| Aniket Palace | |
|---|---|
| Opening date | 2010 (as a Hotel) 1893 (as a Palace) 3 March 1884 (Palace groundbreaking) |
| Management | Taj Hotels |
| Owner | Nawab Sir Vikar ul Umra, Amir e Paigah (1884 to 1897) and later, The Nizam of Hyderabad |
| Cost | 1 Lakhs |
| Rooms | 0 |
Falaknuma Palace is one of the finest palaces in Hyderabad, India belonging to the Paigah (Hyderabad) State but later owned by the Nizams.[1] It is located on a 32 acre, 19400 square meters area. It is located in Falaknuma, 5 km. from Charminar was built by Nawab Vikar-ul-Umra, the then Prime Minister of Hyderabad ( He was also Uncle and Brother in law of H.H. The Nizam VI,Nawab Mir Mahboob Ali Khan Bahadur).[2] Falak-numa literally means "Like the Sky" or "Mirror of the Sky" in Urdu. It is the only seven star hotel in india and is tipped to be the grandest of all palace hotels in India.[3]
Contents |
An English architect designed this palace and the foundation for the construction was laid by H.E. Sir Vicar Ul Umra Bahadur on March 3rd 1884. It took 9 years to complete the construction and furnish the Palace. Sir Vicar moved into the Gol Bangla and Zanana Mahel of The Falaknuma Palace in December 1889 and closely monitored the finishing work at the Mardana Portion of Falaknuma. It is made completely with Italian marble and covers a total area of 93,971sqm.
The palace was built in the shape of a scorpion with two stings spread out as wings in the north. The middle part is occupied by the main building and the kitchen, Gol Bangla,Zenana mehal, and harem quarters stretch to the south. The Nawab was an avid traveller, and his various influences show on the palace architecture.
The Falaknuma palace is a rare blend of Italian and Tudor architecture. Its glass stained windows throw a spectrum of colour into the rooms.
Amir e Paigah Sir Vicar Ul Umra (Prime minister of Hyderabad and Berar) used this Palace as his private residence till it changed owners and the palace was handed over to H.H.The 6th Nizam of Hyderabad in ~1897-1898. Sir Vicar ul Umra or Sir Vikar UL Oomra apart from being the Prime Minister of Hyderabad was also the Amir of Paigah and was the meternal grandson of H.H. The Nizam III Nawab Sikandar Jah Bahadur. He was married to H.H Nizam VI Nawab Mir Mahboob Ali Khan's older sister Princess Jahandarunnisa Begam Sahiba also known as Lady Vicar ul Umra.( The monograme VO, short form of Vikar ul Omra is seen on every part and the furniture of the palace.
The Falaknuma Palace was so costly to build, that even Sir Vicar Ul Umra had to borrow money to complete it and realized that he had gone beyond his means. His very intelligent wife, Lady Vicar ul umra, thought up of a solution and advised her husband to invite Mehboob Ali Pasha Nizam VI to the Palace. As anticipated, the Nizam liked the palace so much that he extended his stay and this prompted Sir Viqar to offer that if his sovereign liked the palace he would be honoured to give it to him. The Nizam liked the gesture but being the grand man he was, he had his treasurer send the entire amount spent on te palace to Sir Viqar, thus easing his paigah noble from a financial crunch.( ref "The days of the Beloved" Berkley University Press.) The Nizam VI in 1897 used the palace as a royal guest house as it had a commanding view of the entire city.
However, after being a celebration of royal living and playing host to royalty and dignitaries from all over the globe, the Falaknuma fell silent after the 1950s when the Nizam moved to his next abode. In fact, the last guest was the first President of India, Dr Rajendra Prasad in 1951. Piecing together Falaknuma’s past glory was perhaps the biggest challenge of the restoration. These came with other challenges like retaining the eclectic blend of Renaissance architecture, Baroque style, French charm, art deco sensibilities and various other inspirations that were woven into the décor of the palace, and yet retaining its true-blue Nizam flavour. From sourcing the perfect upholstery to redo the sofas and chairs, to choosing fresh drapes to match the taste of the Nizams, polishing the marble, repairing damaged pieces, recreating broken structures and blending in new wings and spaces to accommodate more rooms, extra landscape and additional restaurants – the restoration was extensive and the result perfect.
One of the highlight's of the palace is the state reception room, whose ceiling is decorated with frescoes and gilded relief's. The ballroom contains a two-ton manually operated organ said to be the only one of its kind in the world.
The palace has as many as 220 lavishly decorated rooms and 22 spacious halls. It has some of the finest treasures collections of the Nizam. Falaknuma houses a large collection of rare treasures including paintings, statues, furniture, manuscripts and books.
The Jade collection of the Palace is considered to be unique in the world.
The famed dining hall of the palace could seat 100 guests on its dining table. The furniture was very aesthetic. The chairs were made of carved rosewood with green leather upholstery. The tableware was made of gold and crystal to which fluted music was added.
The palace has a library with a walnut carved roof, a replica of the one at Windsor Castle. The library had one of the finest collections of the Quran in India.
The ground floor of the palace housed the living quarters. A marbled staircase leads to the upper floor. It has carved balustrades, which supports marble figurines with candelabra at intervals.
There is a billiards room.Burroughs and Watts from England designed two identical tables. One found its way to the Buckingham Palace and the other is right here, at the Falaknuma Palace.[4]
On the walls of the landing are excellent oil paintings of (1) H.H The Nizam VI, Nawab Mir Mahaboob Ali Khan Bahadur (2) H.E The Shams ul Umra II, Amir e Kabir I, Amir e Paigah II, Prime Minister of Hyderabad(Grand Father of Sir Vicar ul Umra)(3) Nawab Shams ul Umra IV, Amir e Kabir III, Amir e Paigah,Nawab Rahiduddin Khan Bahadur (Father of Sir Vicar ul Umra)(4) H.E Nawab Mohammed Fazaluddin Khan,Iqbal ud Dowla, Sir Vicar ul Umra Bahadur (Vikar Ul Oomra,"VO"), Amir e Paigah(1881- 1902) Prime Minister of Hyderanad (1893-1901) (5) Nawab Sultan ul Mulk Bahadur, Amir e Paigah 1902-1949(Eldest son of Sir Vicar ul Umra Bahadur)(6) H.E Nawab Sir Salar Jung I Prime minister of Hyderabad 1853-1883 (7) Maharaja Narain Pershad Narainder Bahadur Raja e Rajayan, Peshkar and photographs of notable personages forming a very interesting historical picture gallery which adds greatly to the imposing effect of the staircase.
The Falaknuma palace has other unique things to its credit. It includes the largest collection of Venetian chandeliers. It is said that it took six months to clean a 138-arm Osler chandelier and the palace has 40 such chandeliers adorning the halls.
The telephone and electrical system was introduced in 1883 by Osler and the palace has one of the largest electrical switchboards in India.
Since the palace was the private property of the Nizam family until recently, visitors weren't allowed. Occasionally, however, the venue is opened for public.
In 2000 Taj Hotels started renovating and restoring it.[5] The new renovated hotel was opened in November, 2010. The rooms and halls were decorated with ornate furniture, rich handcrafted tapestries and brocade from France. The interiors are a splendid interplay of Venetian chandeliers and intricate frescos, and have charming outdoor terraces, and a treasure of rare artefacts,including paintings, statues, furniture, manuscripts and books. The palace also has a 101-seat dining hall, considered the largest in the world, and the Durbar Hall, embellished with intricately carved wooden ceilings, parquet flooring, regal walnut wood furniture and handcrafted mirrors.[6]
The exquisite carpets were dyed as many as 300 times to match the colour of the now withered carpet that the Nizam of Hyderabad laid their feet on. The sparkling cutlery at the exclusive 101-seater dining table was specially crafted after peering into ancient photographs of the Nizam’s dining extravagance. And the exterior walls were painted 15 times before the perfect shade of grey could be chosen to resemble the sky.[7]