We were transported uphill in a grand two-horse buggy to the Taj Falaknuma Palace in Hyderabad Deccan. This was the way all guests arrived at the palace hotel. The moment you passed through the gates at the foot of the hill, you became royalty. Baggage was whisked away, ushers and the staff bowed low, touching their forehead with their right hands and murmuring “Adab”.
We were greeted with an exotic drink served by a charming sari-clad woman. After admiring the view of Hyderabad’s old city from the terrace, we were led up an imposing staircase to the balcony.
Rose petals rained on us as we entered the palace itself. Fully restored to its old glory by Taj Hotels, this masterpiece was known for having been the Nizam of Hyderabad’s residence. It is now a hotel.
The rulers of North India were rapacious and destructive. Brothers murdered each other with impunity for property and wealth. Consequently, north India is bereft of palaces, havelis, grand temples or mosques
The entrance and reception chambers could be mistaken for any one of the grand European palaces. The structure is more Italian than Indian and the decor entirely French and Italian. Ornate floors with intricate patterns were made from imported Venetian tiles and large pillars supported vaulted ceilings. The entrance had a magnificent fountain with cherubs reaching up to the fount, from which water cascaded down to the pool at the base. Elegant benches surrounded the fountain, all made from immaculate white marble. The next chamber had a huge musical clock and a splendid staircase leading to the second floor. This chamber led to a grand library and to an inner courtyard, which was surrounded by guest rooms with a veranda all along the front.
The entrance foyer
The crescent and star atop, reflecting a Muslim heritage
On both sides of the entrance and stair halls were stately chambers for the reception of guests. On one side was the dining hall which seated 101 guests. We were told that a corporate czar could order a five-course meal for about 200 dollars a head. But he had to have a minimum of 60 guests! They would then be served in gold encrusted crockery and silver cutlery.
All the rooms had magnificent chandeliers and heavy furniture. The staircase was a huge ornate affair. Along the walls were dozens of paintings of nobility, both Indian and from the British Raj. Each nobleman was clothed in all his finery – or full uniform. Each looked as ferocious and imposing as the last.
Apparently, the Nizams would commission painters for the job but would not allow them to sign their names on the paintings. None of the paintings carried the name of the painter. They were all commissioned and none had been purchased.
Next to the state reception rooms was a smaller chamber set out with seating in small groups and one grand sofa in the centre. This was the “gossip chamber”, where the ladies would retire to exchange the latest scandals. The sofa in the middle was probably for the maharani who could join whatever group appeared most interesting!
The grand staircase
The Nizams had wrested power from the Qutub Shahi Dynasty. This was done by the armies of the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb. Apart from Aurangzeb’s ferocious attacks, the Deccan was left to itself by the rulers of Delhi. The Nizams seem to have been gentle rulers, who allowed their Hindu subjects freedom of faith and the opportunity to amass wealth and property. They seem to have had a working relationship with the Rajputs, who constituted many of their viziers.
The man who built the Falak Numa Palace was not the Nizam himself, but his prime minister, Nawab Waqarul Umra. He chose the highest hill near the city and decided to build a palace for himself in 1880. He was so taken up by his project that he first went to Europe to examine major palaces. There he visited the Schönbrunn and the Buckingham Palace, spent a month in Venice and then commenced with his own.
The pool
Two years after he had built it, he invited the sixth Nizam, Mehboob Ali Khan, to dinner. He arrived with his full coterie of wives and court attendants for the night. He liked the place so much that he decided to spend another day in it. One day turned into two and then three – and so it dragged on for eight days. The minister, being a shrewd man, sought audience from the Nizam. He bent low, salaamed and declared:
“Huzoor, I had made this palace for you! I am so glad that it has met with your approval!”
“And how much money have you drawn for it from the State Treasury?”, enquired the Nizam, with a smile.
“40 lacs, huzoor”, he replied.
“That is written off. And draw another 20 lacs to make another palace for yourself”, the Nizam said.
This story demonstrates the benevolence of the rulers of the Deccan, compared to what went on in North India. The rulers of North India were rapacious and destructive. Brothers murdered each other with impunity for property and wealth. They looted and plundered their own or their neighbours’ kingdoms on a whim or out of sheer lust for more booty, slaves and territory. The consequence is that north India is bereft of palaces, havelis, grand temples or mosques. Those that remain have had to be rebuilt. South India is full of palaces and grand havelis.
The man who built the Falak Numa Palace was not the Nizam himself but his prime minister, Nawab Waqarul Umra. He was so taken up by his project that he first went to Europe to examine major palaces
The old walled city of Hyderabad is much like Lahore’s walled city. It has narrow lanes teeming with humans, cows and horse- and donkey-carts. Cars and rickshaws weave through the melee, as in Lahore. The difference is that the walled city of Hyderabad Deccan is full of palaces and grand havelis, some of which are now preserved by the state – but many standing on their own.
We were taken to one such surviving haveli which now belongs to a great grandson of a prime minister and his cousins and brothers. The reception area of the haveli is derelict but intact. Built on a platform six feet above the ground, it is a large hall with many antechambers.
The hall is strung with dozens of old “fanoos chandeliers” out of which some have been wired up for electric bulbs. The floor is covered with fine old carpets, sofas and divans. The haveli lives on in its old glory, slowly disintegrating into oblivion – much like the nobility of Deccan.
The spacious lawns have been carved up by the cousins to make their own houses. Nawab Mustafa Ali Khan offered us tea at his house. The Begum flustered about the kitchen and served us tea. A few minutes later, a boy hurried into the room with a pack of biscuits which were also served to us. No retinue of servants, elaborate dishes or pomp and ceremony: such is the state of most of the nobility who have survived. We were invited to the Nizam Club for dinner. The building was grand but the furniture, crockery and waiters’ uniforms were reminiscent of railway station waiting rooms.
The writer in front of a grand painting
The palaces in the city have been preserved by the state. The largest compound is the Chowmahalla Palace made by the second Nizam. Adjacent to it are three more palaces, each built by subsequent Nizams. Each has a large ornate audience chamber with residential quarters for the Begums. The grandest of them all was the palace of Umdah Begum. The whole of the walled city is full of old buildings which are being used as shops, restaurants, hospitals and residences. The market was made of stone and is called Pathar Gutti. It was an orderly city laid out to a plan with the central Mecca Masjid and Charminar, a huge tower with four pillars.
Eight to 10 kilometres away is the new Hyderabad, called Cyberabad and Banjara Hills. It is glistening with modern buildings and fancy cars. There is also a film city with an Indian version of Disneyland.
We were told that a new medical city was coming up with modern and expensive hospitals. These would cater to the richer Indians and foreigners who could not afford the hospitals of Europe.
The gossip chamber
And what happened to the current Nizam who was declared the richest man in the world in the 1960s? He moved to Australia and bought himself a huge estate. By the early 1990s, he was unable to pay the estate duties. His income had been drastically cut as all his diamond and ruby mines had been taken away by the state. He then approached the Taj chain and offered to lease out his palace, the Falak Numa. His daughter still lives in an outhouse next to the main gate to the compound. The Taj hotels spent 160 crore rupees to renovate the palace and make it into a hotel. They took 10 years to reopen and did so in 2004. The lease is for 60 years. I wonder who shall inherit this fortune.
