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Hyderabad is an epitome of India's composite heritage. It is a confluence of several cultures and identities, Indian and foreign, but with a compelling identity all its own, so wondrously conceptualized 400 years ago by its founder, Sultan Mohammed Quli. His invocation for the city was that millions of men and women of all castes, creeds and religions (should) make it their abode, like fishes in the ocean. In the same sprit, he first named the city Bhagnagar, after his Hindu consort Bhagmati. Later, when the queen was conferred the title of Hyder Mahal, he renamed the city after her to Hyderabad. This book takes you on a short and somewhat sentimental journey to Hyderabad, allowing you to take in the city's charming history, experience its enchanting culture and its somewhat overdone social graces and above all, savour its exquisite cuisine. Like the city's heritage, culture and language, Hyderabadi food is a fusion of several inputs. It blends the class and refinement of the north with the sauce and spice of the south. The repertoire is rich, vast and seductive, both in vegetarian and non-vegetarian fare, and boasts of several varieties of Kababs and biryanis, and curries, and dals. This is the first authentic magnum opus on Hyderabadi cuisine and is ornamented with several brilliant photographs.