HYDERABAD by Syed Ali Arif

Love for a city is a strange thing. It is as powerful and passionate as love for a person, but there are no rings, no promises, no words spoken.

So how do you tell the world how much you love your city? Write a song? Stand on the rooftops and shout it out? Tattoo the name of your city across your wrist?

Meet Syed Ali Arif. This young artist has found the most wonderful and unique way to celebrate his love for his hometown, Hyderabad, and share it with other people who want to flaunt their love for the city.

HYDERABAD by Syed Ali Arif is a range of products for the diehard Hyderabadi and his home - cushion covers, lanterns, mugs, mouse pads, note pads, bags and much more. Quirky, if not kitschy, the images in this collection include Hyderabad's monuments, the city's royalty, the auto rickshaws that we love to hate, APSRTC's public buses, colorful, wonderful Tollywood that influences our culture so much and funny phrases like Kya Miya, Kirkiri, Nakko, Kaiku that form an integral part of Hyderabadi vocabulary.

I saw this collection in Inhabit in GVK1, fell in love with it, and decided to try and get in touch with the brain behind it.

Born and bred in Hyderabad, Arif is a full time artist, with a Diploma in Fine Arts from Dr. P. R. Raju’s institute here. He grew up in the old city area of Hyderabad, and moved to the new city in the late 80s, so he is equally familiar with both parts. He loves the tameez and tehzeeb of Hyderabad and says, “I love each and every corner of this city”. His work takes him all over the world, but he declares that he is yet to see a city as wonderful as Hyderabad.

He says, "Due to my art I moved to Mumbai three years back, and the Hyderabad collection was just a way to thank my beautiful city which gave me so much." He now shuttles between Hyderabad and Mumbai.

Arif’s favourite activities in Hyderabad are catching up on movies, going on long drives late in the night, hanging out all day at the Sunday book market in Abids and the early morning Chor Bazaar near Charminar on Sundays.

Here are some images from his collection that Arif was kind enough to share:

And here are the Charminar themed cushion cover and notebook that I got:

Arif's collection is available at all Inhabit outlets. This is his portfolio, and his contact details are available there. You can also email him at syed791@yahoo.com

Hyderabad's buzzing with activity

It's been a busy couple of weeks in Hyderabad. The flower show that I wrote about in my last post was pretty good. Unfortunately, I went towards the end of the exhibition, so the flowers on display had started wilting. The stalls were extremely interesting though - they sold all kinds of plant-related stuff like gladiolus and lily bulbs, succulents, cacti, seeds, gardening tools, manure, bonsais, orchids and decorative planters; and some non-plant stuff too - pickles from gujarat, different kinds of churan from rajasthan, halwa from kerala, spices from ooty and lots more. Definitely worth one visit, but not more.

We had our GHMC (Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation) elections yesterday. I voted :) Check out my ink spot- the officer who made the spot was too enthusiastic, and he made a black mess on my nail:

Ashwin shot the picture. The voter turnout in my booth was abysmally low - people, please come out and vote! If nothing else, it will at least let you retain your right to crib!

I should have blogged at least a week ago, about the Hyderabad 10K Run & Half Marathon, organized by the Hyderabad 10K Run foundation on Sunday (November 22nd, 2009).This foundation regularly organizes 10K runs, half marathons and full marathons, to promote good health, and also to foster the spirit of togetherness that comes from being with hundreds of your own people, running together to celebrate your city. My weekend was blocked because I had some personal stuff to do, so I was unable to participate in the run :(

I came to know from my friend Ajay, about this wonderful initiative in Hyderabad called the Right To Walk Foundation. Kanthimathi Kannan, a very passionate Hyderabadi, started this campaign about 4 years ago,to work with GHMC and the police department to make the city more pedestrian-friendly, and to rid our pavements of encroachments, illegal parking, litter, people who use them as toilets, etc. You can read more about the campaign here. It is also listed on the right of this blog, under "People working for a happier Hyderabad".

Yesterday, I was in Charminar with Ashwin for a photowalk. We were delighted to see that we were just in time to catch the beginning of a long procession from Mecca Masjid to the Yousufain dargah in Nampalli. A huge crowd, drums, camels, smoke from burning incense, dancing men, children and hundreds of devotees made it a photographer's delight. I will post some images soon :) Also, I am working on an interview with a young artist who found a wonderful and unique way of celebrating his love for Hyderabad - so, watch this space for that too!

Hyderabad Flower Show 2009

The Hyderabad Flower Show 2009 is on at the Nizam Grounds, Hyderabad, from 5th to 15th November, 2009, from 10am to 9:30pm everyday. Apparently, it is a show that you cannot afford to miss, with gardening accessories, handicrafts, garden furniture, handicrafts and much more, all under one roof. I haven't been to it yet, and will definitely go sometime this week. Are you planning to go? Or have you already visited?

In the alleys around Charminar...

If you have a fondness for street photography, the alleys and bylanes around Charminar are THE place to head to. I love going there with my camera, finding a nice spot with a view of the crowd, and Charminar in the backdrop, and taking candid shots. This area is very close to my heart because I think it beautifully captures the essence of Hyderabad. This is the real thing, if you know what I mean. Fancy malls, flyovers, imposing monstrosities in glass and chrome - not the real Hyderabad. The heart and soul is around Charminar.

Here are some pictures I've shot during my several photowalks to Laad Bazaar, the bangle market near Charminar:

My little adventure

Do you know what Irani Chai is? I can't describe it in this post - to do proper justice to that divine beverage, I'll need a separate post, with loads of images. So if you don't know what it is – I’ll just say it's a super delicious kind of tea sold in Irani cafes and shady little restaurants.

In Hyderabad, women generally don't go to Irani cafes. And definitely not alone. I’ve been to many with my friends and with my dad, and there are always creepy looking guys leering, pointing and passing lewd comments. No, I’m not complaining. It’s all part of the experience :)

The thing is, for ages, I’ve wanted to go to one all by myself and have a cup of Irani chai.

On Sunday, I went to Basheerbagh for a haircut that I had been postponing for ages. After getting my hair cut, I came out to catch an auto. I saw a very dirty café there – the one opposite Westside – and on an impulse, decided that I HAD to go in and do the thing I’d been wanting to do for years.

And….well, I did it :) I walked in, paid at the counter, collected my chai, sat at the dirtiest table ever, and drank my chai blissfully. I even poured the chai onto my saucer, and drank from it – yeah yeah, I'm uncouth - turn up your nose in disgust if you want – but irani chai doesn’t taste as awesome any other way :) Did people gawk? They must have, but I wasn’t paying attention. I was too busy living out one of the items on my bucket list :)

I just don’t see why women hesitate to enter these cafes. People can point and stare, but that’s not going to melt us – it’s not physical harm. If you’re a Hyderabadi girl reading this, you go do it too – it’s such a rush :)

This really is a very safe city. If Hyderabad was a person, I would just hug it and smother it with kisses :)

Happy Independence Day

Happy Independence Day, India!

Charminar is all decked up for Independence Day - a gorgeous, gorgeous sight! Do go and take a look if you're in Hyderabad today :)

Auto Rickshaws around Charminar