In my twenty-two years of existence, I have lived in and
visited numerous cities, spanning across the cultures of India. However, never have
I felt at home, as I feel in my hometown of Mangalore. The delectable seafood
with their enchanting aroma, the narrow winding streets fringed with coconut
palms, the terracotta-tiled house rooftops, the pristine beaches and the calm
religious places – all make it the city where I want to live, forever.
This is the scene
right outside my ‘home cum office’ window.
In Karnataka, especially in the areas of Coorg and
Mangalore, there is a resentment in the public with regards to the Karnataka
government’s idea to hold a festival to commemorate Tipu Sultan’s birth
anniversary (November 20, 1750). The Sultan is widely known as one of the most
powerful kings and battle commanders of India, with the British considering him to be their last big challenge during their invasion of India.
The resentment among the people, however, is about Tipu’s
intolerance towards non-Muslims. Nothing is clear about the functioning and the
thinking process of Tipu, who in my opinion was a ruler who went through a
change of ideologies. Tipu was known to ransack temples and churches and
convert non-Muslims. On the other hand, there is a proven account of Tipu
helping rebuild the Sringeri Mutt after the Marathas (who themselves were proud Hindus) raided and destroyed it. I
don’t have any opinion about this – maybe the Sringeri case was just a political
move to appease the followers of Hindu religion? However, even the capital city
of Tipu’s kingdom was and still is a place of religious importance for the followers
of the Hindu religion. Of what I know, he used to consult astrologers and even
did rituals at the Sree Ranganatha Swami temple in Mysore. Maybe, he didn’t
attack temples and churches in the areas which were already controlled by him,
and destroyed those in the kingdoms he was invading to show that he was their
new ruler? Maybe, he saw that the only way to defeat the British is to stop being communal, and unite against the common enemy?
Okay, Tipu Sultan was a complicated man. All that said and
done, there is no doubt that he was an astute battle commander with artillery
about a century ahead of its time. The British, though, had weapons that are more
intellectual: politics and economics.
I made a trip to Sultan Battery in Mangalore, to have a
look at the famous battery situated at the banks of the Gurupura River, which
Tipu used effectively while battling the invaders, especially the British. The
Sultan’s Battery used to be a unit of guns, mortars, rockets and missiles that
would work as a single machinery while battling battle ships and enemies
invading from the sea.
Sultan Battery: The
structure built in 1784 A.D., reportedly from the stones of the 23 churches
that Tipu destroyed in his 15-year imprisonment of Mangalorean Catholics.
The cannons and
rockets have vanished.
So, if a cannon is
placed in one of the gaps, this is how a target would look like…
And this is all that
would be visible to the target.
The battery is
situated a short distance ahead of the point where the Gurupura river meets the Arabian Sea. This is also the headland of the Mangalore Port. (NMPT: New Mangalore
Port Trust)
Palm trees at the
other side of the river, opposite the Battery.
I decided to take a
ferry across the river, which cost me a mere Rs. 5 for a trip.
At the ferry point, I
observed this trawler stationed in all its glory.
Ah! This is how they
move!
The
closest I have ever been to look like Jack at the tip of the Titanic.
While
in the ferry, I spotted this guy (gal?) atop a trawler.
More palm trees in
the banks of the river!
After the ferry ride,
I walked some 3 minutes across this hamlet to reach…
…Tannirbhavi Beach!
I love it when they rise…
… and rise higher…
… and then crash!
In case you are interested to watch it in action, here is a
9-second video:
Am I the only one who loves to just sit and watch this?
This gives you an
idea about how clean the water is…
The bigger ones are
very tasty and a must have treat in Mangalore.
A practice I have
stuck to at each of my beach visits. I have done this at Juhu (Mumbai), Miramar
(Panjim), Calicut, Kanyakumari, Marina (Madras) and now at Tannirbhavi
(Mangalore).
If you are tired of visiting Goa, why not try Mangalore?
The Sultan Battery is situated approximately 4 KMs away from the main city. The place is open all the time, of course. There are numerous city buses (Bus No. 16) that ply to and fro between State Bank (main city) and Sultan Battery/Tannirbhavi Beach. The last ferry across the river is between 7:00 PM and 7:20 PM. A bus ride from the main city to the Battery/Beach costs less than Rs. 10 (one-way) and the ferry ticket costs Rs. 5 (one-way). There are numerous stalls serving eatables in the hamlet across the river, around the Beach.
You are free to use
the images, with due credits to the author.
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