The total area of Old London is about one square mile and that of old Bangalore or Pete is about two square km. But old London has transformed completely. Today, it is the centre of many multinational banks and other trading companies who have built a large number of modern multi-storey buildings. Yet, some historical monuments like London wall, Fire Monument, London Museum do exist among these skyscrapers. But, such transformations in Bengaluru pete is minimal. To a larger extent, the charm of old Bangalore has been retained. Particularly on some festival days, the surroundings of city market exhibit the true color and fervor of bygone Bengaluru. Street names like Gundopanth street Basetty Galli, Kilari Raste and many more such names of lanes and bylanes remind us of native nature of this place. Hundreds of years old worshipping centres, belonging to various communities co-exist here to convey the message of religious harmony. Like in Londonium, here too, everyday business runs to crores of rupees. But the financial considerations have not completely wiped out the true tradition and culture of old Bengaluru
The comparison of these two cities cannot be confined to their formative stages only. There are many more aspects, wherein Bangalore reverberates in London. A remarkable instance to prove this fact is the presence of Bangalore street in London City. It is in Putney area of Wandsworth Borough, South West London. It isabout a kilometer long street and has a row of beautiful, traditional, British style residential buildings on either side of the road. At the beginning and middle of the road, two plates display the name Bangalore Street. An old building also has the name on the wall. At the end of the road a house has this name inscribed on its entrance.
There is a Heritage Service Centre of the Battersea library in Wandsworth Borough. It contains all the names of the streets and locations that come under London County Council Administration. On page 48 of this book published by the Council it says that in 1898, Bangalore as a name for that particular street was sanctioned.
A file in the same centre has a letter approved on May 20, 1901 given to a builder to construct 27 houses in a row. The blue print of this project has a road named Bangalore Street.
Apart from these details we do not have any other information about why it was named so, that too, to be precise, 120 years ago in a far off European city like London
This could be the logical explanation: The British came to Bangalore in 1800. They were given a vast space near Halasuru to build Cantonment. Gradually, the family members of the army personnel also arrived and settled down leading to the development of a small township also called by some as ‘Little England’. But later it was officially named as Civil and Military Station. In addition to Army personnel, many other Britishers living here were engaged in different professions.
When Plague broke out in this region in 1898, many of these people went back to England and continued their avocation there.
One such person was a contractor or a builder who had worked in Bangalore for quite a long time and had developed a liking and regard for the city. In 1898 he returned to his home town London.
After 1890, in Bangalore, famine and plague outbreak led to the formation of new and well-planned extensions like Chamarajapet, Basavanagudi and Malleshwaram. Simlarly, in England, the Victorian period between 1837 to 1901 was an era of development and expansions. The countryside of London was widened with newer localities to build a greater London. Contracts were given to construct new roads and buildings. This British Builder from Bangalore must have obtained the sanction to build a few residential lanes in Putney of Battersea. He showed his love and liking for Bangalore by naming a road as Bangalore Street.
In the same Borough there is also a Mysore Street named in 1894. A foot note just says Mysore is an Indian State.
Anyone who wants to do a thorough study of various aspects of Bangalore city, British Library on Euston Road, London is a right choice. Here, the India Office section of Asia African studies located in third floor has more than 35,000 files pertaining to a large number of departments of this city. Even, just to glance through this list on line, it requires two or three days. Another set of 500 files contains pictures, maps, drawings and other materials with reference to Bangalore.
Close to British Library, near Russell Square is School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS ) of London University. SOAS has an amazing collection of photographs on Bangalore taken in the last century. They are given to SOAS either by the photographers themselves or their descendants for preservation. With prior permission, these pictures can be photographed free of charge. Lalbagh Glass House with only three wings, Saint Mary’s Church in Shivajinagar with a vast open field around, the unveiling ceremony of Queen Victoria Statue in 1906 at Cubbon Park, front view of Atthara Cucheri (now High Court) taken from Cubbon Park and hundreds of such photographs are really a treat to view.
To be continued