Agra :

In an interesting discovery following excavations carried out by the Archaeological Survey of India recently, remains of a summer palace, presumably a baradari, a pavilion designed to allow free flow of air – have been reportedly found at the centuries-old Mughal-era garden Mehtab Bagh located opposite the Taj Mahal.

The garden was reputedly Shah Jahan’s favourite spot which he used to visit to get a view of the Taj at night, hence it’s name (Mehtab means moonlight in Urdu).

“The remains of the baradari-like structure have been found just opposite the Taj Mahal which strengthens our belief that the Mughal emperor must have built this place to enjoy the view of the Taj sitting near the bank of river.

The place seems to have sunk beneath the surface either due to floods or because of the presence of hollow space under the structure,” said a senior ASI official.

Incidentally, Mehtab Bagh has been associated with the myth of the black Taj which is believed to have been spun by guides to fascinate foreign tourists. According to the story, Shah Jahan wanted to build another Taj in black marble across the Yamuna and connect the two by a bridge. Mehtab Bagh is pointed out by some as the possible site where the black Taj would have come up.

“There has never been any historical evidence to prove the existence of a black Taj,” said the official.

During excavation work carried out between 1997 and 1999 at Mehtab Bagh, the ASI had found remains of a huge octagonal tank furnished with 25 fountains, a small central tank and a baradari in the east of the garden. “The present work is going in the south direction of the garden in the straight alignment of the Taj Mahal which makes the discovery an interesting one,” added the official.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> India / by Adithya Dev, TNN / July 02nd, 2014

Agra :

The 359th annual Urs of Mughal emperor Shah Jahan will begin at the Taj Mahal from May 25 to 27 and entry will be free for visitors during the three-day celebrations.

“There would be free entry to the monument from 2pm until sunset on May 25 and 26, and on May 27 no entree fee will be charged throughout the day,” N K Pathak, chief superintending archaeologist, ASI, Agra zone said here today.

Khudddam-e-Rauza Committee, the traditional caretaker of the Taj, would put a 735-meter-long chadar on the cenotaph of Shah Jahan, he said.

Committee president Tahiruddin Tahir said that the length of the chadar to be placed on the tomb had been increased by 70-metres from the 635-meters length of last year.

Besides, a chadar made of 359 garlands would also be offered by the Shahi mosque Fatehpuri to mark the Urs on May 27, Saeed Khan, the mutawalli of the mosque said.

During the Urs, prince Yakub Habeebuddin Tusi of Hyderabad, who claims to be the great grandson of the last Mughal emperor, Bahadur Shah Zafar, makes an annual pilgrimage to the monument and offers prayers there.

Shahjahan was the fifth Mughal emperor who ruled the empire for 30 years from 1628 to 1658 before he was deposed by his son Aurangzeb. He died in 1666.

He had erected the Taj Mahal in memory of his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal.

source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Lucknow / PTI / May 22nd, 2014

Krishna University Registrar D. Suryachandra Rao released the second printed version of ‘Taratarala Bandar Charitra’ book, authored by amateur historian Mohammed Silar, here on Monday at the Town Hall.

Addressing a galaxy of literary personalities and historians of Machilipatnam, Mr. Suryachandra Rao opined that the book would serve as a reference for those who wanted to research in Telugu as well as History.

“A few copies of the book will be made available in the Krishna University Library and given access to the readers”, he added. Krishna District and Sessions Judge G. Chakradhara Rao recollected the glorious past of Machilipatnam and how the port town became key location for all means of administrative and legal services in Coastal Andhra Pradesh during the post-independence period.

A well-known doctor Dhanwanthari Acharya received the first copy and other guests discussed at length about the hardship involved in bringing out of the book, which was based on the ten-year research by Mr. Silar, in 2010.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Andhra Pradesh / by Staff Reporter / Machilipatnam – October 08th, 2013

Come one, come all to Albert Bakery and indulge in an array of nostalgic slices of confectionaries that are a rich part of Bangalore’s culinary heritage

Nestled in the heart of Frazer Town on the famous Mosque Road is a slice of the city’s history so unassumingly located that you would miss it entirely if you were walking or driving fast enough. And yet, Albert Bakery is one spot you would always want to stop by and taste their array of confectionaries. Bangalore is famous not only for its music and climate but also, over the years, for its food and Albert Bakery has been a major player in the city foodscape forever. The 112-year-old bakery is easily the city’s oldest and has been upholding a gastronomical tradition over the decades.

A thriving hotspot, the bakery is open only from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. and is sometimes so packed that there are traffic snarls on Mosque Road.

And for those who frequent the street during the festive season of Ramzan, if you haven’t stopped at Albert Bakery to grab a bite of their goodies, then everyone will tell you that you haven’t lived life to the fullest.

Mohammad Sabir Faizan, the son of the proprietor Nawab Jan, says they strive to uphold the traditional baking practises. “We have always opened from 3 to 9 p.m. because we make the confectionaries fresh in the morning. Other bakeries may belong to a chain of supplies so they add preservatives and improvers which we never do. We make batches that are sufficient for each day.”

Established in 1902 by Sabir’s great grandfather Mohammad Yacoob, the bakery was initially a godown in Sangam lane off Kamaraj Road. “We used to deliver only buns and bread. That used to be the usual catering back then. We cycled down the roads with baskets of bread and buns delivering it to people in the locality. We shifted to Mosque Road in 1921 and since then we have stayed here,” recalls Sabir.

When my grandfather Mohammad Ibrahim was around, they had bread, biscuits, rusks, tea biscuits and other regular items. “It was only after my father Nawab took over that he introduced the kova naans, coconut cherry cookies, mini cocktail samosas and other specialities.”

From delicious hot kova and keema naans and mini cocktail samosas to butter salt biscuits and coconut cherry cookies, Albert Bakery boasts of a variety of foodstuffs that make mouths water at the mention of the bakeries name.

On the name, Sabir says back in the early 1900s, “My great grandfather felt it would appeal to everyone if it had an English name. There is a common misconception that the shop was started by some foreigner called Albert. We had a lot of Britishers as customers so a common name like Albert would make it easy to relate to and the name stuck.”

Being the fourth generation in this line, Sabir hopes to carry this legacy forward. “We may launch an outlet elsewhere but all the production will always be here. We don’t want to expand much because of the freshness factor. We will never compromise on quality.”

A bakery like Albert in a city like Bangalore is a blessing, says Sabir. “There were no shops in this area when we started. Now there is a huge boom in development. The city has helped us come up. We also have a lot of competition so that helps us strive to be more creative and innovative. We are proud to be part of Bangalore’s rich cultural and culinary heritage.” The bakery’s other specialties are the hot cross buns on Good Friday, marzipan Easter eggs on Easter Sunday, non-alcoholic plum cakes for Christmas and brain puff for Ramzan.

They also have daily specialties like the chocolate lava cake, chicken Swiss and mayo rolls, tarts, quiches, banana and grape muffins, chocolate croissants and donuts and pizzas.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> Features> MetroPlus> Food / by Allan Moses Rodricks / Bangalore – May 16th, 2014