Taramati Baradari

Taramati Baradari is a Qutb Shahi pleasure pavilion in the Ibrahim Bagh area of western Hyderabad, Telangana, India, on Gandipet Road not far from Golconda Fort. A baradari is a pavilion with twelve doorways, allowing air to pass through, and this one was built in the 17th century in the gardens laid out by the Qutb Shahi rulers. It is named after Taramati, a court singer and dancer said to have performed for Abdullah Qutb Shah, the seventh sultan of Golconda, who reigned from 1626 to 1672. Popular tradition says that she performed on a tightrope stretched between the pavilion and the fort, and that her voice carried across the distance, although this belongs to local legend rather than documented history. The site nonetheless reflects the cultural life of the Qutb Shahi court, which patronised music, dance and poetry alongside architecture, and Persian and Telugu literary traditions flourished under the dynasty. The building is a two-storey pavilion of granite and lime plaster on a raised platform, with arched openings on all sides and a flat roof for viewing performances. The design is open and symmetrical, in keeping with Persian garden pavilions, and it sits within landscaped grounds that once formed part of a royal pleasure garden. The complex has been restored in recent decades, and the Telangana tourism authorities have added a cultural complex with a small auditorium and open-air amphitheatre, where music and dance events are sometimes staged. A visit is short, usually 30 to 60 minutes, and is often combined with the Qutb Shahi Tombs and Golconda Fort, which lie a few kilometres apart. The pavilion is best visited in the late afternoon, when the light and breeze are pleasant, and there is limited on-site interpretation.