Temple in a ruined fortress

The stillborn complex of Sultan Muhammad Quli now has a temple

As the first rains of monsoon lash the city in the month of Aashad, the streets of Hyderabad come alive with the hypnotic rhythm of teen-maar drums, the whiplash of potharaju and the sight of women in festive wear, walking with pots of offerings on their heads. In the streets of LB Nagar it is the call of Khilla Maisamma that people answer to. A little beyond the Victoria Memorial Metro station (yes, Hyderabad has to learn the newest address markers) is the multi-hued kaman that leads to the small temple of Khilla Maisamma, the protective Goddess of the fortress.

The location of the temple is as dramatic as it can get as it is ringed by apartment blocks, independent houses and cow sheds. It appears as if the temple is embedded inside the fortress.

The old ruined fortress with portions painted pristine white and the small colourful temple present a striking contrast to the cinder black buildings all around.

Beside the temple is the cavernous entrance into the fortress with rows of rooms, some with collapsed ceilings. Some rooms have been converted into makeshift stalls for the pilgrims to cook, eat and sleep in. A walk inside the vast cavernous complex with light filtering in from the open doorways and through the ceilings of collapsed rooms is an eerie experience. A ghostly quiet envelopes the place and walking alone is inadvisable for the faint hearted.

How this temple came into being in the nook of an old incomplete fortress is the story of mystery, superstition and urban sprawl.

Story of fortress

In the beginning of the 17th century when Hyderabad was ready to welcome royalty, the newest king who succeeded the founder of Hyderabad, Muhammad Quli decided he had enough. Sultan Muhammad Quli thought he will leave his own stamp on history by building another fortress away from Golconda and Hyderabad.

As thelocation of the new fortress was miles away from Charminar, an army of workers began cutting, chiselling and dressing giant stones. Sultan Muhammad Quli had ascended the throne in 1611 and by 1620 work was in full swing for the new fortress which the king named it after himself: Sultan Nagar. About 3 lakh gold coins were spent on the project which had a 75 feet deep and 150 feet wide moat.

Then fate intervened. Sultan Muhammad Quli died suddenly leaving behind a young wife Hayat Bakshi Begum and a toddler Abdullah Qutb Shah. Hayat Bakshi decided to jettison the ill-fated project thinking it was an ill-omen. By then the moat and the masjid were ready and the fortress was nearing completion. “The temple is very old. The fortress had a moat around it. Many cattle rearers used the fort to tie up their animals,” says Rathnam, who saw the area change from a wilderness into an urban suburb.

“The temple is an ancient one and much of the land around it was part of the temple estate. Builders have encroached on the land and only a small portion is left for the temple,” says Srikant Goud who takes care of the temple.

According to one historical account, Nizam's minister Mushirul Mulk Bahadur aka Arastu Jah used the stone from the ramparts of the dilapidated fort for the construction of his own mansion. Portions of the fort are still used by cowherds to tether their animals in the night.

The story of Hyderabad would perhaps have been a little different if the Sultan Nagar fort was completed and the king lived on for a few more years. Perhaps.

City of Joy

Saroornagar is named after Saroor Afza Bai, the wife of Mushirul Mulk Bahadur titled Arastu Jah. We are not sure Saroor (joy) was her real name but Arastu Jah built a palace complex for her. Ironically, the once calm wooded locale is now enveloped by the bustling megapolis.