HYDERABAD: The places in Hyderabad are steeped in heritage. Although most of the old buildings, mosques and other structures have become history with the passage of time and the onslaught of modernity, the last vestiges continue to live in the form of the names of a few places that hark back the era of opulence and grandeur of the Nizams and Nawabs. What happens when a motley group of individuals is brought together one evening and invited to walk down the pages of history especially the untrodden paths? And the paths are in the endless lanes and by lanes of Nampally, the gateway to Old City.
You end up on a voyage of discovery, accentuated by a sense of adventure, fun and learning. At least, that pretty much sums up the experience of ‘Interfaith Heritage Walk’, an initiative by the Hyderabad Trails in association with British Deputy High Commission and Rubaroo. This walk aims not just at enhancing one’s socio-cultural quotient with regard to the city but also at building a sense of community bonding over some increasingly rare-to-find food and shopping.
A couple of aspiring doctors and social entrepreneurs, four young techies, a chef, a couple of enthusiastic photographers documenting the walk, a few enthusiastic students from various colleges, a curious-journalist (yours truly) who had been to Nampally previously but not this way, that kind of describes the whole experience.
After assembling at Pista House, the popular food joint where we were acquainted with the route map and itinerary of the walk, we were off to our first destination. Don Bosco Navjeevan Centre, situated in the adjacent lane of the Pista House, goes unnoticed by a lot of people. Established in 1975, it plays a significant role in the society. It is a home for the destitute children regardless of their religion, caste, gender or age. Often times we see homeless children roaming here and there especially in public places like railway stations and bus stops. Most of them are rendered homeless because of financial insecurity. This centre provides the basic amenities and education for the children to have a bright future.
Braving the bottleneck traffic, next stop was a 200-year-old temple. After a short walk of around 300 metres, we reached the Yedugudla Pochamma temple. On entering the temple one can see that the art of the temple has been inspired by the Deccani architecture. The pillars and walls do not have faces made on them, instead there are beautiful floral motifs, an astounding similarity to the Persian decorations made on the walls and doors of masjids. It is a proof that 200 years back communal harmony was strong enough in Hyderabad.
“Over the years, in this temple many Hindus, Muslims, Christians and people of other religions have come together to worship in the shrine, a classic example of inter faith,” says the senior priest.
We headed onto our next stop that is the Deccani Aachar shop to explore the rich cuisine of Hyderabad. Even on the wide main road, the heavy traffic, especially that of buses made our walk a bit daunting, but not as much as being unable to soak the sights, sounds and smells on the way. We were making our way across the Nampally old market. We passed by street side vendors selling kebabs on skewers (beef, mutton and chicken), halwas (kaju, badam and dates), biryani, dosas, carts selling fruits, semiyan bundles (vermicelli used to make Sheer Khorma, the Ramzan special), crockery, glass lamps, beautiful
‘ittar’ bottles, clothes, household utilities etc.
The area had a peculiar arrangement where each item had its own place. Enter any shop and you can find the typical Deccani arrangement. At Deccani Aachar, it was frenetic packing and dispatching of pickles and it was truly spectacular sight. With no fancy arrangements and only lip smacking aachar this place is a destination within itself. The various types of made here have a cult status not just in the city of Nizams but among foodies, worldwide.
After prying into an unusual naan shop where the bread is slowly cooked on firewood we headed to our last destination that is Dargah Yousufain. On the way we passed by Yousufain Shehzad hotel. It is remarkable as it follows the system of rich buying food coupons for the poor. The Dargah had a serene atmosphere. It is open to people of all religions and provides an opportunity of social bonding. It did not have any added decoration, only the floral designs and a fountain in the backyard added to its grace. One of the member laments saying, “The Dargah used to have a chabutra (platform) where the travelers could rest. Unfortunately those have vanished and now the word has become an analogy of crime.” Another elderly florist says, “One has to be sensitive to the environs of the Dargah and perhaps look at Sufi or related events, if they are willing.”
Amidst all this one can realise that Hyderabad is a great example of communal harmony because here history does not go away at the wave of a wand. The past sneaks in on silent feet and relentlessly intrudes into the present, and compels us to reconnect with each other through old times.