Taj Mahal Videos

Agra is a city in the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, some 200 km from the Indian capital city of New Delhi. Agra has the Taj Mahal, one of the most famous buildings and tourist destinations in the world, and two other UNESCO World Heritage sites, the Agra Fort in the city and Fatehpur Sikri nearby. The city has little else though. Pollution, especially smog and litter, is rampant and travellers are pestered by swarms of touts and hawkers at every monument, mosque, temple or palace. That said, the sites are some of the wonders of the world and no trip to India is complete without at least one visit to the Taj. The earliest reference to Agra is in the ancient epic, the Mahabharata, while Ptolemy was the first person to call it by its modern name. Modern Agra was founded by Sikandar Lodhi of the Lodhi dynasty, Delhi Sultanate, in the 16th century. Agra reached its golden age when it served as the capital of the the Mughal rulers of India at the peak of their empire from 1526 to 1658. They built many monumental buildings in the Mughal architectural style (a distinctive mix of Indian and Islamic styles) and Agra has some of the finest examples. The Agra Fort, originally built by Rajput rulers of Agra, was rebuilt by the emperors Akbar and Shah Jahan, and it served as a model for the Red Fort in Delhi. The lovely tomb, Itmad-ud-Daulah (1628), built by empress Noor Jahan, is a wonderful mix of Persian and Indian architecture and ornamentation. Mughal architecture's crowning achievement, the Taj Mahal (1648) is the centerpiece of any visit to Agra. Ironically, Agra's greatest builder, the Emperor Shah Jahan, was also responsible for the subsequent decline of the city. His decision to move the capital to the new city of Shahjahanabad in Delhi marked the beginning of the eclipse of Agra. Despite its importance as a military town during the days of the British Empire as well as in independent India, Agra lapsed into a second tier town on the banks of the Jamuna, and that's what it remains to this day.

This is a small excerpt from the PBS show on India here http://www.pbs.org/thestoryofindia/

Film clip features Natraj Cuisine of India, including buffet dishes, staff members, chef in action, champagne brunch and testimonies from students from California State Long Beach CSULB.

Author: arvindkashyap Added: Sat, 19 Sep 2009 18:03:57 -0800 Duration: 0

Kimchi Warrior Episode 3. Kimchi Warrior VS. Malaria Kimchi Warrior Goes to India http://www.kimchiwarrior.com Young Man Kang Films

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Amazing Diversities..startling contradictions...Multifaceted aspects...colors...textures...techniques...motifs...cultural mores....Incredible India

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