Hyderabad

Golkonda or Golla konda a ruined city of south-central India and capital of ancient Kingdom of Golkonda , is situated 11 km west of Hyderabad.... Golkonda was originally built by the Kakatiya dynasty. However, the most important builder of Golkonda was Ibrahim Quli Qutub Shah Wali, the fourth Qutub king of the Qutub Shahi Dynasty. Ibrahim was following in the spirit of his ancestors, the Qutub Shahi kings, a great family of builders who had ruled the kingdom of Golkonda from 1512. Their first capital, the fortress citadel of Golkonda, was rebuilt for defense from invading Mughals from the north. They laid out Golkonda's splendid monuments, now in ruins, and designed a perfect acoustical system by which a hand clap sounded at the fort's main gates, the grand portico, was heard at the top of the citadel, situated on a 300-foot -high granite hill. This is one of the fascinating features of the fort. They ruled over most of present day Andhra Pradesh before the British Raj. After transferring Northern Circars to British, they ruled the Telangana region and some parts of present day Karnataka and Maharashtra.
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Makkah Masjid is one of the oldest mosques in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India, And it is one of the largest Mosques in India. Makkah Masjid is a... listed heritage building in the old city of Hyderabad, close to the historic landmarks of Chowmahalla Palace and Laad Bazaar. Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah, the fifth ruler of the Qutb Shahi dynasty, commissioned bricks to be made from the soil brought from Mecca, the holiest site of Islam, and used them in the construction of the central arch of the mosque, thus giving the mosque its name. It formed the centerpiece around which the city was planned by Muhammad Quli Qutub Shah. Makkah Masjid was built during the reign of Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah, the 6th Qutb Shahi Sultan of Golconda . The three arched facades have been carved from a single piece of granite, which took five years to quarry. More than 8,000 workers were employed to build the mosque. Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah personally laid the foundation stone. The construction was later completed by Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb after conquering Hyderabad.
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Chowmahalla Palace or Chowmahallat , was a palace belonging to the Nizams of Hyderabad state. It was the seat of the Asaf Jahi dynasty and was the... official residence of the Nizam. In Persian, Chahar means four and in Arabic Mahalat means places, hence the name Chowmahallat/four places, or four palaces. All ceremonial functions including the accession of the Nizams and receptions for the Governor-General were held at this palace. The prestigious UNESCO Asia Pacific Merit award for cultural heritage conservation was presented to Chowmahalla Palace on March 15, 2010. UNESCO representative Takahiko Makino formally handed over the plaque and certificate to Princess Esra, former wife and GPA holder of Prince Mukarram Jah Bahadur. While Salabat Jung initiated its construction in 1750, it was completed by the period of Afzal ad-Dawlah, Asaf Jah V, the V Nizam ensured its completion between 1857 and 1869. It is believed to be modelled on Shah of Iran's palace in Tehran. The palace is unique for its style and elegance. Building of the palace began in the late 18th century and over the decades a synthesis of many architectural styles and influences emerged.
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Falaknuma Palace is one of the finest palaces in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India. It belonged to Paigah Hyderabad State, and it was later owned by... the Nizams. It is on a 32-acre, 19400 square meter area in Falaknuma, 5 km from Charminar. It was built by Nawab Vikar-ul-Umra, the then-prime minister of Hyderabad and the uncle and brother-in-law of H.H. The Nizam VI, Nawab Mir Mahboob Ali Khan Bahadur. Falak-numa means "Like the Sky" or "Mirror of the Sky" in Urdu. An English architect designed this palace. The foundation for the construction was laid by H.E. Sir Vicar Ul Umra Bahadur on March 3, 1884. He was the great grandson of Khuddus, a famous scientist who was a best friend of Sir Charles Darwin. It took nine years to complete the construction and furnish the palace. Sir Vicar moved into the Gol Bangla and Zanana Mahel of the Falaknuma Palace in December 1889 and closely monitored the finishing work at the Mardana portion. It is made completely with Italian marble and covers an area of 93,971 square meters. The palace was built in the shape of a scorpion with two stings spread out as wings in the north.
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Namrata Shirodkar is an Indian actress and model. Namrata Shirodkar was born in a moderate Maharashtrian Brahmin family. She used to live in Khar, a... suburb in Mumbai. Her sister is the actress Shilpa Shirodkar. She is the granddaughter of famous Marathi actress Meenakshi Shirodkar, who starred in Brahmachari , and was the first actress to wear a swimsuit and gambol in a pool. She married Tollywood actor Mahesh Babu Ghattamaneni on 10 February 2005. Namrata worked as a model, and was crowned Miss India in 1993. She represented India in the Miss Universe pageant and came in fifth place. She was featured on VH1's The Greatest: 40 Dumbest Celebrity Quotes Ever for her answer at the 1993 Miss Universe contest to a question asked by Michael Dorn: "I would not want to live forever because I don't believe that one can live forever. And so, I don't think I would want to live forever!" The same year, she also represented India in the Miss Asia Pacific contest and was chosen first runner-up. She made her debut with a small role in super hit film Jab Pyaar Kisise Hota Hai , along with Salman Khan and Twinkle Khanna.
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Tabu is an Indian film actress. She has mainly acted in Hindi films, though she has also starred in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Bengali language... films, as well as one American film. She has won the National Film Award for Best Actress twice, and she holds the record for the most wins of Filmfare's Critics Award for Best Female Performer, with four. Despite a few exceptions, Tabu is best known for acting in artistic, low-budget films that go on to garner more critical appreciation than substantial box office figures. Her appearances in commercially successful films were few, and her parts in these films were small, such as Border , Saajan Chale Sasural , Biwi No.1 and Hum Saath-Saath Hain: We Stand United . Her most notable performances include Maachis , Virasat , Hu Tu Tu , Astitva , Chandni Bar , Maqbool and Cheeni Kum . Her leading role in Mira Nair's American film The Namesake also drew major praise.
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Sharmila Tagore is an Indian film actress. She has won National Film Awards and Filmfare Awards for her performances. She has led the Indian Film... Censor Board from October 2004 till March 2011. In December 2005 she was chosen as an UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. Sharmila was born in a Hindu Bengali family in Hyderabad State to Gitindranath Tagore who was then deputy general manager of the East India Company owner of Elgin Mills. Gitindranath was the son of Kanakendranath Tagore who is the son of noted painter Gaganendranath Tagore. She attended St. John's Diocesan Girls' Higher Secondary School and Loreto Convent, Asansol. She is the great-grand niece of noted poet Rabindranath Tagore. Sharmila began her career as an actress in Satyajit Ray's 1959 Bengali film Apur Sansar , as the ill-fated bride of the title character. She appeared in a number of Ray films, often co-starring with Soumitra Chatterjee. She established herself as a popular Hindi film actress with Shakti Samanta's Kashmir Ki Kali with Shammi Kapoor in 1964.
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Pawan Kalyan is an Indian film actor, director, screenwriter and action choreographer in Telugu cinema. He is the brother of Indian actor... Chiranjeevi. He made his acting debut in 1996 with Akkada Ammayi Ikkada Abbayi. In 1998, he was starred in Tholi Prema which won the National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Telugu for that Year. He is known for his works in other blockbusters like Gokulamlo Seetha, Suswagatham, Thammudu, Badri, Kushi, Jalsa and Gabbar Singh Born to Konidela Venkata Rao and Anjana Devi, Pawan Kalyan is the younger brother of Chiranjeevi and Nagendra Babu. After his divorce from Nandini, Pawan Kalyan married Renu Desai on 28 January 2009. She co-starred with him in the films Badri and Johnny and has worked as costume designer for most of his films. The couple have two children, a son named Akira Nandan born in 2004 and a girl named Aadhya born in 2010. Akira was named after Pawan Kalyan's favorite director Akira Kurosawa. Kalyan is trained in martial arts. He holds a black belt in karate and has displayed his skills in several of his films.
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Nagarjuna is an Indian film actor and producer who works primarily in the Telugu film industry . He has also worked in a few Bollywood and Kollywood... films. He has won two National Film Awards, six Nandi Awards and three Filmfare Awards South. He owns the Production company, Annapurna Studios and Annapurna International School of Film and Media based in Hyderabad. He is the brand ambassador for Kalyan Jewellers group in India. Nagarjuna was born on 29 August 1959 in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India to actor Nageswara Rao Akkineni and Annapurna Akkineni. The family later moved to Hyderabad where he attended the Hyderabad Public School and studied his "Intermediate" from Little Flower Junior College and B.E. from the College of Engineering, Guindy, Chennai. He completed M.S. in Automobile Engineering from Eastern Michigan University. He is the spouse of actress Amala Akkineni, the father of actors Naga Chaitanya Akkineni and Akhil Akkineni. Nagarjuna acted as a child artist in the 1967 Telugu film Sudigundalu directed by veteran Adurthi Subbarao.
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Brahmanandam Kanneganti is an Indian actor and comedian, commonly appearing in Telugu films. He was born into a Viswakarma Brahmin family. He holds... Guinness World Record for acting in the most number of films in a single language. He has starred in over 900 films till date. He is noted for Physical comedy and Satire. He is one of the versatile Indian actors in this genre. On a visit to Hyderabad, Brahmanandam happened to accidentally meet writer Adi Vishnu who introduced him to MCV Sashidhar of DD. They started a serial called Pakapakalu. Adi Vishnu, Musicologist Raja and BV Pattabhi Ram recommended him to Jandhyala. Brahmanandam met Jandhyala and showed many of his skits. Jandhyala was very happy and appreciated Brahmanandam. Brahmanandam's first film was Sri Tatavataram Katha, second film was Satyagraham and third film was Aha Naa pellanta. Since then he has featured consistently in films every year. He has been awarded the Padma Shri, India's fourth highest civilian award in 2009 by the Government of India, He received an honorary doctorate by Acharya Nagarjuna University and the Nandi Award by the Government of Andhra Pradesh among others.
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Dia Mirza, Dia Mirza Handrich nicknamed Dee is a Indian model and actress who appears in Bollywood films. The actress along with her boyfriend Sahil... Sangha and good friend Zayed Khan has started her own production house, Born Free Entertainment, their first film Love Breakups Zindagi made under the banner was released on 7 October 2011. Dia Mirza was born in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh. Her father, Frank Handrich, was a German graphic and industrial fair designer, architect, artist and interior designer from Munich and her mother, Deepa is a Bengali Hindu who is an interior designer, landscaper and currently does social work as a volunteer to help alcoholics and addicts. They separated when she was six years old. Her father died when she was nine and her mother married Ahmed Mirza, who died in 2004. She adopted her steppfather's surname and has recently adopted the last name of her birth-father, becoming Dia Mirza Handrich. When living in Khairatabad, Hyderabad district, she attended Vidyaranya High School for Boys And Girls, a school based on the teachings of Jiddu Krishnamurti, and later Nasr School, in Khairtabad.
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Vivek Oberoi is an Indian actor. He is the son of Bollywood actor Suresh Oberoi and Yashodhara Oberoi. Born to a Punjabi father and a Tamil mother,... Vivek attended Mayo college in Ajmer. At an actors' workshop in London he was spotted by the director of New York University who took Vivek off to New York, where he completed his Masters Degree in film acting. Vivek also worked as a script writer in India. Vivek Oberoi made his debut with Ram Gopal Varma's film Company. He received Filmfare Awards for Best Debut as well as Best Supporting Actor. He then starred in the action films, Road and Dum. In Dum, he played the role of a man trying to become a part of Indian police but faces many troubles with a police inspector. Next, he starred in Saathiya directed by Shaad Ali. The film was a big hit at the box office and earned him a Filmfare nomination in the Best Actor category. He starred in a comedy Masti . In 2004, he also starred in Yuva . In 2005 he acted the title character in the film Kisna: The Warrior Poet. In 2006, he appeared in Omkara, an adaptation of Shakespeare's play Othello.
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Tabu is an Indian film actress. She has mainly acted in Hindi films, though she has also starred in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Bengali language... films, as well as one American film. She has won the National Film Award for Best Actress twice, and she holds the record for the most wins of Filmfare's Critics Award for Best Female Performer, with four. Despite a few exceptions, Tabu is best known for acting in artistic, low-budget films that go on to garner more critical appreciation than substantial box office figures. Her appearances in commercially successful films were few, and her parts in these films were small, such as Border , Saajan Chale Sasural , Biwi No.1 and Hum Saath-Saath Hain: We Stand United . Her most notable performances include Maachis , Virasat , Hu Tu Tu , Astitva , Chandni Bar , Maqbool and Cheeni Kum . Her leading role in Mira Nair's American film The Namesake also drew major praise.
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Sharmila Tagore is an Indian film actress. She has won National Film Awards and Filmfare Awards for her performances. She has led the Indian Film... Censor Board from October 2004 till March 2011. In December 2005 she was chosen as an UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. Sharmila was born in a Hindu Bengali family in Hyderabad State to Gitindranath Tagore who was then deputy general manager of the East India Company owner of Elgin Mills. Gitindranath was the son of Kanakendranath Tagore who is the son of noted painter Gaganendranath Tagore. She attended St. John's Diocesan Girls' Higher Secondary School and Loreto Convent, Asansol. She is the great-grand niece of noted poet Rabindranath Tagore. Sharmila began her career as an actress in Satyajit Ray's 1959 Bengali film Apur Sansar , as the ill-fated bride of the title character. She appeared in a number of Ray films, often co-starring with Soumitra Chatterjee. She established herself as a popular Hindi film actress with Shakti Samanta's Kashmir Ki Kali with Shammi Kapoor in 1964.
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Amjad Khan was an acclaimed Indian actor and director. He worked in over 130 films in a career spanning nearly twenty years. He enjoyed popularity... for his villainous roles in Hindi films, the most famous being the unforgettable Gabbar Singh in the 1975 classic Sholay and of Dilawar in Muqaddar Ka Sikandar . Khan was born in Quetta to Muslim parents. He was the son of legendary actor Jayant. He was the brother of fellow actor Imtiaz Khan and Inayat Khan who acted in one film. In 1957, he was cast in the movie Ab Dili Dur Nahin. Khan did his schooling at St Theresa's High School, Bandra. He attended R D National College, Bandra and was the general secretary — the highest elected student body representative. He had already gained a reputation of being a heavyweight "dada" and was feared and respected. Before Amjad came to films he was a theatre actor. His first role was at the age of 17 in the film Ab Dilli Dur Nahin . He made appearances in minor roles with father Jayant in a few films. He assisted K. Asif in Love and God in the late 1960s and had made a brief appearance in the film.
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Ram Gopal Varma also known as RGV is an Indian film director, screenwriter and producer. Varma has directed, written and produced films across... multiple genres — psychological thrillers, underworld gang warfare, road movies, horrors, politician-criminal nexus, and musicals in multiple languages. He gained recognition in Bollywood with the Hindi film, Shiva premiered at International Film Festival of India in kolkata and Rangeela . The next film he directed was Satya , which won six Filmfare Awards, including the Critics Award for Best Film, and was show cased among the Indian panorama section, at the 1998 International Film Festival of India. Satya, together with his 2002 film Company and the 2005 film D , form an "Indian gangster trilogy". Other acclaimed films that Varma directed include Kshana Kshanam , Gaayam , Anaganaga Oka Roju , Kaun , Jungle , Bhoot , Sarkar , Sarkar Raj , Rakta Charitra Katha Screenplay Darshakatvam Appalaraju , Dongala Mutta and Department .
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