Bidar, a little Persia in the Deccan, has a wonderful tranquil charm about it. Its buildings bear a strong sense of history with architecture that is not Mughal but Persian. Even for Deccan, this Bidar is unique. It is a small town, with an air-force training base, a large fort with several palaces – some ruined and some preserved very well. It has large cannons still in their places – in the many bastions of its fort. There are groups of tombs from the earlier Bahmani and later Baridi dynasty. There is a madrasa of Mohmad Gawan, a unique example of Persian art in India. The stucco in the tombs, the paintings in the tombs at Ashtur, the polychrome under glazed tile work and ceilings in the palaces all are fine examples for Persia. These are quite a lot to see in Bidar. Since it had no easy connection by Road or by Train, it had stayed a hidden gem.
While creating an exhibition for the three cities of the Deccan Sultanate – Bidar, Gulbarga and Bijapur, I also wrote on some of the experiences of Bidar. The following story became the cover story for Terrascape magazine for Sep2014 issue.
Paintings inside the tombs at Ashtur
Baridi Tombs
Chaubara (inset) and Mohmad Gawan Madrasa
Tombs at Ashtur, The only broken tomb of “zalim” Humayun Shah
