Russell Market
Russell Market is a famous shopping market in Shivajinagar, Bangalore. It was started in 1927 by the British, and was inaugurated in 1933. It is named of the then Municipal commissioner T. B. Russell. One of the oldest structured markets in the city, Russell Market, was inaugurated by Haji Sir Ismail Sait in 1927. The structure is built in the Indo-Sarcenic style using imported steel girders, and brick-lime mortar.
It derives its name after the cantonment's Municipal Commissioner, T.B. Russell, who initiated the construction of the market after the existing market was felt to be too small for the growing population in the cantonment area and the areas around it. “It had a planned corridor, a central courtyard and a central tower (unique to Russell Market). Sections for vegetables, fruit, meat and poultry were segregated and had different entrances,” said Pankaj Modi of the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage.
The current market stands exactly on the same spot as the old Cantonment or New Market. Russell Market might have retained the original clock tower of the "New market"; but there's not enough proof in it. Old Bangalore maps of Survey of India show the location of the "New market" to be at the same location.
All types of fruits and vegetables are vend here, even the Imported Fruits. Flower vendors, dates and dry fruits are also sold here. Imported ones like Kiwi fruits, Californian Apple are also available here. Bangkok, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Washington Apples, Australian cherries. The market also has Meat stalls.
One of the famous and oldest markets in Bangalore, India, Russell Market epitomises the old-world charm of Bangalore. Built in 1927, it can be best described as a quaint piece of architecture with the St Mary’s Basilica at one end, and hordes of shops selling everything from antiques to second-hand goods to a bustling poultry and meat section at the other end. Even today with all the malls and extravagant supermarkets dotting the city, it still continues to attract its loyalists who throng this souk.
The best time to visit Russell Market is at the crack of dawn, for it’s when you see this place come alive with fresh fruits, vegetables, meat, fish and poultry produce making its way to its respective stalls.
As you step into the market area, you are pleasantly greeted by the freshness, myriad hues and varieties of flowers from the floral stalls that stock up just about everything from Asters to Zinnias.
Once inside your senses are delightfully assaulted by the fresh smells and sights of the various vegetables and fruits of local and international repute. Further down, you find yourself in the fish and poultry section and the cacophony inside can be quite an earful, with shop owners and customers bargaining for a good deal. The predominantly meat section holds its own court at the other end of the market, and the butchers ready to cut, chop and dice the meat to your liking. Though, do be warned, this place is not recommended for the faint of heart. And that’s not all, you can sip on piping hot masala tea, and grab a quick bite from the roadside mutton and beef stalls that rustle up some delicious kebabs, once you’re through with the day’s work.
This part of Bangalore largely has remained unchanged, and you can experience the old-charm of a marketplace, the next time you pick up your groceries.
Fire
On 26th Feb 2012, a fire t in the market, in the early hours of Saturday, gutting 123 shops and causing loss of Rs89.2 lakh to the shop owners. Initial investigations reveal that the fire broke out because of short-circuit.[1]