Hyderabadi Limericks!

A famous explorer once reckoned

She’d visit Hyderabad in the Deccan

After just one week there

She was heard to declare

“I find the rest of the world, a poor second.”

Minars, Palaces and Nawabs

Double-ka-meetha, Biryani & Kababs

Pearls and bangles too

Lakes of shimmering blue

“Ah Hyderabad – Tera kya jawab!”

Hyderabad, the Pearl of the Deccan

Is a paradise on earth I reckon

Its jewellery, its pearls

Sumptuous food, lovely girls

Each of these independently beckon.

Boti Kabab and Double-ka-meetha

Better than Gajar-ka-halwa & Agra-ka-petha

Biryani sublime, Haleem divine

Shorbha supreme, Murgh Saleem

Whatever anyone serves, we can serve better!

Some seekers come to Hyderabad for pearls

Prospective grooms for marriageable girls

Gourmets flock for food

Far renowned, so good

Small wonder, the traffic here swirls.

Synonymous with Hyderabad, is cuisine

Its Biryanis, Kababs & Haleem

The list is unending

With no end to spending

Add to these, the desserts and the cream.

You can hear the ‘Yemandi’ in Telugu

And the saying ‘Kya hai miya’ in Urdu

The Gujrati ‘Kemchi’

The Sindhi ‘Vadi Saayi’

The word ‘Cosmopolitan’ is perfectly true.

I love Hyderabad from Charminar to Monda

From Moula-Ali right up to Golconda

Of each nook and cranny

Of which there are many

I’m growing fonder & fonder & fonder.

To Visit the beautiful Charminar

And the tempting gullies of Laad bazar

More often we’d go

If only, we’d know

We would find place to park our Car.

Built on the Naubath Pahad is Birla Mandir

There are no words to speak of its grandeur

Lord Venkateshwara’s holy Shrine

Conspicuous from any area in line

Every devotee is granted his wish here.

Hyderabadis are always late

Loosely defining both time and date

You may say, “Oh, please hurry”

But it’s useless to worry

Things will just move at a leisurely rate.

A wonderful city is Hyderabad

A place where few ever work too hard

There is always tomorrow

Today let us borrow

And have fun, for we hold that in high regard.

Hyderabad hai bas ek kahani

Once you have come here & sampled Biryani

You can’t stay away

You’re drawn day by day

By its people, its Khana & pani.

Menus in Hyderabad are unending

On food everyone is over-spending

Be it meats or baghara

Meetha or khara

To one’s palate one is always attending.

When the beautiful bride of Saleem

Made Mirchi-ka-salan & Haleem

He said, “You look good

But this food that you cook

Really makes me want to scream.

Hyderabadi Cuisine is divine

Cause it’s cooked without count of the time

Marinated at leisure

Hand-pounded with pleasure

Ingredients are at their prime.

When you ride in an auto in Hyderabad

It’s like being in a storm or a blizzard

Your bones go clutter clatter

Your teeth they do chatter

If you arrive in one piece you’re quite glad!

On the day when it starts to rain

In a narrow Doodh-Bowli lane

You can swallow a fish

With that magical wish

From Asthma never to complain!

Quli built Charminar in Hyderabad

Everyone thought the King was mad

They didn’t know why

He built it so high

But we are proud of it, Char sau saal baadh!