India, Dec. 28 -- The present-day Bhatkhande Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya in Lucknow has seen many avatars, starting as Marris College of Music, established in 1926, and later becoming a deemed University, known as Bhatkhande College of Hindustani Music in 2000. In June 2022, it was officially renamed Bhatkhande Sanskriti Vishwavidyalaya. As this esteemed institution of Lucknow, boasting of notable alumni such as Naushad, Talat Mehmood, Anoop Jalota and Roshan, along with distinguished faculty like Begum Akhtar, prepares to celebrate its centenary year in 2026, we explore a lesser-known aspect of this institution - the chequered history of the building that houses it. According to a popular urban legend of Lucknow, the present building of the university was originally the erstwhile Pari Khana of Wajid Ali Shah. Nothing can be further from the truth. Post 1857, the British had carried out extensive landscaping of Lucknow, which included demolition of scores of Nawabi buildings, redesigning Nawabi gardens and cutting roads across the city. Qaiserbagh too had suffered this fate, with many of its buildings being vandalised, while few others being allowed to remain. The Pari Khana building, situated on the north of the quadrangle, managed to survive the ire of the British engineers for some time, but it was not put to any use, unlike other surviving structures of Qaiserbagh. Within a decade, however, this too was removed and the foundation stone of Canning College, Lucknow, was laid on its grounds on November 13, 1867, by the then Viceroy, John Lawrence - the usual coins, newspaper etc. being 'placed in the stone, which was situated under the floor of the tower on the west side of the front portico', as per the prevailing practice of those times. The design of the college building first accepted in 1866 was subsequently rejected and fresh designs were invited. The architectural design, which was ultimately selected, was by Tika Ram, head draftsman in the office of the engineer-in-chief, Rajputana State Railway. Swinton Jacob, stationed as chief engineer in Jaipur, later designed Lalgarh Palace, Bikaner, which was 'architecturally inspired' by the Canning College building. The latter, an ambitious project of the colonial government, was unabashedly based on Rajasthani architectural elements, comprising of 'chabutras' (platforms), 'chhajjas'(balconies) 'chhattris' (pavilions) 'jaalis' (lattice work) and 'jharokhas' (bay windows), with Islamic domes and scalloped arches in an early example of the so-called Indo-Saracenic fusion architecture. Polished brass finials were provided for the turrets, minarets and the projecting windows of corner towers. There was no woodwork in the whole building except the doors, 'chowkhats' (door frames) and library skylights. The architectural features of the design were adhered to, but owing to the designer not having supplied detailed working drawings - several alterations were made during the actual construction. 'The Builder', a prominent London-based journal devoted to architecture and related subjects, noted in an issue (1881) that, 'The general effect of the exterior must be regarded as very poor. The style, as the designer stated, is in harmony with the surrounding buildings of the Qaiserbagh - a bad standard.' It was also regretted by the colonial administration that the building was situated next to the tombs of Nawab Sa'adat Ali Khan and his begum, Khurshid Zadi and 'these two lofty buildings, the platforms of which are higher than the floor of the college, in such close proximity to it, have the effect of dwarfing its dimensions and rendering it insignificant; this was foreseen, but unfortunately, the foundation stone had been laid and the Taluqdars objected to any other site.' The total cost of the building was Rs 1,73,299 and construction time was 2 years. It was formally opened on November 15, 1878, by George Couper, Lt Governor of the NW Provinces and Commissioner of Oudh. After Canning College vacated the premises and shifted to its Badshah Bagh campus, the building was used by the colonial government to house the Provincial Museum, which was shifted from the Lal Baradari, where it had been initially housed since 1884. The new Council Chamber (present day Vidhan Sabha and Secretariat) had come up in 1928, but by 1935, the requirement for increased accommodation, a press gallery, the secretariat, as well as provision for joint sitting for both Lower and Upper Houses became a pressing problem. One wing of the Canning College building served as the venue of the temporary Council Chamber and Camp Secretariat, till such time the new Council Chamber and its extension were completed. The Marris College of Hindustani Music was established in 1926, due to the efforts of Pt Vishnu Narayan Bhatkhande, Rai Umanath Bali, Rai Rajeshwar Bali and other patrons of music. Inaugurated by the then Governor of United Provinces, Sir William Marris - it was named in his honour, and housed in the Canning College building. In view of its unique requirements, a separate building had been proposed for the same, with 'special focus on sound proofing so voice/music of one room may not penetrate into the other.' Building plans were obtained from Asit Kr Haldar and Kalyan Singh of Govt School of Arts and Crafts, Lucknow, but the new building could not materialise. The financial grant for the building sanctioned in 1926 was returned to the government in 1928, and the music college continued to occupy the premises of the old building of Canning College. Marris College, in the first year of its existence, had 7 teachers, 13 students, one tanpura, one sitar and a tabla set. As per a noting on the relevant file, 'there was not a single shop in Lucknow dealing with musical instruments and the same had to be procured from Calcutta.' This statement must be taken with a pinch of salt as Lucknow had been intimately associated with music and dance for the past one and half centuries, long before a colonial school for music had come into existence. Possibly, these shops and their owners had met their sad end during the events of 1857. PC Sarkar, a former scientist, has authored several books on the forgotten heritage of Lucknow...