Charminar

The instilled picture, I had in my memory since childhood, of the familiar architecture of Charminar gate of Hyderabad, was only on different brands of popular products. The opportunity to witness and feel the legendary gate in reality with the grandeur and legacy of the Hyderbad city was like a dream come true. As we were approaching the Charminar, the experience was, like slowly removing a curtain from the face of the exquisite gate of History, and the gate of Charminar finally appeared with its architectural beauty before my eyes. I was perplexed and gleefully stared at the prodigiously famous architecture of more than five hundred years ago still standing upright at the crossroads amid the busy surrounding of a lively city.

Charminar,Hyderabad

The huge construction of a four storied building with mosque is a prime attraction to the tourists visiting the state Andhra Pradesh. The Qutub Shahi Mosque at the Golkonda fort could be called a miniature model of Charminar and design of Charminar was in many ways influenced by the Qutub Shahi Mosque. It was said that the minarets of mosques are the gate from earth to heaven. The Charminar was built to convey the deep gratitude to the almighty and dedicated to the four Khalifas (the successor of Prophet Mohammad) of Muslims. The amazing aspect of the construction of spiralling stairs in the minarets of Charminar, was to provide support to the architecture, apart from scaling to the four storied minarets.

The fabulous architecture

The fifth sultan of Qutub Shahi dynasty felt the necessity to set up a city, as Golkonda was becoming overpopulated and amid the bustling city of Hyderabad, the view of deserted Golkonda fort on a hilltop from the Charminar was like a twist of destiny.
The city of Pearls and fabulous cuisines, where the shopping square, the edifices, mosque and the people in ethnic costumes, present the enliven picture of a city with the aura of glorious history. The historic gate where the confluence of Hindu and Islamic architectural styles could be noticed, I felt the modern age and the traditions of rich cultural history were also nicely blended in the surrounding.

The minarets

Different stories related with the construction of the Charminar could be heard; whatever may be the reason, the architectural marvel will keep reigning in the heart of millions for its uniqueness and creativity, with its immense potentiality, to represent and convey the flavour of the state of Andhra Pradesh in the world of tourism.