Informa Management - SMS Lucknow

LUCKNOW:THE CITY OF NAWABSThe legacy of the imperial splendor of Lucknow has alwaysfascinated people all over the world. The first hundredyears of success belonged to the Nawab Wazirs which, indifferent degrees contributed to its growth and made it,what has been metaphorically called, the "Shiraz ofAwadh" and the "Constantinople of India". The ambienceof Awadh has commonly been associated with theleisurely habits, etiquette, architecture, food andrefinement, the residues of Nawabi culture. Over the yearsthe city has preserved this spirit of the bygone days.Lucknow took almost two centuries to grow to the size of ametropolis. The nawabs were responsible for imparting adistinct image to the city, which indeed is unique. Theyworked meticulously to dress Lucknow with religious andsecular edifices of incomparable excellence.The surviving monuments of the city like IMAMBARASmark the evolution of an interesting style in architecture.In the reign of Nawab Asaf ud Daula, the Mughal stylisticlegacy was re-interpreted in stone and stucco instead ofmarble and stone. Soon the builders began to experimentwith European styles and attempts were made to fuse theoccidental with the oriental. Consequently, the style thatemerged could rival the best in the world. The city laterpassed to East India Company after Nawabs lost the battleof Buxar in the year 1764. The city remained the capital ofAwadh province of the British and went on to becomethe capital of the Central Province and in turn UttarPradesh, modern city of Lucknow spread evenly onboth sides of the river Gomti, offers a tourist plenty ofplaces of historical interest. Lucknow is famous worldover for its 'azadari' or mourning sessions that occurin the Islamic Month of Mohharum.The city has been equally well known for its culinarydelights. The food culture of Lucknow has no parallelsat all. The culture imbibes the courtly manners,beautiful gardens, poetry, music and architecturalartifacts that rightly bestow Lucknow with the righttitle of "City of Nawabs".THE SURVIVING MONUMENTS OF THE CITY MARK THE EVOLUTION OF AN INTERESTINGSTYLE IN ARCHITECTURE. IN THE REIGN OF NAWAB ASAF UD DAULA, THE MUGHALSTYLISTIC LEGACY WAS RE-INTERPRETED IN STONE AND STUCCO INSTEAD OFMARBLE AND STONE. SOON THE BUILDERS BEGAN TO EXPERIMENT WITHEUROPEAN STYLES AND ATTEMPTS WERE MADE TO FUSE THE OCCIDENTALWITH THE ORIENTAL...08 School of Management Sciences, Lucknowwww.smslucknow.com 09