Sketches from life: Bengaluru Through a Taxi Window

If cities had personalities, Bengaluru would be one brilliant person who arrives late in office, drinks too much coffee, complains about traffic, and somehow still gets all the work done.

Known for decades as India's "Garden City," Bengaluru later reinvented itself as the country's "Silicon Valley." Today it is a curious blend of old and new: century-old temples standing beside glass office towers, lakes competing with flyovers, and tech parks sprawling across what were once villages, wetlands and farms.

The city's modern story began in 1537 when Nadaprabhu Kempegowda established a fortified settlement here. Under various rulers, including the Mysore Wodeyars and later the British, Bengaluru gradually grew into an important administrative centre and cantonment. Its pleasant climate attracted people from across the country long before software companies discovered it.

The IT revolution of the 1990s transformed Bengaluru beyond recognition. Companies such as Wipro, Infosys, IBM, and countless global technology firms turned the city into a magnet for engineers, entrepreneurs, dreamers, and anyone willing to exchange a shorter commute for a promising career. The result is a city that expands faster than most maps can keep up with.

During my visit, I saw Bengaluru mostly from the back seat of taxis, peering through windows while traffic crawled, accelerated, stopped, and crawled again. What follows is not a guidebook or a carefully planned tour. It is simply a collection of impressions—office towers, apartment blocks, temples, lakes, construction sites, metro pillars, and a few moments of unexpected calm.

Viewed through a taxi window, Bengaluru appears to be permanently under construction, permanently caffeinated, and permanently optimistic. Somehow, amid all the cranes, concrete, coding, and congestion, the city continues to move forward.

These photographs capture a few glimpses of the city.

1. A scenic round-about in Manyata Tech Park near Hebbal Outer Ring Road and Nagawara. This is one of the largest IT hubs in the city. Remains peaceful from 6 PM to 9 AM

2. An apartment complex likely Regency La Majada. EMI dreams reside here.

3. This is Wipro Campus in Sarjapur. The building has sun shading designed to reduce energy usage. It has 92% naturally lit workspaces. Rest 8% is glow of screens with excel sheets

4. Shri Anjaneya Swamy Devasthanam located on busy Hosur Road in Madiwala area. Hanumanji blessing everyone for safe journey

5. Another apartment complex in Chikkakannalli, Sarjapur Road area. This area is expanding faster than unread work emails.

6. Interesting landmark on Hosur Road. Not clear if they are developing helicopters, jets or apartments.

7. NVIDIA office building in Mahadevapura area. Cool blue shade inside and dark traffic fumes outside.

8. Hilton Garden Inn in Manyata Business Park. Stay there and watch metro pillars go up faster than plants at home

9. IBM office building in Manyata Tech Park. Keep thinking.

10. A well known city landmark- KR Puram Hanging Bridge in Krishnarajapura area. Bridge hangs over traffic and commuters hang on to patience in rush-hour.

11. Scene from a lake near Electronic City Phase 1. Birds- we came for water, locals- we came for oxygen.

12. Lakeside vegetation. Nature's filter beats any other Instagram filter.

13. Evening sun and a bit of mist. Or is it smog?

14. A scene of tranquil Huskur lake and Park near Electronic City Phase 2. Can you hear office AC humming?

15. A full blown tree near the lake. Nice place for Work From Home

16. Construction is on! Digging is city's favourite sport.

17. Mechanised construction means early optimistic closure of the project except for rain, strike or asteroid!

18. More machines. JCBs are more reliable than Wi-Fi

19. Higher the better! Up there you can watch the traffic jams.

20. Metro here and metro there. Metro pillars and apartment rents are progressing at the same speed in the city.

21. Metro everywhere. By the time all metro lines are operational, people may be logging in from moon?

22. A different kind of brotherhood.

23. Gardener gets 700 for this job per day. His wife cooks for few houses and makes more money. In Bengaluru side business outperforms main business.

24. Residents are ready for the show - Republic Day

25. Such locked cycles are available in many residential apartments. Pay per hour. Better than Ola/Uber?

26. The Statue of Prosperity, 108-foot bronze monument of Bengaluru's founder Nadaprabhu Kempegowda. Located at the Kempegowda International Airport. It holds Guinness World Record for the tallest statue of a city founder.