Several decades ago, many businessmen of Bengaluru have poured their hard earned money for the philanthropic cause of the city. But some of the structures representing the yeoman service rendered by these lesser known builders of Bengaluru have been swallowed by the developmental process, which has hardly any concern for the wealth of built heritage of the city. However, the descendants of a few such benevolent luminaries, continue the traditions set by them.
Suryavamse Sajjan Rao is one such Samaritan, whose varied acts of charity and philanthropy, all of which have been inspired by a genuine yearning for the upliftment of the society. They are all represented by several structures which are not only still intact, but also have enriched the built heritage wealth of the city. He was honoured with the title, Dharmaprakasha -- the beacon of Dharma. The light lit by him is still glowing and stands testimony for the great concern he had for his city, Bengaluru.
Thanks to the subsequent generations of the family, particularly Ajay Kadam, grandson of S. Sajjan Rao, has been taking care of all work initiated by him.
S. Sajjan Rao was born and brought up in an humble environment in a small village near Maddur. His maternal uncle Venkata Rao Bhojgade brought him to Bengaluru to earn livelihood. The shrewd and smart young boy, quickly learnt the art of the trade while helping his mentor. Steadily, the promising merchant built up for himself a commanding and influential position in the business world through honest effort, enterprise and sterling character. He was one of the leading yarn merchants and a respected citizen of the city.
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He had taken agency of Binny Mill products and was also a sole distributor for all the products of K.R Mills to Mysore Province. He had a dyeing unit in Visvesvarpuram. His close friend and a prominent businessman of Madras, Gokuldas Jamunadas used to import high quality colouring material and send them to Sajjan Rao. When they could not import such materials during World War, the unit was closed.
In the earlier days, Sajjan Rao had his business and residence on Kilari Road in Majestic . The Bangalore City Municipality had given him license on March 6, 1917, to move around the city using a horse driven carriage. Later, he built a bigger trade centre at the square on Avenue Road, then known as Doddapete .
By 1926, he built a palatial house at the junction of K.R Road and Albert Victor Road, diagonally opposite to the famous Kote Venkataramanaswamy Temple. It was a two storied building of grace and grandeur, built in a typical regional architectural style with a broad portico, towers and artistic parapet walls. It was a hub of religious and cultural gatherings, reverberating with devotional songs and Vedic chanting. It was aptly named as Sri Lakshmi Nivasa. In the real sense, it was an abode of the goddess of wealth.
DAYS OF GLORY The Maratha hostel, and a picture that continues to remain on its walls
With increasing wealth and prosperity, Sajjan Rao’s innate zeal for public service also found manifold and generous expression in many acts of charity and service to humanity.
With the welfare of his Maratha community in mind, he was largely responsible for the growth of Maratha Students Free Boarding Home which was established in 1909. With the nucleus fund of ₹40,000 provided by the wife of the late Venkata Rao Bhojgade, he prudently managed the hostel and its assets, adding his own handsome donation of ₹50,000 . Hence the name, B.Venkata Rao S.Sajjana Rao Maratha Students’ Home. The old graceful building of the hostel in the vast premises on Bull Temple Road, Basavanagudi, is still retained. One of the group photos with the managing committee members and the students was taken in 1925, almost 95 years ago, is preserved well in the hostel. It shows S. Sajjan Rao sitting in the capacity of the treasurer of the institution.
During its centenary in 2009, adjacent to the old one, a new building was raised to commemorate the occasion. Today Maratha Hostel is a prominent landmark of the city.
In spite of the expanded trade, growing wealth, and image in the society, the spiritual call from within was urging S. Sajjan Rao to build a temple for Lord Ganesha, a deity worshipped by many communities. However, he built a temple for God Subrahmanya Swamy. DVG, in his book of memoirs, writes that a monk from Tamilnadu had advised Sajjan Rao to build a temple for Subrahmanya, along with a choultry.
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Accordingly, Sajjan Rao applies on 16.7.1932 to the city municipality to grant land to take up the construction work. Soon, the municipal office grants him land in Visvesvarapuram. Sajjan Rao jumps into action, puts his heart and soul for the completion of the twin projects. On June 22, 1934, the temple with deities Subrahmanya along with Srivalli and Devasena, Chintamani Ganapati and others were consecrated. At the same time, in 1934, a commodious choultry, attached to the temple, with a very graceful front elevation was also inaugurated. A group photo taken in front of the building shows many dignitaries of the city sitting along with S Sajjan Rao. Subrahmanya swamy temple in Viesvesvarapuram is a popular temple in the city.
