Undoubtedly one of the most remarkable sights of Hyderabad is the Falaknuma
Palace, the Sky -Touching, perched on a small hill 3 km south of Char
Minar. The palace is one of the testimony to the glory of the Nizams (the
rulers of Hyderabad). The smallest of the Nizam's four palaces, this served
as a royal guesthouse for the Nizams. The palace was built by Nawab Vikarul
Umra Bahadur, the fifth Emir from the noble Paigah family, who later became
Prime Minister of Hyderabad (1894-1901). The palace was later purchased
by the Nizam Mahboob Ali Khan in 1897 and later added other structures
like the Coronation building. The sixth Nizam occasionally lived here
and passed away in this building in 1911. The palace was designed by an
Italian architect and follows a western architectural style ranging
from 18th century England to Louis the XIV's of France. The palace also
has a rare blend of Italian and Tudor architecture.
Covers an area of 9,39,712 square meters, its foundation
was laid on the 3rd of March, 1884, and it took 9 years to complete
the construction of the Palace. Marble from Italy were used to create
its opulent interiors.
The Palace has a shape of a scorpion with two stings
spread out as wings on the north. The central area of the palace is occupied
by the main building can be accessed through two levels of basement. The
main gate presents a pyramidal composition of Neo-Classical storeys
framing a broad arch. The road from here ascends to the main block, where
a grand Palladian vista greets the visitor. The interiors of this building
has an Italian marble staircase supporting marble figures and lined with
portraits of British Governor Generals. The state reception room is in
Louis XIV style decorated with frescoes and gilded relief's. The
room has a library with a walnut carved roof containing the most valuable
collection of manuscripts and printed books. It has also one of the finest
collections of the holy Quran in India.
A smoking room, billiard room and card room, connected
by arched openings with curtains, lead to the massive dining hall, where
a long oval table is surrounded by 101 seats. The rosewood chairs with
green leather upholstery and tableware made of gold and crystal make this
palace an awe-inspiring experience.
Apart these, the palace boasts such many 222 lavishly
decorated rooms and 22 spacious halls. The palace has lavishly furnished
with some of the finest treasures collected by the Nizam. It has a superb
interior with marble, chandeliers, English furniture, statues and a large
collection of paintings. The walls and the ceiling are artistically painted
and decorated. Falaknuma also has collection of jade objects, which is
considered unique in the world.
The highlights of the palace is large beautiful Venetian
chandeliers including a 138-arm Osler chandelier (said that it took
six months to clean this) and the palace has 40 such chandeliers adorning
the hall. Its glass-stained windows throw a spectrum of colours into the
rooms.
Another interesting features of this palace is that it
has one of the largest electrical switchboards in India and the world's
largest manually operated organ.
Since it is the private property of Nawab Mukarramjah
Bahadur, the grandson of Nizam VII., one needs to get special permission
to see it. Today, the palace is a legal dispute between the Taj group,
who wish to turn the palaces into a hotel, and Nawab Mukarramjah Bahadur
who claims never to have sold the palace to anyone.
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Monuments 
