Generally speaking, people consider Kanpur
as a dirty place, well sorry to say, its true but we do have some pretty good
places to chill out. Kanpur which was once called Manchester of India. The city is also widely regarded as the
“Leather City of the World”.
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| Lal Imli–KANPUR |
also known as Cawnpore is a
metropolitan city. The second largest city of Uttar Pradesh as its Nagar Nigam
covers an area of 403km square. Kanpur is home to numerous historical &
religious sites gardens, parks.
The
city serves as a proud center of learning with numerous reputed institutions
providing the finest class of education. It boasted of India’s first IIT, one
of the first Ordnance factory (Still running), a parachute factory and multiple
leather and textile mills, of which many have closed down.
Kanpur: from pages of History
In
1207 AD, Raja Kanti Deo of Prayag (connected to the throne of Kannauj)
established the village Kohna, which later came to be known as Kanpur.
Kanpur
continued its association with Kannauj during the reigns of Harsha Vardhan,
Mihir Bhoja, Jai Chand and early Muslim rulers through the Sur Dynasty.
The
first mention of Kanpur was made in 1579 during Sher Shah’s regime. Up to the
first half of the 18th century, Kanpur was an insignificant village.
In May 1765, Shuja-ud-daula, the Nawab of Awadh, was defeated by
the British near Jajmau . From 1773 to 1801, it was part of the Oudh kingdom and
then came into the hands of the British.
At
this time, the British realized the strategic importance of the site of Kanpur.
European businessmen had, by this time, started establishing themselves in
Kanpur. Kanpur passed into British hands under the treaty of 1801 with Nawab
Saadat Ali Khan of Awadh.
Lal Imli: Proud of Kanpur. A great highlight
of the City. Slow Decline of a Historic Heritage
With
the first woolen mill of India, commonly known as the Lal Imli (literally
meaning “Red Tamarind”, for a brand produced by the mill) by the
British India Corporation established here in 1876 by Alexander MacRobert.
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| Lal Imli-Kanpur |
The eastern and northern facades of the mill
are reminiscent of the Palace of Westminster, due to their architecture,
proximity to the Ganges River and with the north-east corner of the mill being
topped by a clock tower similar to Big Ben in London.
Being located on the banks of the Ganges,
there was a facility of traffic and industry. Therefore, the British gave birth
to the industry and here the development of the city started.
First of all, East India Company started the
business of Neel here. After the construction of the Grand Trunk Road in 1832,
the town was connected to Allahabad. In 1864 AD, Lucknow, Kalpi etc. were added
by roads to the main places.
Adventurous Roaming in Kanpur: Places I
visited– where history and beauty awaits
Nobody
really thinks of travelling to Kanpur when asked with the question of a
vacation, but the idea here is to appreciate the diversity of India, of a city
that is perhaps still true to its heritage.
Kanpur is largely an industrial city but
hidden within that smoke are some interesting gems that ought to be explored.
Thankfully I got a chance yo visit Kanpur. It
was a marriage function that gave me some time to explore Kanpur.Hired an auto
rikshaw for this adventure. I had decided first to take a walk along River
Ganga.
(1)River Ganga: Sarsaiya Ghat Kanpur
Kanpur is situated along river Ganga. City
has dozen Ganga Ghats. Sarsaiya Ghat is in mid of city, vey close to Bada
Chauraha, Kachahri. One of ancient Ghat which is popular among pilgrims.
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| River Ganga-Sarsaiya Ghat-Kanpur |
A river seems a magic thing. A magic,
moving, living part of the very earth itself. A good river is nature’s life work
in song.
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| Sarsaiya Ghat–Kanpur |
(2)Gurudwara Chintaharan Dukhniwaran
Sarsaiya Ghat Kanpur
Gurudwara Chintaharan Dukhniwaran is
situated at Sarsaiya Ghat in Kanpur city. It is considered the oldest gurudwara
in Kanpur city. No other gurudwara in the world has this special distinction.
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| Gurdwara–Sarsaiya Ghat–Kanpur |
Another specialty and uniqueness of
Gurudwara Chintaharan Dukhniwaran is that Guru Tegh Bahadur Singh, the 9th Guru
of Sikh community stayed at this place with his devotees and family members for
two days in 1665.
Guru was travelling to Assam through Patna
Sahib when he stayed at Sarsaiya Ghat in Kanpur city.
(3). Green Park Stadium
No cricket fan can miss out on visiting the
Green Park Stadium while staying in Kanpur. Established in the year 1945, the
stadium is maintained by the Uttar Pradesh Sports Department. The stadium also
has the biggest manually operated scoreboard in the world.
(4). Nana Rao Park
An
enormous public garden located on Mall Road is another interesting place in
Kanpur. This refreshing site is ideal for nature lovers and those looking for a
isolated escape in the hustling-bustling city.
Lush green garden features life-size statues
of prominent historical personalities including Tatya Tope, Lala Lajpat Rai,
Rani Lakshmi Bai, and Ajizan Bai.
(5). JK Temple
JK Temple is one of the famous temples in
Kanpur. Exhibiting an amalgamation of ancient and modern architecture, the
temple was constructed under the supervision of the Singhania family in the
year 1953.
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| J. K. Temple–Kanpur |
The temple is dedicated to Radha Krishna .The
temple campus is dotted with plants and trees of various varieties. There are
three ponds inside the campus on west, north and south sides of the temple.
(6). Moti Jheel
Moti Jheel in Kanpur is a water storage site
that is also one of the most famous tourist places in Kanpur. The rectangular lake was originally
developed during the British Raj. You can indulge in boating apart from enjoying
local delicacies from the food stalls.
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| Moti Jheel–Kanpur |
(7)Kanpur Memorial Church.
One of
the oldest and beautiful churches of India, the Kanpur Memorial Church is
located on Albert Lane. Originally called the All Souls’ Church is an Anglican church
in Kanpur. It was built in 1875 in honour of the British who got velour during
the Siege of Cawnpore in 1857.
The church was designed by Walter Granville,
architect of East Bengal Railway. To the east of the church is the memorial
garden which can be approached through only one gateway.
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| Kanpur Memorial Church-Kanpur |
It
has a handsome carved Gothic screen designed by Henry Yule. Its center is
occupied by the beautiful carved figure of an angel by Baron Carlo Marochetti,
with crossed arms, holding palons , i.e. symbols of peace.
(8)Z Square Mall in Kanpur is spread in an
area of around 5 acres.
“Z Square Mall” has more than 150 top
national and international brands. The mall is owned by ZAZ Tanners Group.
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| Z-Square-Kanpur |
The
best part of the mall is its location. It is located in the heart of Kanpur
city known as Mall road. Z Square Mall got started in year 2010.
Banarsi Tea Shop at 80 Ft Road
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| Banarsi Chai-Kanpur |
One
of the best tea one can have in whole Kanpur very hot and creamy tea. There are
always flocks of people waiting for tea, especially in the morning, where
thousands of people sip tea everyday.
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| Banarsi Chai-Kanpur |
The milk
and cream Chai with a tinge of Cardamom served in a earthen Kullar tasted
heavenly. The accompaniments of Samosa with potato masala filling melted away
in the stream of piping hot chai and I had to order another chai to satisfy
myself.
Paan Masala of Kanpur
The chewing pan masala culture and spitting
everywhere and staining everything that comes in the way thereby, started from
this very city, Kanpur in 70s.
Reached its peak in 80s and 90s when pan
parag, the numerous uno king of the pouch revolution hanging in every corner paan
shops reigned supreme.
Thaggu ke laddu and Badnam Kulfi
The oldest shop is located in a noisy,
chaotic lane with a bustling crowd at Bada Chauraha in Kanpur. This place has a
motto “Aisa koi saga nahi, jisko humne Thaga nahi.” Meaning that
there is not even a single dear one whom we have not cheated.
Remember the Abhishek Bach Chan and Rani
Mukherjee starrer movie Bunty Aur Babli from 2005? The movie was a super hit
but it also brought into limelight a small sweet shop in Kanpur called Thaggu
ke Ladoo where one of the important scenes of the movie was shot.
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| Badnam Kulfi–Kanpur |
BABA Biryani from Kanpur
This has become a signature food from
Kanpur. My various friends from Kanpur recommended this dish until i myself
tasted it. Baba ki Biryani is the best biryani in Kanpur.
Perfect blend of zaffran and other
spices, ghee, chicken pieces and the onion slices mix perfectly to create a
delightful plate.
The rate is most reasonable. The tandoori
murgh, is also astounding, complete your meal with firni custard, lassi and
kulfi, all are equally great.
Typical Kanpurias: They feel proud being
called Kanupriya.
You
will notice a lot abusive tone which they don’t mean all the time but they say
it because it’s casual.
They follow a simple rule “Never ever
follow traffice rules, traffic lights are just 3 colors for them”.
“RANGBAAJI’ is not
just a word for us it’s a long driven sentence which means “don’t show me attitude”, a matter of ego and pride too.
If you are a girl then you will face a lot of problem with
teasing though they will tease you with respect by adding didi in sentences. No
doubt we will help if you need it.
Do not expect soft spoken people in Kanpur, they are blunt.
They celebrate Holi and Eid 2 times
just to play with colours,which means we love to have fun a lot.
Try to avoid fight with aunties as they will direct it straight
away to your character.
Kanpurias
have a great sense of what you call ‘desi’ humor, and they will give you some of
the best ‘vyang’, sacrcastic/leg pulling lines.
Don’t say bad things about the city, they know it’s not one of
the cleanest, but they love it!
They love the chaat, paani ke batashe,
aloo-tikki, malai makhhan, thaggu ke laddoo, badnaam kulfi, rabri, jalebi,
imarti… and you actually won’t find the same taste anywhere else, or fail to
appreciate them anywhere else, once you’ve had it.
People will recognize you and chat up with you after years, Ask
about your entire family and always part with a sweet smile and ‘namaste’.
The Paanwaala will
still remember your favorite Paan and treat you for free saying, “Arre kaisi
baat kar rahe hein aap”, adding some more meethi supari.
Kanpuriyas
will always be very glad to know that you belong to somewhere close by, like
Lucknow, Unnao, Allahabad… “Arre phir toh aap humare padosi hue”.not all… but
to sign off, Kanpurias will be Kanpurias.
The END
