Every city has a past and the every corner of it has a story attached no matter it comes under the purview of logic or not. Among all the stories we hear may not have the required proof to prove their authenticity but at the same time, one cannot ignore them as an erroneous and fictitious fancy tales. If we keep Bengaluru in this context the city is not an exception to these kinds of untold secret stories. The gorgeous city has an interesting history to be explored and today we are here with such secrets about Bangalore which are guarded from years.
Unbelievable Facts and Secrets about Bangalore
Benda-kal-ooru is not really the original name of Bengaluru
The chronicle of Bengaluru getting its name from the word ‘Benda-kal-ooru’ is a known story that dates back to 1120 AD. A story of Hoysala king Veera Ballala losing his way in the forest and an old lady offering him a shelter and some boiled beans for dinner. Then the king as a token of gratitude decides to construct a town for saving his life and calls it as Benda-Kal-ooru (City of Boiled beans). Later on in 1537, Kempegowda re-designs the town to give it an advanced look.
We all have believed this and yes this is a true story but the history of Bengaluru is way beyond Veera Ballala and Kempegowda. An inscription dating back to 890AD says that the city has a history of more than 1000 years. Exploring the pages of history we come to know that there is an epitaph written in old Kannada at Parvathi Nageshwar temple (Begur) referring a ‘Bengaluru war’ that happened in 890AD. So, this proves that the district was a part of Ganga Kingdom until 1024 C.E and that time it was called as ‘Bengaval-ooru’ meaning the ‘city of guards’ in old Kannada.
Bengaluru had a river in the name of Vrishabahavathi
If you are in an impression that there is no major river that flows through the city then you may have to take a relook at it. Vrishabhavathi flows through Bengaluru and at one time it was so pristine that it was used by the famous Gaali Anjaneya temple. Over the period of time, it got so polluted that it became unfit even for the domestic use. The origin of this river is through Bull temple (Basavangudi) and it flows through Gudda Halli, Bapu Ji Nagar, RR Nagar, and Kengeri. You will be shocked to know that the same Vrishabhavathi river is today’s Kengeri Mori (Gutter of Kengeri).
Minsk of Eastern Europe is the sister city of Bengaluru
The whole concept of sister cities started during the end of World war 2 to promote better relationships between countries. Since 1973 Bengaluru and Minsk are considered to be the sister cities and as an attestation to this fact, we have Minsk square in Sampangi Ramanagar of Bengaluru and there is a Bangalore square in the Minsk.
Kempegowda and the Pregnant woman
There is a narrative from past related to Lakshamamma temple located in Koramangala. It so happened that while Kempegowda was constructing his fort, the southern gate used to collapse in the night even after building it for 1000 times. All efforts went into vain and the king went clueless about it. An advice came in from an astrologer that an offering of pregnant woman’s life would solve the problem. Kempegowda though had dismissed the idea of this brutal act of killing a pregnant woman, it was destined. Kempegowda’s daughter-in-law, Lakshmamma decides to sacrifice her life for this. It is the black spot in the history of Bengaluru. As a token of honor, Kempegowda constructs a temple of his daughter-in-law and it is an ode to the bravery of Lakshmamma.
Plague Amma Temple
You should believe that there is a temple called ‘plague amma temple’ in Thyagarajanagar of Bengaluru dedicated to eradicating plague and small pox. It is the Goddess Rajarajeshwari but due to the fact that millions came to this temple seeking a cure for plague the deity popularly took the name ‘plague amma.’
It was a few decades ago when plague burst out in the city to kill millions of people. This eventually lead to a mass migration of people from old areas to two new localities which came up; Basavanagudi and Malleswaram. These localities were planned and beautifully laid out to help people to settle down without any grievances.
The First Map of India
If the sources are believed to be true then the creation of the 1st map of India was started from the Trinity church, MG Road. It is said that there is a stone even today which was used as a benchmark.
Winston Churchill owes Rs.13 to Bangalore club
Former prime minister of Britain owes Rs.13 to Bangalore club and there is a ledger entry which is a testament to it. On the 125th anniversary of the club, this ledger was released which says that the minister has an unfinished business at the Bangalore club.
The Bangalore club was started in 1868 by a group of British officers. Churchill had come to Bangalore in 1896 as an army officer and left the city in 1899. This is the due of his days in the club. When the ledger of Churchill owing Rs.13 to club became popular, many of the British visitors to the club offered to clear off the dues and it is an interesting thing to be highlighted.
Reason behind the name ‘Malgudi Days’
‘Malgudi days’ is a novel written by the great R.K Narayan which later becomes a tele-serial under the direction of Shankar Nag. You will be amused to know that Malgudi is actually ‘Mal’ from Malleswaram and ‘Gudi’ from Basavanagudi.
The underworld Don Jayaraj’s friendship with Former Chief minister of Karnataka, Devaraj Aras
The stories of Bengaluru underworld is nowhere less to any thrilling stories of Bollywood. It was a time when Bengaluru’s Underworld was at its peak and crime rate in the city was horrible. Flipping the pages of Bengaluru underworld we come to know that the notorious Don Jayaraj had a close relationship with then chief minister of Karnataka, Mr.Devraja Aras. It was Mr.Aras who was the backbone of Jayaraj and the later drama that happened is a history now.
Source 1: My Days in the Underworld: Rise of the Bangalore Mafia
Source 2: Suvarna News Underworld Flashback
These were few of the secrets about Bangalore we tried to compile in this post. We do not hold any authenticity of the information put and this is purely based on the research. If you know or have heard any information of this kind then please contribute your words in the comments below.
