By Shobha Rao Smilemaker

Feb 18: On my second visit to the city of Nawabs, Lucknow, we decided to visit the Hussainabad area which still portrays the rich ancient culture and character of the city.

Our first stop was at the the famous Rumi Darwaza, and ornately carved gate to ancient Lucknow which has one entrance on one side and three entrances on the other! This is one of the most famous symbols of Lucknow city.

Next visited the 220 ft high Ghanta Ghar or Clock Tower, second highest in the world after the Big Ben in London.

Next to it was an ancient water tank called the Talaab which also had a small.mosque and matching hamams or baths in the corners. In the distance we saw the Jama Masjid

There was another semi finished 7 storied structure called Sathkanda. The legend is that one of the nawabs had constructed this tower for his daughter who died before it's completion, so the project was abandoned and considered jinxed. Centuries later when the Indian local Government decided to restore the structure, the government was removed from power and people believe this unlucky jinx continues on this unfinished relic!

Overlooking the Talaab was a terracotta coloured building called the Picture Gallery or Baradari because of its 12 doors on different sides and unique iron pillars on the top floor.

It is really worth taking a guide here to understand the nuances behind each of the life size portraits of the Nawabs of Awadh that had been painted mostly by visiting European artists. 

Some of these paintings had been done using real gold or silver and gives us a glimpse of life in those ancient times. Eg.I saw the image of Saraswati Pooja being done 125 years, denoting the Hindu Muslim unity of those times. One of the Nawab family members was a lover of bees and I saw a picture of him with numerous bees on his beard.

The first life size portrait was of the first Nawab of Lucknow, Saadat khan who ruled since 1722 after coming from Iran, and I was aware of the 3 dimensional effect of all the paintings.

As we moved from side to side in front of the second Nawab Mansur Ali Khan's painting, even the shoes moved from side to side. The Nawabs really loved to play a game of chess as depicted in the portrait.

The third Nawab was painted with a dark coloured face which was tanned due to his love for swimming and fame for fighting with a crocodile in the waters. He lost a local war, due to his commander, who turned out to be a traitor.

The fourth Nawab Asafadaula was known for his nature of giving money for work done. He is the one who got many structures built and broken and rebuilt again and again to provide a constant source of livelihood to his subjects. A closer inspection of the painting showed that even the shadow of the grill was depicted on the shiny floor that the Nawab was standing on.

The painting of the fifth Nawab marked the end of the independent Nawabi rule in1814, after which the Nawabs had to owe their allegiance to the new British Rulers.

The painting of the sixth Nawab Haider who had constructed the Imam bara used during Muharrum time in the Hazratganj area depicted the impact of Colonial rule by a change in the style of the crown.

The seventh Nawab Ali Shah was said to have been fascinated by a maid servant of British descent and was given poison in the green chatni, served as part of his food.

The eight Nawab was the one who had constructed the water tank and the 7 storied unfinished Satkanda.

The 9th Nawab was known for his charitable nature towards the poor. As we moved from right to left in front of the painting, it felt as if his whole body, changed the direction towards us.

The interesting painting of the 10th overweight Nawab depicted a red glow in his face, caused because of his love to eat gold and silver ingredients along with his food! He was so heavy that only an elephant could be used for his rides and not horses.

The eleventh Nawab Wajid Ali Shah, is credited for the invention of the famous soft Kababs, to match his weak teeth. He is the one who encouraged the chikankari work among the local artisans. The rumour of him having 365 wives is not true - they were just the multiple servants that he had supported!

When the Britishers had approached to imprison him, his attendants ran away in fear, bit he refused to wear his own shoes, and was taken to Calcutta as a prisoner. However his brave wife Alam Ara, led the forces to continue the fight and managed to flee to Nepal.

The next Nawab Mohammed Ali Shah. Was the one who had constructed a metalled road connecting the two Imam Baras between Rumi Gate and Hussainabad gateway.

We continued our drive along the narrow streets of the old part of the city which used to have the Mina bazaar or market in front of the Baradari along with stables for elephants and horses. We visited some shops selling Lucknowi chikanwork outfits, but had done a lot of clothes shopping on the previous 2 days!

Inspite of the hot sun, we entered one of the most famous places in Lucknow called the big or Bada Imambara. A rare sight was to see the tomb of both the Nawab and the architect of the building next to each other below the main hall. And it was surprisingly cool inside with it's 15 ft thick walls.

The three halls had what looked like domed shaped high roofs, aptly called Chinese plate ceiling, Persian tray ceiling and Indian musk melon ceiling! These dome like ceilings are actually just a flat terrace on top. They are constructed without any support from the middle, in the days of absence of metal rods and local material like mixture of calcium hydroxide (chunna) , coal, ash, red mud, bel fruit, gum was used to give strong support at the sides.

There were provisions for Candle holders around the room, the light of which would be reflected in the many mirrors kept at strategic points.

The Imambara is built in most cities in memory of Imam Hussain who is the grandson of prophet Mohammed, and it is from here that the devout Muslims pray, have sessions and processions, especially during the time of Muharrom.

The construction of this place was started in 1784, initially to provide work to the locals during the time of the famine. It is said that what was built by the workers in the day time was broken by the night to ensure continuous work for all and the whole structure was completed within 11 years.

There is a saying called 'Walls have ears' and this is literally true at this Imambara as what is whispered in one end of along corridor is clearly heard in the other end of the building, - such is the fantastic acoustics of this structure.

This place is famous for its bhool bhulaiya -the labyrinth of steps and passages at the sides and roof level. There are many windows with slopes for light cross ventilation, and secret lookout points having amazing joints and arches in the ceilings where where the weight of the four passages are divided and joined. This place is famous for its maze of passages and I surely would have been lost, if not for the guide who passionately showed us around. The light and wind circulation in the maze made us feel as if we were in the air conditioned comfort of free flowing cool air.

Whispers also were carried through long corridor by the circulating wind in the passages. The sound of a lighting a match at one corner is clearly heard at another corner of the building.

It was astounding how the middle portion of the huge ceiling seemed unsupported by pillars and the whole weight was divided in the side walls.

Our next stop was the Bauli or the step well. The beauty is that in all seasons there is water always filled inside the well. We could see that the well seemed to be of 3 storeys depth, yet also had construction of the same height of 3 storeys above it.

The step well had secret points where reflections of people entering the well gate was clearly visible to insiders who could then be easily hiddenand throw arrows from other secret points at their enemeies! This was their version of a CCTV, by seeing the reflection in water. Besides this too had many secret pathways to go in and out of the place.

We walked past the sprawling gardens, and the huge mosque and the sides and made our way to our next stop -the small or the Chota Imambara

Though smaller in size this was more ornately decorated. This was also made by the Lucknow Nawab Ali shah with exquisite Chandeliers from all around the world, with provisions for lighting candles in those times when there was no electricity. There was a also a high silver seat, where the priest would sit to give his discourse to the devotees.

At the entrance were two statues of ladies holding chains, which could act like a lightning conductor in case of bad weather. We also saw a fish shaped structure which was capable of moving in the direction of the wind.

On one side of the courtyard gardens was the Badshahs daughters tomb which seemed like a copy of Taj mahal also made by local material like Chunna and spice flours. Opposite to that was another structure that tried to be it's mirror image in front of it and is now used as a museum.

Our next visit was to the Hamaam or the bathing place for the Nawabs and the other royal ladies. There was provision for running hot and cold water which could be mixed and could be free flowing from below also from above. We saw the tandoori put underneath the bath for ensuring hot water.

There was also a secret passage for badshah to enter and exit. We saw the well outside, where sometimes rose petals were put in for perfumed water. Also there was a hand wheel that had to be manually operated to pump in water into the baths.

We had time for a relaxed lunch with friends at the Royal cafe at the city centre called Cannought place. The ong

Luck smiled now at me, as I finally got to visit the city of Nawabs - Lucknow

We were members of a wedding party, staying at a swanky place, yet I did ensure that we got at least one whole day for sightseeing and of course shopping!

Inspite of the hot sun, we entered one of the most famous places in Lucknow called the Bara imambara. A rare sight was to see the tomb of both the Nawab and the architect of the building next to each other below the main hall. And it was surprisingly cool inside with it's 15 ft thick walls.

The three halls had what looked like domed shaped high roofs, aptly called Chinese plate ceiling, Persian tray ceiling and Indian musk melon ceiling! These dome like ceilings are actually just a flat terrace on top. They are constructed without any support from the middle, in the days of absence of metal rods and local material like mixture of calcium hydroxide (chunna) , coal, ash, red mud, bel fruit, gum was used to give strong support at the sides.

There were provisions for Candle holders around the room, the light of which would be reflected in the many mirrors kept at strategic points.

The Imambara is built in most cities in memory of Imam Hussain who is the grandson of prophet Mohammed, and it is from here that the devout Muslims pray, have sessions and processions, especially during the time of Muharrom.

The construction of this place was started in 1784, initially to provide work to the locals during the time of the famine. It is said that what was built by the workers in the day time was broken by the night to ensure continuous work for all and the whole structure was completed within 11 years.

There is a saying called 'Walls have ears' and this is literally true at this Imambara as what is whispered in one end of along corridor is clearly heard in the other end of the building, - such is the fantastic acoustics of this structure.

This place is famous for its bhool bhulaiya -the labyrinth of steps and passages at the sides and roof level. There are many windows with slopes for light cross ventilation, and secret lookout points having amazing joints and arches in the ceilings where where the weight of the four passages are divided and joined. This place is famous for its maze of passages and I would surely get lost, if not for the jovial guide who passionately showed us around. The light and wind circulation in the maze made us feel as if we were in the air conditioned comfort of free flowing cool air.

Whispers also were carried through long corridor by the circulating wind in the passages. The sound of a lighting a match at one corner is clearly heard at another corner of the building.
It was astounding how the middle portion of the huge ceiling seemed unsupported by pillars and the whole weight was divided in the side walls.

Our next stop was the Bauli or the step well. The beauty is that in all seasons there is water always filled inside the well. We could see that the well seemed to be of 3 storeys depth, yet also had construction of the same height of 3 storeys above it.

The step well had secret points where reflections of people entering the well gate was clearly visible to insiders who could then be easily hiddenand throw arrows from other secret points at their enemeies! This was their version of a CCTV, by seeing the reflection in water. Besides this too had many secret pathways to go in and out of the place.

We walked past the sprawling gardens, and the huge mosque and the sides and made our way to our next stop -the Chota imambara

Though smaller in size this was more ornately decorated. This was also made by the Lucknow Nawab Ali shah with exquisite Chandeliers from all around the world, with provisions for lighting candles in those times when there was no electricity. There was a also a high silver seat, where the priest sits to give his discourse to the devotees.

At the entrance were two statues of ladies holding chains, which could act like a lightning conductor in case of bad weather. We also saw a fish shaped structure which was capable of moving in the direction of the wind.

On one side of the courtyard gardens was the Badshahs daughters tomb which seemed like a copy of Taj mahal
also made by local material like Chunna and spice flours

Opposite to that was another structure that tried to be it's mirror image in front of it and is now used as a museum

Our next visit was to the Hamaam or the bathing place for the Nawabs and the other royal ladies.

There was provision for runningHot and cold water which could be mixed and could be free flowing from below also from above. We saw the tandoori put underneath the bath for ensuring hot water.

There was also a Secret passage for badshah to enter and exit. We saw the well outside, where sometimes
Rose petals were put in for perfumed water. Also there was a hand wheel that had to be manually operated to pump it in water into the baths.

As I walked back to our taxi with a smile, I was amazed at the ingenuity, creativity, and talent of our ancient Indians who have left their mark with these wonderful structures that will always be admired by generations to come!

Shobha Rao Smilemaker has a vision of living in a world where people use their ability to find and make smiles in any situation. She is a lawyer by qualification, a soft skills trainer by passion, a motivational speaker, a freelance journalist, a bestselling author, an avid traveler and founder of 'Smilemakers Trainings'. She can be contacted at www.shobhasmilemaker.com.