The magnificent Vidhana Soudha is the largest legislature-cum-secretariat
building in the country. Situated in the heart of the city, the
state secretariat building is essentially Indian in style. It is
built mainly on the union of Dravidian, Rajasthani, Chola and Kannada
styles of architecture, which evolved in India. The ornamental motifs,
floral patterns and chiselled geometric designs are all distinct
and not a single design has been repeated. The woodwork throughout
the monument is exceptional, particularly the sandalwood doors,
which are famous for their intricate carvings. The floral motifs
of the stone-carvings are Dravidian in style and are drawn entirely
from the temple-craft of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu.During an interview,
the Chief Minister of the erstwhile Mysore State (1951 to 1956),
Kengal Hanumanthaiah, explained the reasoning behind the architectural
styles of the monument. A Russian cultural delegation was visiting
Bangalore and K Hanumanthaiah took them around to show the city.
Every now and then they queried, "Have you no architecture
of your own? They are all European buildings". Stung, K Hanumanthaiah,
vowed to create a monument so magnificent that it would showcase
the best of South India's indigenous architectural styles.
The stone-structure is built entirely with the granite excavated
from the vicinity of Hesaragatta and Mallasandra. The grand entrance
of the Vidhana Soudha faces the Attara Kacheri (now called the High
Court), another imposing structure. There was a debate on constructing
a separate building for the Secretariat and the Legislature, the
latter being a simple building and the former having decoration
and adornment. K Hanumanthaiah was of the view that by having two
separate buildings, time, space and expenditure would be doubled
and there would be inordinate delay in going from one building to
the other. The entire building of Vidhana Soudha covers an area
of 720x360 ft. At the centre of the building is an open quadrangle
of 260x250 ft. The building consists of three floors, each over
1.3 lakh sq. feet, and a top floor of 1.01 lakh sq. ft and storage
rooms in the cellar. The Banquet Hall (192x120 ft.) has to be approached
from the east, while the Assembly Hall above this measures 132x125
ft. and the Council Hall to the South measures 100x78 ft. On the
third floor is the Cabinet Meeting Hall and on all the floors in
the northern wing are halls measuring 80x40 ft. On the eastern side
is a porch with eight tall decorated cylindrical granite columns
of 40 ft. in height.
Granite stones of different colours found in and around Bangalore
were used for the building. The building's four corners have four
towers, supporting domes topped by metallic kalashas, one of which
is bigger and taller than the others and has been placed at the
front (east). Two small towers flank it. The metallic gold glittering
national emblem atop the majestic dome was artistically wrought
by a sculptor from Bangalore, Shilpi Shamachar.The ideas from many
old Indian buildings were borrowed and incorporated in this dream
building of Kengal Hanumanthaiah.
The Vidhana Soudha project, from conception, execution and completion
can be attributed completely to the dynamic leadership of late K
Hanumanthaiah. His grand vision was of an imposing monument vital
on the city's sightseeing map combined with a seat of excellence
from which the government secretariat functions.For a 360° panoramic
view of the Vidhana Soudha,
North
India States
