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(Editor’s Note: This story was first published on 1 December, 2018 and is being republished from The Quint’s archives in the light of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath’s remark to change the name of Hyderabad to Bhagyanagar.)
Shakespeare once said, ‘what’s in a name’, but in Hyderabad, the name is everything. Just weeks before the official announcement of the Telangana Assembly Elections, BJP leader Raja Singh had said if their party is voted to power, they would rename Hyderabad.
“Earlier, Hyderabad was known as Bhagyanagar. In 1590, Quli Qutub Shah came and changed Bhagyanagar to Hyderabad. At that time, many Hindus were attacked, many temples destroyed. In Telangana, BJP will win a majority and then our first aim will be developing the state and second will be renaming Hyderabad as Bhagyanagar,” he said.
However, when The Quint asked the people of Hyderabad what they thought of the proposal, the answer was a resounding no. “That’s not a prime concern. That should not be the prime concern. Because changing the name doesn’t change the standard of living of the people,” said a lawyer from Hyderabad.
Chanakya, a software engineer, said the proposal was a political gimmick. “They are trying to replicate what they did in Uttar Pradesh,” he said.
However, both agreed that in case the name is changed, they might get used to it.
But then came the big question, what will happen to the famous biryani of Hyderabad? Will it be called Bhagyanagar Biryani?
“Bhagyanagar Biryani! It will be so funny. Biryani will be Hyderabad Biryani. Otherwise it won’t sell. So, they will not change,” said Hari, a fashion designing student from Hyderabad.
Even Ashok, a retired private firm employee, agreed. “You can’t say that. It will sound silly. It will still be known as Hyderabad and Hyderabad biryani.”
In short, for the proposal for a name change, the answer from Hyderabad is a ‘Nakko’ (no).
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