If I have to summarize the contemporary city of Hyderabad, I will say it is a city which has little bit of this and little bit of that , a city which is moving with gentle strides towards thess goals of development while retaining its values thereby adding bit by bit to the beauty and charm of this city. The city has much to offer everyone. Tech-savvy, habitual tourists, food lovers, crazy shoppers, fashion lovers etc can storm into the city and find their things of interest.

The city of Hyderabad, with its delightful blend of the ancient and the modern, presents to the onlooker an interesting skyline with modern buildings standing shoulder to shoulder with fascinating 400 year old edifices. Charminar is one such attraction which has left full impact on my memory. Charminar lies with dignity amidst the colorful shops of Lad Bazaar- the bazaar which roars with pride on its possession of glittering traditional bangles. The symbol of the city, the Charminar, is an impressive square monument with four minarets. It is built with granite and marble. Each side of the square monument is 20m long, while the four arches are 11m wide and rise 20m from the plinth. The four-storeyed minarets rise 20m from the roof of the massive monument and measure 24m from the plinth. The western section of the roof contains a mosque. There are 45 prayer spaces with a large open space in front to accommodate more for Friday prayers. To the east of this space is a lovely verandah with a large open arch in the centre, flanked by smaller ones on both sides.

It is said that, this massive arch was built by Mohammed Quli Qutab Shah, in 1591 to commemorate the end of the plague in the city. The arch is illuminated daily in the evening, an unforgettable sight indeed.

Standing on the charminar, I had a panoramic view of the city and Golconda Fort, which made my mind to go back into time and recapitulate the past glory of Hyderabad.