Temples, Carnatic music, scientific institutes — Malleswaram may never shrug off its upper-crust image. But this locality in northwest Bangalore is as much in the throes of change as any other. Mantri Mall has transformed Sampige Road. CV Raman's residence had a close brush with road widening. And the railway station has become the last refuge of calm for the elderly.
Mantri Mall
With a built up area of 1,700,000 sq. ft Mantri Square on Sampige Road claims to be the largest shopping mall in India. Another curious claim to fame: the mall hosts India's first Taco Bell outlet. The Mantri Square has been at the receiving end of quite some flak too for turning its environs into a traffic nightmare. Regardless, hundreds shop at the mall, which has multi-level parking sufficient for 2,000 cars.
CV Raman's abode
‘Panchavati', the house where Nobel laureate C.V. Raman lived on 8th Main, Malleswaram, is barely visible through the thick foliage around it. Sir C.V. Raman bought the house in 1942. Here, he is known to have had an eclectic and formidable collection of books — the ‘Panchavati collection as it came to be called, which had everything from Shakespeare to Holmes, and books on astronomy.
Dakshina Mukha Nandi
The Dakshina Mukha Nandi in Malleswaram's 15th Cross is a major tourist attraction for its unconventional Nandi statue that faces south. Devotees collect ‘holy water' that flows out of the statue, while the more irreverent tortoises enjoy creature comforts in the kalyani.
