Pharaohs had the vision to pile up the pyramids thousands of years ago. Shah Jahan’s flame of love bloomed out in Taj Mahal centuries back. Maya was molding history at the dawn of the twenty-first century and the saga was far from over when she was plucked away from it. Her ambition was not small.
She loves to call them ‘Symbols of Change’ and there is no denying the truth that they have transformed the architectural visage of Lucknow. Unfortunately, the days of these fascinating structures could be numbered. The bulldozers of Yadava could be raring to raze them back to red dust.
Do have a peek at them while you still can. A nocturnal sojourn is highly recommended.
Copyright © U. S. Pandey
Old World Charm
Copyright © U. S. Pandey
Turkish Delight
Copyright © U. S. Pandey
The Portal of Lights
Copyright © U. S. Pandey
Call me Legion, for we are many!
Copyright © U. S. Pandey
Let there be Light!
Copyright © U. S. Pandey
umashankar
@uspandey
June 19, 2012 at 10:50 pm
speechless!! although I don’t understand photography but it’s been a while since i have viewed a photograph and mumbled ‘whoa!!’ thank you for sharing these breathtaking photographs!!
June 19, 2012 at 11:02 pm
I owe those thanks to you, Deb! Sadly, WordPress image compression is nothing to be proud of.
June 19, 2012 at 10:58 pm
Pretty much the same in Noida.. though they dont light up the “haathi park” now..
“O’ KURSI! THOU ART CYCLED AWAY TO YOUNGISH CHEIFS. AND MEN HAVE LOST THEIR MAYA” 🙂
June 19, 2012 at 11:04 pm
Well said, the Cycle has taken the lights away from the Haathis!
June 19, 2012 at 11:05 pm
Spectacular images from the Mayan Valley Civilization ! These monumental architectural marvels must be well preserved ( and especially protected from the fierce Yadava tribes) for the sake of posterity. Maybe some one should take up with concerned organization to get these included in the list of wonders of the modern world !
June 20, 2012 at 9:07 am
I believe we are but mute witnesses to the tragi-comic farce called politics. Thanks for the compliment.
June 19, 2012 at 11:11 pm
Brilliant photographs, of a place clearly aimed at posterity and history books. And I kept thinking of a young girl coming in to Lucknow from a village where nothing has changed for her, and her wide eyed wanderings here…till reality strikes home.
Sheelwati
after a traumatic trip,
atop a crowded train
disembarking
just before the
Lucknow station.
Belongings tied up
with her hopes
in a piece of cloth
on her head
she waits on the footpath,
debating ,
if it is to be her home.
A long walk
by a grandly lighted place,
they tell her
it is Prateek Sthal,
a sign
that
she is allowed
to have aspirations now.
Her eyes
as wide
as the diameter
of the golden domes,
she feels miniaturized
in the presence
of an armada of elephants,
as she walks through.
Someone pays obeisance
to the statue of a pointing man
and a lady with a purse,
and she too
does the same.
Shuffling through crowds,
she hears
someone say
that there is a plan
to flatten the place with bulldozers.
Like her life and her mind,
constantly
flattened
by the wheels of
patriarchal tradition.
No edutaion,
in a school
with a commemorative plaque
but
no simple sanitary conveniences for women,
and so she stays home
to keep away from prying eyes.
Really ,
nothing has changed.
“B”SP has changed to SP.
For her,
its a question of
To B or not to B
June 20, 2012 at 9:11 am
Suranga, you have immortalised my post by writing the real story behind the images! Indeed, nothing has changed for whom the bell tolls!
June 20, 2012 at 7:44 am
Great to see you indulge with your camera!
Marvelous work Umashankar!
June 20, 2012 at 9:13 am
Deepak, old pages from an obsessive disorder! Many thanks to you.
June 20, 2012 at 7:54 am
Never knew pictures at night could be taken so beautifully. For people like me, you have shown Lucknow..:) I always keep telling my husband about how beautifully you write and just read aloud your profile description to him. And here you get another compliment from him: “This guy is no ordinary”.
June 20, 2012 at 9:15 am
Latha, I am touched by your continued confidence in me. A million thanks to you.
June 20, 2012 at 8:53 am
It’s been a long time since I went to Lucknow. I have heard that the landscape has transformed immensely. I guess political tit-for-tat is common in India. And, her haathis will always remind me of the colossal waste of resources. Pics are fabulous. Do they look a bit hazy or am I imagining things? When I read the title, I braced myself for a historic post :). Looks like the photographer fought his way through the banker ;-).
June 20, 2012 at 9:28 am
Except for the image ‘Let there be light’ where a haze hung in the lit up sky, rest of the images are clear enough. When faced with an extreme range of shadows and brightness, you have to choose the elements you wish to expose for and what you want to keep in focus. That said, image compression by WordPress is nothing to write home about. Lastly, you may need to recalibrate your minitor! 😀
June 20, 2012 at 10:50 am
Recalibration did help. At least, my eye sight is fine :).
June 20, 2012 at 11:37 am
You are so kind!
You’ll get that feeling whenever the structures are flooded with light. If one were to expose for the light, he’ll get very black shadows.
June 20, 2012 at 9:23 am
Wow ! they look so beautiful in the night .. not as vulagar as their builder 😛
June 20, 2012 at 11:20 am
They do look grand. Now you know why I don’t have images of its builder!
June 20, 2012 at 9:27 am
Wonderful post. Interesting photos ( you had a tripod? ) and good write up.
June 20, 2012 at 11:22 am
Thanks Nevin. Yes, I had to use a tripod: they are longish exposures.
June 20, 2012 at 9:35 am
Beautiful images.
June 20, 2012 at 11:22 am
Thanks, Rajesh!
June 20, 2012 at 10:03 am
Beautiful pictures….
June 20, 2012 at 11:23 am
Thank you.
June 20, 2012 at 10:17 am
Awesome photography and well written .. Yes I agree the force of Yadavas is going strong these day !:) I see a bit of Mayan Legacy everyday on my way to work in Noida and it leaves me fuming !
June 20, 2012 at 11:28 am
Many thanks, Ruchira. But then I’ve hardly written anything. The camera remains unbothered with the Mayas and Yadavas of this world. It is only the beauty of these structures that impresses its sensor.
June 20, 2012 at 10:23 am
Aweosme Uma bhai
teach me how to write like you
June 20, 2012 at 11:32 am
Recognition from an ace shooter does cheer me up! 😀
As for your writing, we are already on a roll!
June 20, 2012 at 10:36 am
I had never seen the haathis. During election time the only time that I did see them, they were covered. This place is really as awesome as the pictures or its your photographic skill?? 🙂
June 20, 2012 at 11:33 am
Now you see the legion! They truly look grand. Thanks for your kind words.
June 20, 2012 at 10:39 am
Behenji has given way to bhabhiji …..who rules unopposed. The pics are awesome….my Lucknow looks better than Delhi.
June 20, 2012 at 11:34 am
Photography is beyond the bhiayas and bhabhis of this world. Thanks for stopping by.
June 20, 2012 at 11:09 am
Lucknow vies with the best of the world with such fabulous structures. But all I could see beneath the glitz was what you have portrayed. Indeed, nothing has changed and things are worse, because if these structures guzzled scarce power when the ‘sister’ was in power, now the destruction is going to drain manpower and other resources. God save the country. You have skilfully combined the pen and the camera and hope to see more of these.
June 20, 2012 at 11:40 am
Yes, they are among the best on the earth today. What you have said is all so true, but for the night, it was only the photographic opportunity that had consumed me.
June 20, 2012 at 12:09 pm
Marvellous shots!!!! Thanks for sharing……
http://debnature.blogspot.in
June 20, 2012 at 12:26 pm
Many thanks, Debopam.
June 20, 2012 at 12:10 pm
If pictures speak thousand words then this be it. The banker has found his way out of those dreaded debris of taxes.
I had not imagined lucknow to be so beautiful. Thanks for your photographic passion sir.
June 20, 2012 at 12:28 pm
Thank you for your magnanimous compliment, Mak. And as one of my visitors said once, it was the old passion out on parole!
June 20, 2012 at 2:09 pm
WOW sir, beautiful pictures and they look WOW… thank you for sharing…
they tell a story in itself..
June 20, 2012 at 4:25 pm
Thank you, Bikram. Yes, they do tell a story!
June 20, 2012 at 2:30 pm
Have never been to Lucknow…Amazing pics!
June 20, 2012 at 4:26 pm
You know now what not to miss in Lucknow! Thanks.
June 20, 2012 at 2:32 pm
Well captured images of the grandeur of a gross national waste of money, USP:)
June 20, 2012 at 4:27 pm
Thanks, Rahul! No contests to your statement!
June 20, 2012 at 2:51 pm
Beautiful pictures.
June 20, 2012 at 4:27 pm
Thank you, SC!
June 20, 2012 at 5:50 pm
Hi Umashankar, breathtaking! The photographs, like your prose, are exquisite. Wow!
June 20, 2012 at 10:57 pm
Many thanks, Srini! I am glad you like my photographs too!
June 20, 2012 at 8:09 pm
Probably it will be as much of a futile act to demolish these buildings as it was to construct them….personally, I will not be sorry at all to see them razed to ground….what a monumental waste of OUR money….nevertheless, beautiful photographs, your camera is as eloquent as your pen
June 20, 2012 at 11:01 pm
Why should we stress ourselves with the demolisher’s dilemma, assuming he has any? For the moment, these structures are enchanting enough. Many thanks to you!
June 20, 2012 at 8:32 pm
what do i say ??? i just don’t have any words … superb …just out of this world !
June 20, 2012 at 11:02 pm
Many thanks to you, TTT!
June 20, 2012 at 9:32 pm
The word Maya -i wish it had been about the Mayan civilization-but this too is an enlightenment…what stupendous structures,and i see no artistry in them…the art is only in your photography…what a colossal waste of resources…are there no homeless in lucknow for whom houses could have been built?
June 20, 2012 at 11:04 pm
I’d love to write on the original Mayan civilisation someday. The present day Maya could be bad dream, after all! I feel honoured by your kind words.
June 20, 2012 at 10:17 pm
The pictures are beautiful. Would surely want to visit Lucknow now and view these magnificent structures in person.
June 20, 2012 at 11:06 pm
Thak you, Akshay. You better prioritise your visit to Lucknow lest they get razed to the ground.
June 20, 2012 at 10:59 pm
Breathtaking photographs. You seem to be an expert in night photography. The colors are just ethereal.
June 20, 2012 at 11:09 pm
Thank you, TF. Photography is an obsession with me all right. Except that it gets subdued by my livelihood needs and the passion for writing.
June 21, 2012 at 3:04 am
This is a visual treat. Honest!
We demand more, USP. 🙂
Beautiful structures. Awesome shots. You use your weapon exceptionally well.
June 21, 2012 at 7:19 am
Thank you, so much D. I will try to indulge myself oftener.
June 21, 2012 at 9:33 am
Lovely post! Visually extravagant. You just took me on some kind of time travel 🙂 Great post
June 21, 2012 at 3:05 pm
Thank you for your lovely comment.
June 21, 2012 at 3:48 pm
New light on Maya’s madness!
You have captured them well … done justice with your images; but has she done the same to the people of U.P.
June 21, 2012 at 8:15 pm
Ha ha! I like the pun!
Thanks for the compliment. Unfortunately, answer to the latter part of your comment is a NO.
June 21, 2012 at 4:11 pm
Brilliant shots….But, I loved the captions more than the pics….! Very beautiful blog…
June 21, 2012 at 8:20 pm
I am happy I could sell you something, after all!
June 22, 2012 at 1:38 am
Fabulous. You have defined the beauty of this in a different way. Awesome….
June 22, 2012 at 7:12 am
Thanks for appreciating, Neloy. It is thrilling to receive praise from a photographer of your calibre.
June 22, 2012 at 9:53 am
These clicks are awesome. Heard and seen Maya ki maya in media so many times but never in this light. Very impressive. For me Lucknow is always about Residency, Chowk, Chotta/bada Imambara, Chowdhury ki chaat (don’t know if it still exists), Faluda Kulfi. You got me all nostalgic , I have not been to Lucknow for more than fifteen years now.Have you done any post on Residency?
June 22, 2012 at 11:39 am
Many thanks, Kavita! Indeed, Lucknow is still better known for Residency, Chotta/Bada Imambara, Chinhat at al. The Chaat and Kulfi-Faluda still rule the taste buds of the city. Maya’s structures just barged into the topography of the city amidst questionable intentions.
I have been perennially planning to write a detailed post on the Residency for some time now. All I have managed to write though is merely a paragraph in the short story Going Blind. I partly blame the virulent ASI staff also who shoo away the tripod carrying photographers. It is not that one cannot go ahead without the tripods but they do upset the plan.
June 22, 2012 at 4:30 pm
great exposure and cool colors 🙂
June 22, 2012 at 7:39 pm
If Joshi Daniel says, it must be so! Many thanks, brother.
June 22, 2012 at 9:22 pm
its knowledgeable ..:) the way of expression is nice..
June 23, 2012 at 10:23 am
Thanks, Ruchi.
June 22, 2012 at 10:30 pm
lovely shot and an impressive insight.. keep up the good work and share them
June 22, 2012 at 10:56 pm
Thanks Liu! You remind me of the olden days when we used to discuss images to their last pixel!
June 22, 2012 at 10:40 pm
If this is dedicated to Dalit leaders how come there are no protests being made over plans to raze it. Normally, such demolitions are fodder for jingoistic speeches for months, if not years. Beautiful pictures…
June 22, 2012 at 10:58 pm
That will also come and give abundant mileage to the builder of these structures in due course. Thanks.
June 22, 2012 at 11:32 pm
बहिन जी……………..खुश हुई !!!
June 23, 2012 at 8:13 am
अरे हम पहले जाने होते तो दू चार फोटू और चफना दिए होते ! 😀
June 23, 2012 at 11:34 am
I Now believe it is possible to play a tune with a camera when the Maestros click on any thing. Umashankarji you are just like that.
June 23, 2012 at 11:55 am
Pradip da, I am humbled by your compliment. There are many who play hauntingly beautiful tunes with their cameras. However, I am still a bystander on the shores of photography.
June 23, 2012 at 7:02 pm
Lovely pictures…..made me feel proud once again to have such a rich cultural heritage!
June 23, 2012 at 8:01 pm
Thank you, PT. They are a photographer’s delight.
June 23, 2012 at 7:26 pm
a picture speaks more than million words….
and such images prove that right 🙂
immortal memories and emotions are encrypted within them.. awesome snaps !!!
can stare for hours 😛
June 23, 2012 at 8:04 pm
You have correctly observed that a picture may tell what a million words may not. Thank you, so much.
June 27, 2012 at 7:29 am
Wow… such brilliant captures. Outstanding photography filled my heart with delight. I hope these monuments stay and radiate beauty for ever. And you have done your part by immortalizing them through your priceless captures. And loved your short introduction. Was sublime.
June 27, 2012 at 8:56 am
Raj, thank you so much for your lavish praise of the images and the short introduction. I am glad it made you happy!
June 29, 2012 at 10:27 pm
When I read the title of your post I thought it was about the Mayan civilization. But after having seen and read your post, just one comment: Superb pics and superb title for the post. 🙂
June 29, 2012 at 10:46 pm
Sudhagee, I thank you humbly for the compliment.
July 15, 2012 at 7:32 pm
Beautiful photography!!! The first time I saw the photos, felt like I was transported to some old …………bygone era….
July 15, 2012 at 8:33 pm
Many thanks, Deepthi. Those structures do evoke an antique aura.
September 18, 2012 at 8:58 pm
Uma Shankarji, been on your page after a long time. selected this blog due to the uniqueness of its title 🙂 and it was truly a unique title. 🙂 nice clicks that you have done being behind the lens 🙂 like the goldennnesss of the clicks 🙂 🙂
September 19, 2012 at 7:28 am
You are kind, Jkhona sahib. I have borrowed the name from an adventure game!
September 19, 2012 at 9:09 pm
Such a lovely place! I look forward to visiting someday.
September 19, 2012 at 10:01 pm
You will love Lucknow!
September 19, 2012 at 10:54 pm
I’m sure!
September 4, 2013 at 9:59 am
Wow, those are some great photos.
September 4, 2013 at 9:26 pm
Thanks, Girlseule.
September 15, 2013 at 12:08 am
You make me want to walk into your photographs. Well done!
September 15, 2013 at 9:29 am
Thank you for the delicious compliment.