Villages of a City: An ethnohistorical account of a peri-urban precinct in Bangalore, India

Abstract

Bangalore, the third most populous city of India, epitomizes unplanned rapid urbanization and the consequent exacerbation of urban challenges. Erstwhile a pensioner’s paradise, the city exploded into an urban agglomeration after the Information Technology boom at the turn of the millennium. This has surfaced deep infrastructure-related problems and social tensions caused by increasing migration to the city. These transformations have engulfed ‘villages’ in the periphery leading to investments in real estate, tourism and infrastructure projects in peri-urban spaces. This paper is a case study of one such neighbourhood in peri-urban Bangalore, Nandidurg or Nandi Hills, which is located about sixty kilometres from the city centre. The precinct enjoys heritage status as it has had a history of settlements by various royal dynasties since the 4^th century, receiving continued patronage due to the shrines established there. Currently, it is located close to the city’s new international airport, and offers a getaway for city dwellers during weekends. This paper draws on my ethnographic fieldwork conducted in the neighbourhood during 2023. It weaves oral histories, local myths and people’s memories, simultaneously situating them in a much longer history of change. It provides a view of the in-flux nature of a city from the periphery, tracing social and cultural impacts of infrastructure and financial developments.