Once a city of greenery, Hyderabad, like most other cities, has slowly changed from a vibrant hue of green to a dull grey. And within this changing topography, heritage structures are also adopting the lacklustre.
Through our scavenging, we came across a 400-year old wooden pavilion that largely resembles Tipu Sultan’s summer retreat in Srirangapatnam. Belonging to a nawab at one point of time, the pavilion was bought by Raja Bhagwandas about 180 years ago, and has been in the family of jewellers ever since. Satish Govindas Shah of the Bhawandas family, who takes care of the structure, tells us more.
The Pavilion
The Bhagwandas Pavilion is located in Karwan. A17th century construction, the structure is built with mellowed teak wood in two storeys. Constructed on a high elevated platform, Satish says that pavilion was most likely used as a ladies chamber, much like the Zenana Mahal of the Udaipur City Palace.
“There were about four thin layers of different varieties of cloth strung at the windows so that the women could not be seen by men from outside. The architectural features like open arcades, jharokas (balconies), fluted wooden columns and so on, strongly pin point that it is a mixture of Mughal and Rajasthani styles,” informs the noted gemologist. With plenty of attention to detail, the structure is rich in architecture. The intimacy of scale, the perfection of wooden carvings of floral patterns and birds that dot every square inch of the structure and the fine proportions elevate the beauty of the palace, also making it a rare architectural specimen.
Once a garden palace, Satish remembers the place being draped in lush greenery with different species of fruits and flowers. In fact, each quarter of an acre had a specific flowers or fruits. The verandah of the pavilion had six irrigation wells and moats from where bullocks used to draw water, he shares.
“My childhood memories date back to the time when our family members would to visit the pavilion for recreation. The best thing about it is that it’s cross ventilated very nicely. Another interesting fact to note about this place is that when anyone stood in the centre of the pavilion, they could get a clear sight of the Golconda fort,” informs the scion of the Nizam’s jeweller. Such was the opulence of the structure that Satish recollects, “I remember my father telling me that the sixth Nizam had once halted at the pavilion during his reign.”
Close ties
Traces of the Bhagwandas family go back to Mughal era. Gujarathi Vaishavites, they were very closely associated with the sixth Nizam Mahbub Ali Khan, during the rule of the Asaf Jahis. Raja Bhagwandas was the eldest son of Raja Haridas who accompanied Nizam-ul- Mulk Asaf Jah I to Hyderabad in the early 1720s. The main occupation of the family was jewellery, banking and business. The Nizam’s patronised the Bhagwandas family and even gave Raja Bhagwandas the title ‘Raja Bhadur’ for his work. The official jewellery makers for the Asaf Jahi dynasty, their ‘sarapa’ was also very famous during the time.
However, their association with the Nizams goes further back to the second Nizam who regained his economic status with the help of the Panch Bhaya of which Kishandas, a member of the Bhagwandas family, was a part of. A committee of accountants that scrutinised income and expenditure of the Nizam, the Panch Bhaya helped manage what was largely a mismanaged state of affairs before.
Challenges
With the structure being made of wood, the Bhagwandas pavillion is quite weathered and takes a lot of effort and care to maintain. “I recently painted the whole building with linced oil which is used to protect wood. I have a sentimental value towards it which is why I have tried to keep this property intact at my own expense. But it is not easy,” explains the 65-year-old. Though listed as a grade one heritage monument by the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authorities, no support is forthcoming and Satish hopes somday someone will join his efforts inprotecting the building.