Hyderabad, the City of Pearls and Bangles
By Grace C. Sorongon

Hyderabad, otherwise known as the city of love, is the capital of the state of Andra Pradesh. It was built out of the love of the fifth king of Golkonda, Quli Qutub Shah for Bhagmathi. Ruled by kings and emperors in the past, the Nizam Dynasty came to power and ruled from 1769 until 1948. It was during the rule of the seventh Nizam when the city flourished, culturally and economically. During this time, Hyderabad became the largest princely state in India and had then its own currency, mint, railways and postal system. It merged with the Union of India soon after the country gained its independence. The map was also redrawn into linguistic states and it became the capital of the state of Andra Pradesh in November 1956.

The fifth largest city and the second Silicon Valley of India—Bangalore being the first—Hyderabad has also its own natural beauty, given its landscape of lakes, plateaus and valleys including mosques, minarets and bazaars. Husain Sagar, an artificial lake constructed 400 years ago, separates Hyderabad from another city, Secundarbad.

As a high-tech city, Hyderabad is known not only for its IT and IT Enabled Services but also Pharmaceuticals and Entertainment industries. Companies like GE, WIPRO, Infosys, Microsoft, HSBC, Deloitte Consulting and many others have set up large operations in the city. Also pharmaceutical companies like Marklin Templeton, C11, Value Labs and Ramoji Film City, the largest film studio in the world, set up its studio on the outskirts of the high-tech city. Also, the city offers world-class training. In fact, India Institute of Management has constructed a big campus within HITEC City. There are still many others not mentioned which have also constructed sprawling buildings and recruited many people to man their operations. Likewise worth mentioning is the frenzied construction of so many buildings, roads and other infrastructure projects. 

As one moves around, the city seems to be so alive that one cannot help but appreciate the ongoing development and changes affecting the lives of the people of Hyderabad. It would seem that Hyderabad is evolving as a world class metropolis, given that the construction is somewhat focused and with clear urban planning design. Yet the city’s charm and enchantment has not dissipated. At night time, most of the mosques, temples and minarets are lit. This proves to be a good sight to see. Additionally, shopping for bangles and pearls in Charminar proves to be fun and exciting as one haggles and negotiates the price. Fabulous bargains are available if one dares to find them.  Shopping in Charminar in fact is an experience by itself.

Hyderabad is indeed a must-see city to visit while in India.

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Grace Sorongon is the Vice President and Managing Director of John Clements in charge of the Professional Staffers Division, which recruits for the lage-scale staffing needs of companies, and for entry-level to supervisory and middle-management positions. Ms. Sorongon holds a degree in Psychology from the University of the Philippines Diliman. She has been with John Clements for over 20 years.