Hyderabad: There is this nostalgia-based complaint often among people that their cities have changed, or that they don’t recognise their native places anymore. It is usually followed by a reference to migration of people from other places, which then alludes to the perception that ‘outsiders’ have changed or have overshadowed the city’s culture or cultural ethos.
Perhaps at one point I was also on that train of thought, which I understand comes from a sense of loss. That feeling of ‘loss’ of our cultural heritage is usually born out of a sense of belonging to our cities, in this case Hyderabad, which maybe some feel is being stripped away of its culture due to changes (in this case over the last few decade).
Why am I writing this now? Well, among the viral videos that have been doing rounds on Instagram off-late, one of them features someone speaking fondly of the Hyderabad ‘of yesterday’. It triggered a very interesting spate of comments, with few calling the opinion xenophobic, while others defended it. And of course, it had to follow the regular internet polemics we see these days in the comment section of any viral video.
However, it did get me thinking – can we as Hyderabadis actually complain about others coming and finding home here? I mean, let’s set aside the fact that there has been an issue or rather cultural oppression at the hands of leaders from Andhra historically, which is why Telangana was separated in 2014. That is something which we have witnessed and experienced, and is an entirely different issue in itself.
(Are we really going to blame others for the destruction of our heritage? The best example is the Khajaguda rock site, that has been encroached severely by our own people. Time for some introspection.)
Change is constant for all capital cities
Hyderabad is a capital city, and all capital cities historically thrive on migration because these attract talent due to jobs. We also pride ourselves on being an IT hub, and that has over the last few decades led to a massive influx of people who come here to work (HITEC City). The video on our ‘Hyderabad of yesterday’ being unrecognizable in fact also teeters on population explosion in our city.
Hyderabad Airport Metro Limited to compensate Old City property owners today
But honestly, that is a very shallow and perhaps elitist view of things. As much as I would also say that I don’t recognise the Hyderabad I grew up in, it is also on us to protect our heritage. It is a collective effort, that also needs support from our government. If it has not happened, it means that we as a collective also have failed.
I think people have forgotten or maybe don’t know that Hyderabad historically has been entirely built up by and for migrants who have made this place their home. Our founder Mohd Quli Qutb Shah’s grandfather was an Iranian refugee who made Golconda his home. Should we then say that our founders were also outsiders?
We also have descendants of Yemeni soldiers who have settled in Barkas near the Old City in the 19th century under the Nizams. Their culture is now part of our city, and that holds good for people of any other community that also settles here whether we like it or not. Not to say that our cultural ethos may or may not change, and maybe it won’t be palatable to us, but then that is how big cities function.
A city is made up of its people also, apart from monuments.
Monuments and buildings only make up one part of our heritage. People, and what they contribute to a city is another part of it. I think what sets Hyderabad apart is its ability to make anyone who comes from outside to fall in love with it. You don’t have to do much to be honest. Just love this city, and appreciate what it has. Even with its flaws, our city I’d say is a pretty good mix of culture, technology and infrastructure.
This entire conversation any city or Hyderabad changing, is also rather silly. There are scores of Muslim families who have links to Uttar Pradesh (specifically Aligarh) as their ancestors a handful of generations ago came to Hyderabad for jobs in the 19th century. How is it that they are Hyderabadi fully today? The same logic applies to anyone else also today who decides to settle down here after coming to work or for any other reason.
Saying that a city has changed due to ‘outsiders’ is pretty much xenophobic. Thousands of Hyderabadis also have gone around the world and settled in different places, especially in America. And it our job as citizens of Telangana to also make others who are not from here understand our cultural ethos. If we are strong on that part, then no one can change or alter our city’s culture. It will last forever for as long as Hyderabadis exist.
That is why even when we go outside, we often yearn for home – it can be in the form of Irani Chai, Khichdi khatta, Pathar ka Gosht, Bagara rice and Dalcha or anything else.
