Symbolic Colour Coded Cities Of India

“India is a country where each bud blooms in its true colour and each day is celebrated with unity,peace and harmony”

India is a vibrant city with colours having special importance in culture,living and stories of India. From the dark hues of red colour personifying a beautiful bride to deep orange marigold used in all the festivals, colours are synonymous with the traditions and beliefs of India. The various cultures of India have a common thread of symbolic colours which are a way of expression. For eg. green symbolizes progress, white is for pure and wore at funerals while black is associated with evil, anger, darkness,etc. Each State and city of India represents a colour symbolic of its geographical representation,culture and beliefs. Lets have a look at some of the cities which are officially recognised as colour coded cities.

Jaisalmer ( GOLD ) – Known as Golden city of India. The city stands on a ridge of yellow sandstone in Rajasthan surrounded by vast arid Thar desert dotted with camel caravans and the most prominent Jaisalmer fort built with massive sandstone walls which are known to glitter like gold as the sun sets. The whole city exudes a yellow tinge through the architecture of houses and edifices. The so called ” havelis” of jaisalmer are perfect example of grandeur set in gold stone( yellow sandstone).

Cuttack (Silver) – Known as silver city of India. Cuttack is famous all over the world for artistic designs of the brass,silver and ivory works. It is the oldest and second largest city of Odisha. Tarakasi is a type of silver filigree work from Cuttack which is more than 500 years old and is traditionally done by local artisans.It is an ancient art internationally known for its elegant craftmanship. Forms of animals, birds, flowers and even miniature handbags and other souvenirs are made in Tarakasi work. The konark Chakra and temple are great favorites as mementos. Oriya marriages are incomplete without tarakasi anklets and toe rings.During Durga puja Tarkasi jewellery is used at pandals to embelish the idols of Durga.

Jodhpur (Blue) – Jodhpur the second largest city of rajasthan is known as blue city of India. Though the whole city is not painted blue but the Majestic Mehrangarh fort and the surrounding houses in the equipped city are blue coloured. Centuries back when the Hindu caste system prevailed in India people of upper caste painted their houses blue in order to differentiate from other houses. But others soon followed the league and gradually the city soaked in hues of blue. Logically it is believed that blue colour was used to prevent termites (copper sulphate mixed with limewash produces blue colour and is termite repellant) and protect the houses from extreme heat and sandstorms of rajasthan as blue is a good reflector of sunrays.

Jaipur (Pink ) – Jaipur is the capital of Rajasthan and the first planned city of India built only in a span of four years based on the principles of Vastu Shastra and Shipa shastras. Because of the dominant pink colour scheme of the majority of the houses, Jaipur is known as pink city of India. During the rule of Sawai Ram Singh I, an astronomer and architect,Queen Victoria’s son, Albert Edward, Prince of Wales (who later became King Edward VII, Emperor of India) visited India and, since pink was considered the colour of hospitality at the time, Maharaja Ram Singh had the whole city painted pink to welcome the royal guests. The paint was produced from a calcium oxide compound and is extremely durable in the arid conditions of Jaipur. Later a law was passed to continue painting the city pink.

Chandigarh,Thiruvananthapuram and Mysore (Green) – Surprisingly many cities of India are associated with green colour. Chandigarh city was planned by the famous French architect Le Corbusier. Tree plantations and landscaping were an integral part of the plan submitted by the French architect. The whole city looks green when observed from a height and perfectly justifies the tag of ” Green city of India”. Thiruvananthapuram is known as the “Evergreen City of India” because of its green landscapes and the presence of many public parks. Recently Mysore has been tagged as India’s most green and clean city. Swach Bharat Urban congratulated Mysore and regarded as the greenest city of India.

Udaipur (White) – Udaipur is the city of lakes and royal white charming palaces. As we roam round the city of Udaipur admiring the white marble mughal architecture exuding grandeur vibes and royalty, we find it apt to term it as “white city of India” and “white pearl of Rajasthan“. The exotic city palace, lake palace and Jag mandir in Udaipur are stunning examples of monuments built using marble stones. Udiapur is a major crowd puller and also popular for wedding destinations To further retain its official tag of White city,The Smart City Company is painting the buildings of Udaipur in off-white colour and keeping its identity intact.

Nagpur (orange) – Nagpur is popularly known as Orange city of India because of its extra ordinary orange produce. Oranges are cultivated in Nagpur in large quantities and of all sizes which are supplied all over India as well as exported to foreign countries. In addition one can taste a wide variety of orange sweets in Nagpur from the wellknown Haldiram outlets. Nagpur mandarins are world famous for their juiciness, taste and best quality and have great demand in international market. The Nagpur government has started to splash orange colour on its official buildings to strengthen its orange colour tag.

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