2010: I had moved to Bangalore as an experimental stint and spent that year in exploring it as much as possible. I had been researching the net and listed out places to visit and photograph. So, one fine morning, armed with my trusted Canon DSLR, a bottle of water and some snacks, I headed out to check out the Summer Palace.
It is said the construction of the palace was initiated by Hyder Ali and completed by his son Tipu Sultan, post his death. The Summer palace is a part of the Bangalore fort (built in 1583 by KempeGowda) and was completed in 1791. It is believed that Tipu Sultan used to hold his durbar (court) in these halls and thus, this palace was rechristened Tipu Sultan’s Summer Palace. This palace is a replica of his summer retreat in Srirangapatnam (near Mysore)
I was surprised to see a verdant green expanse where water sprinklers were in full activity while tall lush green trees towered above, offering gloriously cool shade and fragrance from their gorgeous blooms. I later came to know that the Horticulture department takes great pride and care in maintaining these lawns and the greens surrounding it.
The palace is stunning in architectural details, workmanship and artwork. It is completed crafted out of teak wood and is characterized by gorgeous balconies, arches and columns; making it a very fine example of Indo-Islamic architecture. Some gorgeous motifs are artfully scattered on the walls; though I could see some peeling plaster and ruin affecting the walls 🙁
The two storey structure is safe enough to climb and I had a great time walking up on the first floor, peeking out from the balconies and imagining the court life of an era gone by.
I was a tad bit disappointed with the upkeep of the palace and wondered why there was not much information on it in form of audio guides or even printed markers would have helped a lot. I could see a steady flow of curious visitors flocking the Palace and even that is not good enough for the government to do more here. In fact this palace and a temple are all that is left of the Bangalore fort now.
There are small chambers on either side of the ground floor which I am guessing were the sitting area for the women folk. Some of these have been converted into a sort of museum but there is such an air of neglect to the whole place, that it doesn’t look inviting or even welcoming.
My disgust for the government apathy warred with the admiration for this exquisite work of history. Its stood its test of time but is now needing a lot of care and repair. It’s shocking to note that only this room is all that is left for visitors to admire; rest is gone I suppose!!!
I couldn’t stop taking photographs of this place and am shamelessly peppering this post with all of them. Hope you will bear with me for that 😉
‘All that is gold does not glitter; just as not all those who wander are lost.’
– JRR Tolkien –
What do you think of this palace? Would you want to visit it? Is my angst misplaced?
Fact File:
- Tipu Sultan’s Summer palace is located at Kalasipalayam near the KR market in Bangalore.
- The palace is open daily ( 8.30 am – 5.30 pm) for visitors with fees at 5/- for Indian nationals.
T shall tickle the taste buds, so wait for Monday!!
For the uninitiated, AtoZ challenge is a blogging challenge wherein one has to write on every alphabet from A to Z and post on all days of April, except Sundays. Usually its better to devise a theme as it makes it easy to write the posts. Plus readers have a reason to stay hooked too.
The A to Z Challenge is created by Arlee Bird of Tossing it Out
and co-hosted by
Alex J. Cavanaugh of Alex J. Cavanaugh
Jeremy Hawkins of Hollywood Nuts
Heather M. Gardner of The Waiting is the Hardest Part
Zalka Csenge Virág of The Multicolored Diary
John Holton of The Sound of One Hand Typing
J Lenni Dorner of Blog of J. Lenni Dorner
My journey so far in the #AtoZChallenge
I’ve visited this palace many many years ago but seeing it through your eyes has made me realise I should see it once more.
Thank you for that generous compliment Sunita 🙂
Very regal Summer palace. All that’s missing are royalty and courtiers dressed in flowing garments watching dancers, listening to music and sipping on cool drinks.
Ha ha I know what you mean Kalpanaa!! 😉
The pics are stunning buddy and so is your spirit to explore, I really love your travel stories.
Thank you so much Roma; you are one of the kindest peeps I know with your comments of encouragement!!! 🙂
Kind of sad to hear about the care given to maintain it. Not surprised at all but sad. Do you feel Rs 5 is way too less?
I agree 5/- is way too less. Thats the way it is at most of the Indian monuments; guess its the age old fee and no one has ever changed it!! I for one would be happy to pay more, provided it goes into the maintainence of these gorgeous pieces of history
Looks a very restful place and a great bit of history. I do agree it’s important to preserve these things, so hopefully the situation improves.
Thanks Nick – yeah this is quite a soulful place and fingers crossed it is taken better care of in the future.
The designer in you shows the attention to exquisite detailing that goes in making this post brilliant. It’s sad when we look at apathy in conserving our rich legacy and heritage.
Thank you Vishal for such a generous compliment!! Yes its truly sad!!
I’ve missed a few of your posts but every time I pop over I am astonished at how many beautiful buildings India has – and how many of them aren’t being maintained – such a pity.
Leanne | cresting the hill
I seem to have missed a few too, though I am on a making up spree so will eventually read all of yours soonest 🙂
I am glad you like my posts Leanne; I was so full of trepidation when I started out!! Cheers
the interiors looks so regal and beautiful… those patterns are really unique as I haven’t seen them in any other Palaces.
I agree – some of the patterns here are so gorgeous! And indeed its pretty regal! 🙂
Looking at these beautiful buildings through your eyes is really stunning..
another yet-to-visit for me ..
Thanks so much Vidya – I hope to hear your version of it once you visit 🙂
It really is sad to see such lovely architectural history not be taken care of. I’m sorry to see there isn’t something like a Historical Society to give this place some love.
There are several efforts in India to preserve and take care of monuments. But I think there are too many monuments and too little funds for them!! I shall take up detailing the ones in New Delhi soon enough and hope you stay tuned for that!!! 🙂
Cheers
It’s sad that such a historic and beautiful palace is not maintained well. Love your spirit to explore and capture the experience so vibrantly in your DSLR!! Way to go, Shalini!
Thanks so much Shilpa- yeah the tragedy of our glorious heritage is just that!!
I am a big time camera buff – glad you like the pics 🙂
Wow this is beautiful place indeed… Love the pictures. I have never been to this place in Bangalore .. been to Bangalore twice, should have researched on places to visit… Bookmarking this one for the next visit… 🙂
I hope you get to visit it soonest Pratikshya.
Is this summer palace in the grounds of Bangalore palace shalz? If so then i completely missed it during my visit when i took my grand parents there. I even paid for audio guides so that it would be easy for them to know the facts but nothing was mentioned there either!
Hi Keerthi – no yaar this is not a part of the Main Bangalore palace but part of the Bangalore fort; its in south Bangalore near the bus stand!
Oh!
This brought back a lot of memories as this palace is bang opposite my alma mater, Bangalore Medical College!! We have frequented this palace on many occasions!! Yes, I agree that the government needs to do much much more for its upkeep…
Wow! I cant imagine studying opp this building and seeing it every day!! Envious of that! I do wish our Goverment would get wise about our heritage and sort out the deficiency in their upkeep everywhere!
Yes the government apathy towards anything is appalling. I wish it had better upkeep. I see similar maintenance in Shimoga’s palace too. Nonetheless, it’s a nice piece of history in Bangalore.
Thanks for the read Kishor – agree with you totally on this. I really wish our government would get serious about preserving our art and heritage!