Bangalore preview


A demographically diverse city, Bangalore is a major economic hub and is one of the fastest growing metropolises in India.

BendhakaaLooru: Place of Boiled Beans

Legend has it that Bangalore got its name from the words "Bendha kaalu" (which means ‘boiled grams' or boiled chickpeas in the local language, Kannada). King Veera Ballala of the Vijayanagara kingdom was lost in a forest and stumbled upon a lone cottage. The old woman who lived there could offer the starving king only boiled beans, "Bendha kaalu". The King found this humble meal tasted better than the richest fare he was used to. In the memory of that incident the place came to be known as "Bendha kaaLu ooru" (ooru in Kannada means ‘city').

The earliest references to Bangalore are around the tenth century-then the district was part of the Ganga kingdom which ruled from Gangavadi and was known as ‘Benga-val-oru', the ‘City of Guards' in old Kannada. In 1024, the Chola Empire captured the city. Today, little evidence can be seen of this period, except a small village in South Bengalooru and one in Anantapur district. In 1117, King Veera Ballala II defeated the Cholas in the battle of Talakad which lead to the downfall of the Chola empire.

It was only in the year 1537 that Magadi Kempe Gowda of the Vijayanagara Empire, founded Bangalore by building a mud fort around the village. Within the fort, the town was divided into markets. Chickapete Street ran from east to west and Doddapete Street ran north to south-and their intersection point formed Doddapete Square-the heart of Bangalore. Kempe Gowda's successor Kempe Gowda II build many magnific…

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