Vidhana Soudha

Described by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru as 'a temple dedicated to the nation', Vidhana Soudha houses the State Legislature and the Secretariat of Karnataka and is one of the most popular attractions in the lively and colourful city of Bengaluru. It also proudly boasts the title of being the largest state legislative building in the country. With four entrances in all four directions and four floors above the ground level and one below it, we surely don't doubt the title.

Popularly known as the 'Taj Mahal of South India', it is counted as one of the most magnificent buildings in the city and is sure to impress the onlooker with its sophisticated poise and glorified grandiose. The entire monument is illuminated on Sundays and public holidays and is a sight for sore eyes.

Then Prime Minister Sri Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru along with then Chief Minister K.C. Reddy laid down the first brick of this establishment on 13 July 1951 and initiated the construction of a monument that symbolizes the legislative sovereignty of the people of the country. Its construction took a good five years and it was finally inaugurated in 1956 to become the largest legislative building in India. The Vidhana Soudha stands 150 feet tall and boasts of an elegant and truly exquisite Neo-Dravidian style of architecture.

Architecture of Vidhana Soudha

Sprawling across an area of 60 acres, the Vidhan Soudha exhibits a glorified and exuberant Neo-Dravidian architecture style with splashes of Indo-Saracenic architecture sprucing up the place with sheer elegance. Surrounded by lush green manicured lawns, the structure consists of four upper levels and one basement housing a total of 172 rooms and is built purely out of granite and porphyry. The floor area spans its reach across almost 47,000 square meters!

Embellishing the entrance of the building is the four-headed lion, the national symbol of our country. One of the most attractive elements of the Vidhan Soudha's interiors are the grand stairs that lead up to the foyer. Forty-five steps, 200 feet wide and 70 feet deep, climb directly up to the foyer that opens up to the large Assembly Chamber. The Assembly Hall looks extremely majestic with twenty columns, each forty feet tall, adorning its entrance. The central dome is supported by eight granite columns that are each have a diameter of 60 feet making the roof of the State Banquet Hall. The dome is also crowned with the Indian National Emblem.

An artistic blend of modern and ancient architecture, the Vidhan Soudha comprises richly carved bases and capitals for pillars, kapotha cornices, chaithya arches and deep freizes. An interesting fact about the construction of this monument is that it was built by 5000 unskilled workers, all of whom were convicts. All these convicts turned labourers were given freedom once the construction was completed. Besides the labourers, the monument required the undivided attention of 1500 chiselers, masons and wood carvers.