Hello, Hyderabad ..{Charminar Trip}

Char Minar, located in old Hyderabad, in the heart of the bustling city, is indeed a sight to behold. A towering structure, it's beauty contrasts the surrounding streets n alleyways, full of people selling trinkets n fast food for tourists..strategic, maybe, but I had eyes only for this structure..it can really bring out the romantic side of you, even before you enter it and climb up the stairs, as i can imagine the old Nizams and kings of Hyderabad did, when they built this amazing structure and the surrounding complex. The way it plays with light from all it's corners, nooks, crannies n every possible view, inside n out, was amazing. When you really notice them, the intricate yet simple(forgive the oxymoron) detailing of the designs and lattices alongwith it's symmetry can leave you spellbound, aching for more..ie, if you ignore all the graffiti on the walls..but even they are a work of art and individuality somehow..u know?

History:

The monument was built by Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah in 1591 to commemorate the eradication of plague, shortly after he had shifted his capital from Golconda to what now is known as Hyderabad. Legends has it that the emperor Quli Qutb Shah prayed for the end of plague and took the vow to build a masjid on that very place. He ordered the construction of the masjid which became popular as Charminar because of its four characteristic minarets (possibly depicting the first four khalifs of Islam). The top floor of the four-storeyed structure has a masjid which has 45 covered prayer spaces and some open space to accommodate more people in Friday prayers. Madame Blavatsky reports that each of the floors was meant for a separate branch of learning - before the structure was transformed by the imperial British administration into a warehouse for opium and liqueurs.

True to the legend, the city blossomed into a synthesis of two cultures. In 1591 while laying the foundation of Charminar, Quli prayed: Oh God, bestow unto this city peace and prosperity. Let millions of men of all castes, creeds and religions make it their abode. Like fishes in the water.