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Hyderabad is one of those cities where the magnetic pull of
nostalgia can be felt to a maximum, owing to the ever glorious landmarks of a
bygone era. It is one of those cities where the past silently trudges along
with a noisy and loud present. Apart from its new face where it is adorned with
high rise buildings, bustling, busy markets thronged with heavy locomotive
traffic; there is another face where the past lurks behind colonial buildings,
hiding under electrical wires and large hoardings. The same old face can be
seen written over the aged, gnarled and wrinkled face of an elderly person who
has witnessed it, in all of its glory, and sailed through some of its sadness.
The story of this city dates back to the time of the Arab
invasion when it was a mere fishing village.
It came into prominence when Kalhora ruler Mian Ghulam
Shah Kalhoro established it as a capital of his empire in 1768.
Afterwards, it was passed on to Talpur and into British hands until the creation
of Pakistan in 1947.
Despite having a very bumpy history, this city has shared
innumerous happy and prosperous times as well, like when its streets used to be
washed with rose water. It once hosted a large number of gardens that
overflowed with green parks where children played and their laughter echoed,
and libraries that were brimming with books, all that were testimony of its
grandeur and peaceful public life. However, those times seem to have been
shrouded in dust and the missing vitality of it seems almost impossible to
imagine.
The opulence of this city was partly owing to rich and
well-to-do Hindu businessmen and merchants who traded in indigenous goods and
exported them all across Europe, Middle East and South East Asia and were
generally called ‘Sindhi workies’. Then there were Amils, literate Hindus who
first served in Kalhora and Talpur courts and then joined the British civil
administration. They built many large buildings ranging from public to private,
domestic, religious and welfare types. At the time of partition, most of
the Hindu population of Hyderabad left for India, vacating the
buildings that were then occupied by refugee families from India.
The British government and civil society also built many
distinctive buildings that are scattered across the older sections of the city.
The main clusters are located at Tilak Incline, Heerabad, Pakka Qila , market
area and Serey Ghat sections. A vast majority of these edifices have now been
razed to the ground due to commercialisation and, now, only a handful of them
are still standing.
The city was once famous for its wind catchers locally
called ‘mangh’; a simple architectural device that captures wind and helps keep
the interior of a building cool. There was a time when you could find a wind
catcher on every rooftop in Hyderabad. Now, almost all of them are gone,
changing the cityscape for good.
past Hyder Chowk, Gari Khata and into an
old market that is a thoroughfare for women of Hyderabad, also known
as Resham Gali. Despite how crowded this particular path is, you will
still be struck by the beautiful buildings prevalent here that were built in
the pre-partitioned era. Your path will be bordered by books stalls, stationary
shops, bakeries and small dhabas along the road. If you look up, you’ll be
mesmerised by the magnificent stone work galleries, trellises, floral motifs
inscribed on facades, windows, balconies and jharokas. While walking,
Oblivious to the heavy traffic and commercial activity, the
silhouettes of these once magnificent buildings have an aura of sadness that
swells and seemed to befall the entire area. Occasionally, a window would open
up and a woman or a child would peer outside and then close it, leaving the
building in its solitude again.
Perched above the facades, the pigeons would flap their
wings and fly away.
The rapid destruction of such old buildings is a threat to
the city’s vibrant cultural and magnificent heritage. It is time that this risk
is soon identified and taken charge of by the concerned authorities.
History, once lost, cannot be restored.
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