the works of art that made me write this blog ! For example, I saw superb bronze statues of Hindu deities. The web page http://www.salarjungmuseum.in/html/galleries.html has some information about the collection.
The statue "Veiled Rebecca" is undoubtedly a highlight of the museum. The web page http://www.salarjungmuseum.in/images/statuebig.jpg has both a photograph and a write-up about the statue. It was the write-up that stimulated my interest in the statue. Carved by Giovanni Maria Benzoni, I coould almost sense the light material of the dress that Rebecca adorns. Her pose and her trepidation on meeting her prospective husband are indicated by her right arm. The statue is amazing art ! The good part is the way in which this work of art has been placed in the museum. There is a glass case and mirrors all around it so that one view the statue from all angles.
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| The Veiled Rebecca is a masterpiece by Giovanni Maria Benzoni. |
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| I took a photo of the Hanuman idol in Anjali mudra since I saw five fingers apart from the thumb here. |
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| This is an unusual weapon that I saw. |
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| Surya or Bhaskara or Ravi is the Hindu Sun God. Here, I saw a Goddess ! |
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| This ivory carving is beautiful. |
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| This ivory carving is beautiful. |
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| This ivory carving is beautiful. |
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| The intricate pattern on the leaf needs to be seen to be believed. |
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| Note the third jade work of art from the bottom. |
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| There is nice calligraphy written in the small piece of jade ! |
The first floor has collections from China, Japan and other countries. Besides, one can view collections of silverware and jade. One silver spice box is less than the size of my fist, but the art work in the pattern in the leaves is so intricate, it is mind-boggling. Similarly, the Arabic calligraphy in the jade work captivated me. The collection of bidriware was a treat for the eyes as well.
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| This is an unusual hybrid of glass and metal, used as a decanter. |
I saw an unusual hybrid of glass and metal in one of the rooms.
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| This is a Persian Ramayan. |
By the time I rushed through the Chinese and European galleries in the first floor, it was already well past 2 p.m. I ate lunch in the canteen. This is the only area where I have a complaint. I paid Rs. 120 for the lunch but I feel that it was worth probably Rs. 60 only. The taste was ordinary.
I hired a taxi at around 3 p.m. The rain which had started at around 12 p.m. still continued to pour, with brief pauses. My driver left me at the airport at 4:20 p.m. using a new route to avoid blocked roads. My last purchase in Hyderabad was biscuits from the Karachi Bakery outlet at the airport. At home, we enjoyed the delicious biscuits until a week later.
Long after the memories of the taste have disappeared, every time I think of the silver work or the veiled Rebecca, my mind pauses. I mentally salute the artists who have created these works of art. In retrospect, the decision to visit the Salar Jung museum was a good one. The visit has broadened my mind. I strongly urge a visit to the museum for people interested in art and culture.
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