Hyderabad by Walk - Rashtrapati Nilayam

Tucked away in sylvan Bolarum, Secunderabad, is the Rashtrapati Nilayam (President's House), the official winter Retreat of the President of India who spends at least two weeks here conducting official business. Many times it is used to house visiting dignitaries as well.

Entry

Knowledge Gallery

President's Car

Formerly known as the Residency House, it was built in 1860 by Nizam Nazir Ud-Dowla which was later used as the country house by the British Resident. Interestingly it was moved away from the scene of action, the British Residency in Kothi, which was attacked during the 1857 Mutiny. Since the Hyderabad state got integrated with the Indian Union in 1948, it has become the Rashtrapati Nilayam. In Match 2023 it was opened to the general public to view.

So when Deccan Archives put this on their calendar I decided to walk with them. Madhav ditched me as expected and I went by myself. The ticket area is quite elaborate with a cafe etc. and lots of parking. I met Ajay, an IT Pro from Bidar, a regular on the walks, bought ourselves tickets for 50 bucks apiece (an elaborate process which involves showing Aaadhar cards, paying only online and not by cash, giving phone numbers and email ids and all that - after all its not ordinary Retreat). Anyway Ajay paid online and I gave him cash. It was a biggish crowd of some 15-20 people and I could recognise a couple more faces - young Satwik and Zubair. On the walk I met Prof Kanika who teaches at the Kautilya Insititute of Public Policy (a GITAM initiative) and her writer husband Karan Kashyap.

Entry into the Rashtrapati Nilayam also took some time as they checked the scanners and all that finally let us in. Its a huge place, 90 acres or so and requires a long walk. Buggies are available. 

Buggy

Some interesting landscaping

Model of the Rashtrapati Nilayam 

We first went to the Knowledge Gallery which is to educate the visitor about the many Presidents, their duties, some important pictures, gifts given to them, an old horse carriage, an old car, a children's zone etc. The effort to make it accessible and entertaining is laudable. There are guides all over to help.

Rashtrapati Nialayam

The President's Quarters

From the Knowledge Park we went to the main building - a single storeyed, flat structure, built in lime with old wooden beams - set in the midst of lovely gardens. The left side building is the President's residence and the right side is the ADC building.We went in and saw the durbar hall, the dining hall, paintings from Ajanta caves, chandeliers and so on. 

Tunnel

Cheriyal Paintings

Once outside we walked to the kitchen which is in a separate building - and food was carried through a tunnel that connected the kitchen to the dining room. The tunnel is a main attraction and it is now painted with Cheriyal paintings which add some cheer to the tunnel (which is well ventilated by sky lights).

120 foot wooden flag pole

Road to the gardens

Onwards to the next attraction which is a 120 foot high flag pole made of wood - the old one went bad so a new one was made and installed - the local guides insisted that the surrender of the Nizam's forces happened here but Wahaj said it happened at Shaikpet. Wahaj also told some interesting stories about Winston Churchill who lived in Secunderabad, in a place called the Retreat a little further away, fell in love with a lady which was never reciprocated and headed out of India in despair after contemplating suicide.

Maze garden

Musical fountain

We took a picture at the flag pole, went to the Maze garden which is a maze with a musical fountain in its centre, headed out to the Jai Hind stepwell which drew water with a pulley system that operated with bulls, saw the stepwell model. 

Model of the Jai Hind Step well

We then saw the actual stepwell, actual bulls and understood how it worked. 

Jai Hind step well

We gave up on the Nakshatra garden, the Rock garden and herbal garden owing to the heat and headed back to the car park.

Ramp for bulls to climb up

Ajay and I got ourselves some buttermilk, ate a slice of dil pasand, in this cute cafe called Mitti which trains and employs adults with physical, intellectual and psychiatric disabilities through cafes across India. They also have outreach activities about disability inclusion, It was a lovely cafe and most of us stayed back to rest a bit before heading back.

Nice. Another one checked off.