The name of this city has an epic story related to it as well. It is derived from the MahishaSur where Mahisha means “buffalo” and Sur means “devil” and as per Hindu mythology, Mahishasur ruled the ancient parts of the Mysore Kingdom. He was killed by the Goddess Chamundeshwari [Durga] after whom it is named. ‘Mahishapura’ later became Mahisūru/Mysuru (a name which, even now, the royal family uses). And that’s why, Mysuru, Where Demons Ruled.
The name of Mysore was changed to Mysuru in 2005. Mysore was an anglicized version by the British during the Indian colonial period. I have been to Mysuru three times, and all three times it was a different experience. The first one was to visit the Infosys Campus and see Dasara. The other time I went with my girlfriend to celebrate our relationship anniversary. And the third time with my family to make them feel proud of being an Indian.
Dasara/Dusshera
We visited Mysore using a bike, bus, and private cab from Bangalore/Bengaluru, on three different occasions. During Dasara/Dussehra Mysore has another legend associated with it, it is believed the Goddess killed MahishaSur on this particular day. This festival is celebrated with lots of zeal and enthusiasm. A parade of the royal elephant is made to walk on the roads. And millions of people visit Mysore during this time to view this epic royal show. We had Karizma and Hunk during that time and reached Mysore in the morning from Bangalore. We took a bath in a hotel near Mysore Zoo. Then we walked towards the main city to view the royal ambiance. It was so crowded that I need to climb up a shop to see the elephants.
In the evening we visited Mysore palace, which is another epic royalty check. The Mysore palace receives around 6 million annual visitors which is second to Taj Mahal in India.
If Taj Mahal is a Mughal architecture marvel then this stands tall to display Hindu royal architecture combining styles of mainly Rajputs and Dravidian style structures.
The Palace was completed in early 1900. Not going any further into history classes this palace has around 97,000 bulbs making it one of the most beautiful monuments in the evening to see. It is as good at night or maybe more beautiful than in the morning. Huge doms, epic canons, and beautiful temples describe the best of Mysore Palace. You don’t see it but feel the epicness and royalty of Indian Kings and Queens.
Infosys Campus
The next day I went to the Infosys campus to visit my friends. The campus has an awesome structure and is one of the largest training campuses for graduates and freshers. It has all types of grounds, a swimming pool, Gym and a world-class architecture with highly rebated food outlets. In the evening we visited purple haze and had a blast there, it’s one of the best pubs in Mysore.
This is what I did on my first visit to Mysore. The next visit was with my girlfriend. as she herself a Rajput. I can clearly see what this city meant to her. Being a city of Royal Kings and it has a high feminist flavor as well as the great Goddess Durga killed one of the worst demons Hindus can ever have. She was more than excited to visit this place. We visited Mysore Palace first and in the evening we went for local shopping, the temperature was apt as February is neither too hot nor too cold.
Chamundi hill
The next morning we went to Chamundi hill, it has a very ancient temple located 13 km from Mysore, and there lies a beautifully sculptured Chamundeshwari temple atop the hills. To reach the temple, we took 1000 steps.
The architecture of the temple is unique and eye-catching with 7 tier gopuram and 7 golden Kalash at the top. Handcrafted with excellence, the temple is dedicated to Goddess Durga/Chamundeshwari and depicts her with 8 hands (also known as Ashta Bhujas).
We took blessings from Devi/Goddess and the temple has a beautiful look of a city from atop of the temple. There we had a totapuri mango which you eat with a quirky black salt and beware of monkeys/ langur there as well.
While coming back we had a tanga ride, its a ride where the horses pull you to your destination also called Victoria in Mumbai, We booked it till the ZOO, and what an epic zoo it was, It has a freaking albatross there, the variety of flora and fauna and the area of the zoo was too huge to cover.
We were tired like anything so we came back and enjoyed dinner at a local restaurant. The next morning we came back to Bangalore via bus.
Jagmohan Palace and Brindavan Garden
My next visit to Mysore was with my family this time we hired a private car and visited the Jagmohan Palace first, it has beautiful art and storytelling using artworks only, in the evening we visited Brindavan Garden, the garden is huge and can be a picnic spot, it is located in Mandya District.
The main attraction of the park is the musical fountain in which bursts of water are synchronized to the music of songs we also went for a local boat ride.
We visited Chamundi Hills and Mysore palace the very next day and came back to Banglore in the evening, the highway to reach Bangalore is buttery smooth and we did not face any issues.
Also the most important part, Mysuru is also famous for inventing a famous sweet called Mysuru pak and a Dosa flavor known as Mysore Masala Dosa. So make sure when you reach Mysore, the first thing you eat is Mysore pak and Mysore Masala Dosa.
Enjoy the trip to Mysore and make beautiful memories. Mysuru, Where Demons Ruled.
