Students in Mysuru are keeping its past alive with walks

Rashmi Gopal Rao

If you find yourself in Mysuru with its wondrous palaces and buildings, take a walk through the city with a bunch of smart students from the Wadiyar Centre for Architecture (WCFA). The students offer two walks, Memories of the Land and Bazaars of Mysore as well as a cycling tour, Pedal and Prestige.

Pore over old maps, get regaled by stories of yore and go to all the right places.  This group of 30 students has deep knowledge of architecture, history and the city’s hotspots.

After all, the best way to explore a city is by strolling through its lanes and mohallas, its historic structures and markets, its local hotspots and landmarks. Or you could cycle past, dexterously dodging traffic and absorbing the city’s sights and sounds.   

Mysore aka Mysuru is just 150 km from Bengaluru, India’s IT capital. It’s called the City of Palaces because it has seven of them. The famed Mysore palace, residence of the Wadiyar dynasty, is located here. The grand Dasara festival is held here too. Informally, Mysuru is regarded as the cultural capital of Karnataka.  

 

Julie Ann Tharakan, associate professor at WCFA, says she got the idea of organizing walks while researching Mysuru’s iconic buildings as part of the syllabus she was teaching.

“Over time I discovered several interesting aspects and stories closely linked to the city’s urban and social life and integral to its identity and unique character.  It was then that we decided to share this knowledge not just in the classroom but with people who would be interested. That’s how we got this idea of curating heritage walks in October 2022.”

Tharakan and her students took almost a year to turn their idea into reality. They undertook research, picking up references, did visual mapping, dry runs and  finetuned marketing techniques. In October 2023 they launched their first walk.

The heritage walks are part of the college’s outreach programme, coordinated and conducted solely by the students with guidance from the faculty. What started with three students has today grown into a team of about 30 students who manage the entire exercise end-to-end. This includes advertising, promotion, registration, coordination with the participants, actual execution, social media updates and the like.

 

Walk, talk, shop

“Memories of the Land was the first walk we launched during the Dasara season of 2023. It is extremely popular with tourists and people who aren’t really familiar with Mysuru,” says Aparna Acharya, a fourth-year student of WCFA.

A team of 30 students researched, mapped and ideated the walks

“During this walk we take you to the most iconic buildings of the city, starting from the Jaya Marthaanda gate of the palace. Visitors get a glimpse of Mysore’s glorious heritage which can be seen right on the streets in its ornate roundabouts and squares.”

From squares and circles you are walked up to the clock tower,  the Jaganmohan Palace and then to Parakala Mutt, to help you experience the native vibe of the city.  The walk ends at the renowned Guru Sweets in Devaraja market. Founded in 1935, the shop is famous for Mysore Pak and other sweets made in ghee.

Bazaars of Mysore is another interesting walk curated by the team. It takes visitors on a journey back in time to old historic markets.  “We take participants to streets which were once bustling markets and where hawkers traded in commodities like metals and coins. While most people are familiar with the Devaraja market, it is a revelation to note that the city was home to several other inter-related markets. Many of them have disappeared over time while some, surprisingly, exist even today,” says Sukhi Kumaran, a third-year student of WCFA.

Pedal and Prestige was introduced by the team in early 2024. This is a cycling tour that takes participants on a colonial trail in the city. Conducted in collaboration with Decathlon Mysuru, Pedal and Prestige covers some renowned colonial buildings, focusing on design and architectural aspects.

“We also curate our walks depending on the background of the participants. For example, if we have practising architects or architecture students we focus in detail on, say, the building methodology, design features, materials used and so on. If we have tourists, we try to give information that will appeal to them,” says Lakshitha Mohan, a third-year student of WCFA. Research is an on-going activity and the team is constantly working to keep itself updated and curate new walks.  “We are almost ready to launch Pedal and Prestige Part II. This will cover new areas of interest,” says Tharakan.

 

An enriching experience

Both participants and students have benefitted from the walks. Participants learn about the city while students learn from their interactions, especially if those signing up are locals.

“Recently, members from three generations of the same family, long-time residents of Mysuru, came for a walk. The most senior gentleman gave us a lot of information about the Lansdowne building, now almost dilapidated. He had  seen the building during its heydays. His talk was really fascinating for all of us. We also had two architects from Thailand taking the walk and it was an interesting exchange of perspectives,” says Acharya.

In fact, the walks have been well-received by locals, which speaks volumes of the value addition and quality of information provided by the students. “We took the Memories of the Land walk earlier this year. Although we are both familiar with Mysuru, the walk gave us a lot of information on heritage and linked it wonderfully to history," say Poorna and Anup Mysoor, residents of the city.

"The tour started at an early hour, giving us the added benefit of experiencing the city as it was waking up. We were most impressed with the interiors of the Parakala Mutt, a building we would have never entered had it not been for this walk. We enjoyed every minute of this tour," they added.

Hemamalini Jairam, another local, joined the heritage walk for the second time. “A walk around the palace and the old markets of Mysuru was lovely. But the interesting nuggets of history and architecture that were enthusiastically shared by the young students was the highlight. They had come equipped with facts, old photographs and anecdotes,” says Jairam.

Hitesh Kataria, a mountaineer and also a local, says, “The heritage walks are indeed a great way to explore Mysore. The students who lead them do it with such passion that you really feel connected to the stories.”   

The students have done around 50 walks so far. They’ve also taken part in citizen-led initiatives, including a “Save Devaraja Market” campaign.    

It costs just Rs 300 to join these walks. You can get in touch through their website or connect on Instagram.