Quintessentially old Bangalore

Quintessentially old Bangalore
MEGHA SHENOY
Lalbagh has a legacy that has placed it among the foremost landmarks in the City


Almost every road in the City has a story behind it. And those stories may not be necessarily visible when you enter the place but they’re surely hidden with the people who either run a business out there or who live there.

The Lalbagh Main Road too, has quite a bit of history attached to it. Among the four gates of the much visited Lalbagh Botanical Gardens, is a road stretching from the North gate to Subbaiah Circle known as the Lalbagh Main Road. The neighbouring roads also popularly known as Lalbagh Cross Road or Mariappa Road, lead towards Jayanagar and Hosur. A bird’s eye view of this 1.3 km long road looks like a very commercial place with majority of the shops selling vehicle accessories like helmets, tyres, etc. On a closer look one sees the amount of history that the three main landmarks — MTR, Urvashi and Lalbagh main gate — carry with them.

Established by Parampalli Yajnanarayana Maiya and his brothers in 1924, Mavalli Tiffin Room (MTR), has kept its doors open for many joggers, walkers and the regulars who troop in for mouth-watering delicious idlis, dosas, uppittu and kesari baath and hot piping coffee. The waiters still wearing a shirt and a dhoti folded in half attracts many people from the outskirts who make it a point to visit the place.

“Some things, thankfully, never change. MTR for me has been an important part of my life. Having lived for the most part of my life close to MTR, my week is never complete without three to four visits to the restaurant,” says a regular to MTR. History has it that during emergency, MTR found it very difficult to maintain its high standards in its business under the Food Control Act. It was during this time that MTR decided to diversify into the instant food business, selling ready-to-eat snacks such as chutneys and rasams and since then the place has expanded with MTR department stores which opened next to the restaurant itself.

Other than the restaurant another popular landmark is Urvashi Theatre. As one of the oldest theatres in the City it has stood the test of time in the multiplex era, the theatre still manages a full house.

An interesting fact that not many people in the City know is that the theatre was built on a man-made pond, known as kalyanis during Kempegowda’s era and was used in the City until a century ago. The Vijayanagar architecture used to build this pond was so good that the theatre has used them as compound walls and even today on a closer look one can see the sleeping Lord Ranganatha sculpture on one of the walls. “Looking at this beautiful sculpture, it takes me back to that time and ambience of what Bangalore used to be,” says Suresh Moona, founder of An Association for Reviving Awareness about the Monuments of Bangalore Heritage (AARAMBH), a teacher and a NCC officer by profession.

Further down the road one also comes across Devappa and Son Nursery, which is one of the oldest nurseries of the City. But the main attraction of the road is the Lalbagh main gate itself. Opposite the main gate one comes across a small circle named after Rao Bahadur HC Javaraya, one of the superintendent of Lalbagh, “Javaraya contributed a lot in his time. It was he who rebuilt the eastern wing of the Glass Hall using materials from Mysore Iron works,” says Suresh.

Superintendent Cameron was instrumental in the design of the main entrance of Lalbagh. The main entrance consists of three gates side by side and even if one passes by one they can have a tiny glimpse of Lalbagh. The whole structure is made from wrought iron, manufactured at the famous MacFarlane and Company, Glasgow, London. “Take a closer look at the gate and one can still see the seal of the company,” adds Suresh. The significance of this gate is that all the dignitaries enter the garden only through this gate. The real beauty of the entrance is in the evening as the fabricated glass neon bulb banner shines the hymn given to the place by poet KV Puttappa, which reads: “This garden is the abode of God.”

Did you know?

* Al-ameen College of Pharmacy is the only educational institute on the road.

* Urvashi Theatre was built on a man-made pond commonly known as ‘Kalyanis’ and even today the compound walls carry many archeological sculptures.

* The waiters of MTR still do not accept tips.

* In 1951, MTR was one of the first Indian restaurants to introduce steam sterilisation.

* On a closer look of the Lalbagh main gate one can still see the name of the famous MacFarlane and Company, who manufactured the material for the gate.