The Hindu's Hyderabad newsroom grew with the city it chronicled for nearly five decades

A newsroom that grew with Hyderabad

A journalist who spent over 25 years with The Hindu's Hyderabad edition has traced the publication's physical journey from a solitary building amid empty land to a multi-storey corporate office, mirroring the transformation of the city around it.

The Hyderabad edition began printing in August 1976 from Begumpet, on land owned by G. Pulla Reddy, in an area with scarcely any shops or hotels. The single-storey structure housed editorial, business, printing and electronic departments. A formal launch followed in September 1976, presided over by Governor R.D. Bhandare and Chief Minister J. Vengal Rao, with G.K. Reddy and former London correspondent K.S. Shelvankar in attendance. A sudden downpour forced the ceremony indoors and was seen as an auspicious sign; the edition soon became a hit.

Editor's vigil and French consultants

Editor G. Kasturi personally oversaw the edition's early days, arriving at 10 a.m. and staying until the first edition rolled out past midnight, then retiring to Hotel Blue Moon across the road. He would rest in the dark photography room when not in the printing section. A team of French engineers helped install the printing equipment, communicating with the printing staff through an interpreter. Sportstar and Frontline, noted for colour quality, were initially printed in Hyderabad.

The all-male newsroom, even sweepers were men, was a feature of those early years, a gender imbalance corrected later. Editorial staff enjoyed exclusive servings of Nescafe three times a day, mixed and served by an assistant.

Expansion amid warehouse chaos

A second floor was added in the late 1980s to house expanding editorial and business sections and a guest house. Subsequent renovations forced editorial and business teams back to the ground floor, where they worked amid sledgehammers, trucks and shouting labourers in a warehouse-like atmosphere.

By the turn of the century, an ultra-modern corporate office with spacious cabins and cubicles had emerged. The editorial department split into State and City bureaus, MetroPlus and other features were added, and a Regional Desk headed by a news editor was established.

Before Begumpet, The Hindu occupied offices on Old MLA Quarters Road in Basheerbagh and, earlier still, Craigmore, an old bungalow at the foot of Naubat Pahad opposite the AG's Office. Despite the rise of Axis Bank, jewellery shops and Hotel Grand Kakatiya around it, the once-solitary building retained its self-effacing identity: "next to Pulla Reddy sweet shop", "next to Axis Bank" or "next to the petrol bunk".

The author, who joined the Hyderabad bureau on transfer from Kurnool on September 1, 1979, and retired on September 30, 2005, as Chief of Bureau/Deputy Editor, contributed the piece for the golden jubilee year of the edition.

Source: The Hindu