This land of unsurpassed fertility has always been a major center of culture and learning. It was, to begin with, a part
of the Kaushal kingdom ruled by the Suryavanshis of Ayodhya , thereafter it was coveted and conquerred by many a ruler. But it found its zenith during the reign of the Nawabs of Awadh , the first of them being Saadat Khan Bahadur.
But it was Nawab Asaf-ud-Daulah, the benevolent ruler and the great builder who transformed Lucknow from a village to a town. He created the Bara of Asafi Imambara. The Bara Imambara is an enormous, long, low structure, supposedly at one time the largest vaulted hall in the world, with seven entrance arches in the central bay. Above it are decorative terraces of arches, topped with small donies, creating a light, almost lacy, effect when viewed from ground level. Inside, apart from the tombs, are the mimbar (pulpit), the taziyas (small replica tombs) , and the alams (banners), Elaborate glass chandeliers and tall brouched candlesticles are also part of the Imambara’s treasure. The building shares its grounds and handsome gateways with the adjacent Asafi Mosque, another long, low building, its there onion domes dwarfed by sturdy minarets.
The adjacent Rumi Darwaza, named after a supposedly similar gateway in Istanbul, is difficult to describe. Ity looks like half a hollow dome, set at ground level and surrounded by wild frills of green pottery. It is believed that these pottery guldastas (buds) were designed as fountain heads, but never worked successfully, and somewhere within the brick walls may lie a failed hydraulic system Legend has it that the magnificence of the court of the Nawabs of Awadh overshadowed the famed throne of Delhi, and it was the former that attracted adventurers and artists,
courtesans and cooks, for ‘where wealth is, there will seekers after fortune flock’. The Nawab(king) of Oudh were renowned for their extravagance and patronage of the best courtesans, craftsmen and cooks. Like the internationally acclaimed dance form of Kathak: the exquisite "Chicken" embroidery, the cuisine of Oudh is famous for it’s nafaasat & nazaakat (delicateness) "
Dastarkhwan", literally means a meticulously laid out ceremonial dining spread. It is customary in the Oudh region for three generation to sit around and share the Dastarkhwan. Laden with the finest & most varied repertorie of the ‘Bawarchis’ (cooks), the dastarkhwan of the "Roessa" (the rich) were called ‘Khasa’ (Special).
Ravindra Nath Srivastava,
2/413, Vivek Khand, Gomtinagar,
Lucknow-226010, Uttar Pradesh, India
Phone:91-522-5536507
.