While referring to some cities we often use their nicknames instead of actual names such as Garden City, Pink City, City of Lakes etc.
But, have you ever tried to find the backstory which is associated with the names? Well, if not then here we bring to you some famous cities in India which are popularly referred by their nicknames.
So, scroll below and find out why these kinds of nicknames are associated with these famous cities.
The list is given below –
State |
City |
Nickname |
Reason |
| Andhra Pradesh | Guntur | City of chillies | Guntur is a world famous city in Andhra Pradesh which is globally renowned for its chilli cultivators. They are the main producers of varieties of chillies which are exported to Canada, Europe and several parts of Asia. 334 chilli is a premium export quality chilli and also speciality of Guntur. |
| Tirupati | Spiritual capital of Andhra Pradesh | Tirupati is considered as one of the holiest pilgrimage sites in Andhra Pradesh because of the Tirumala Venkateshwara Temple which is situated there. It is believed that Lord Rama while returning from Lanka post war took a halt there to rest. Since then the place became a renowned pilgrimage site. | |
| Vijayawada | The Place of Victory | Vijayawada is known as the place of victory because as per ancient legends it is believed that the Goddess Durga killed a demon there and after her victory rested at a place in the city where the great Kanakadura Temple is built. Vijayawada is also the commercial headquarter of Andhra Pradesh. | |
| Visakhapatnam | The city of Destiny, The Jewel of the East Coast, Goa of the East | Visakhapatnam, which is also known as Vizag, is called The city of Destiny, The Jewel of the East Coast, and Goa of the East because of the picturesque amphitheater of the hills present in the city. The city has fantastic landscape view and attractive beaches which is another reason to call the city by all these names. | |
| Assam | Dibrugarh | Tea City of India | Dibrugarh produces tea in abundance and is known as the Tea City of India for this reason. |
| Guwahati | Gateway to the North-east India | Due to its geographic location and easy accessibility with other parts of north-east India, Guwahati, the capital of Assam, is known as the gateway to all seven sister states of north-east. | |
| Tezpur | The city of Blood | Tezpur, which is famous for its serene beauty and mighty Brahmaputra river got its name ‘the blood city’ because of a mythical battle which took place centuries ago between two brothers Hara and Hari. | |
| Bihar | Bhagalpur | Silk City of India | Bhagalpur, which is considered as one of the biggest trade centre of Eastern India is famous for its unique silk fabrics called “Tussah or Tusser” which is why it is called the silk city of India. |
| Nalanda | The land of Knowledge | Nalanda district which is one of the thirty-eight districts of Bihar is known as the land of knowledge because of the presence of Nalanda University which is also a UNESCO world heritage site. | |
| Chattisgarh | Bhilai | Steel capital of India | Bhilai Steel Plant (BSP), which is located in Bhilai, is India’s first and main producer of steel rails, wide steel plates and other steel products. It is because of BSP that Bhilai is known as the steel capital of India. |
| Korba | Power hub of India | Korba boasts of the Gevra mines which are India’s largest open cast mines catering to 11% of the nation’s coal needs which is why it is known as one of the major power hubs of India | |
| Delhi | New Delhi | City of rallies | The capital of India is also known as the city of rallies because of several rallies conducted in the city everyday. |
| Haryana | Gurgaon | Millennium city of India | As most of the major developments of the city happened in the millennium year 2000, Gurugram is also known as the Millennium City of India. It is a hub of MNCs which employs millions of people. |
| Bhiwani | Mini Cuba | Two time Asian Games Gold medalist and coach of Sports Authority of India boxer late Hawa Singh regarded Bhiwani as “Mini Cuba” because of the large number of boxers who hail from the region. | |
| Jammu and Kashmir | Kashmir | Switzerland of India.
Heaven on Earth |
Kashmir has sparkling lakes, snow caped mountains, lush green flowerbeds which are mesmerizing. Because of its magnificent beauty, Kashmir is regarded as Switzerland of India or Heaven on Earth. |
| Srinagar | City of Lakes | Because of the presence of various lakes, the city of Srinagar is nick-named as the City of Lakes. | |
| Jharkhand | Dhanbad | Coal Capital of India | Jharia coal field, which is one of the largest coal producer in India, is situated in Dhanbad. Because of the presence of coal in abundance, the city of Dhanbad is nick-named as the coal capital of India. |
| Jamshedpur | Steel City, Pittsburgh of India | Jamshedpur, just like Pittsburgh, is famous for producing steel which is why it is frequently regarded as Pittsburgh of India and steel city. | |
| Karnataka | Bengaluru | Science City of India, Silicon Valley of India, Garden City of India | Because of several green spaces in Bengaluru, it is called Garden City of India. 2.Bengaluru is the hub for Information and Technology companies in India just like the original Silicon Valley of the San Francisco Bay Area in US. This is the reason Bengaluru is nick-named as Silicon Valley of India. |
| Coorg (Kodagu) | Scotland of India | British planters who were mainly scots found similarities between Coorg and Scotland so they gave Coorg this nickname. | |
| Mangalore (Mangaluru) | Ice Cream City of India, Rome of the East. | Mangalore has a flourishing dairy industry. It is the ice-creams of Mangalore which give it a space on the food map of India. Hence, the city is also called as Ice-Cream City.Since Mangalore and Rome have certain similarities in architecture, the name has been prefixed to Mangalore. | |
| Mysuru | Heritage city of Karnataka, City of Palaces. | Because of its contributions and major artworks, Mysuru is regarded as the Heritage city of Karnataka. It is also called as the City of Palaces because of several ornates in the city. | |
| Kerala | Kochi | Queen of Arabian Sea | Kochi was an important trade centre for spices on the western coast of India since 14th century. This is why the city is nick-named as the Queen of Arabian City. |
| Kolam | Cashew Capital of the World | As of 2011, Kollam has been exporting tonnes of cashews. It is the largest processed cashew exporter in the world which is why it is regarded as world’s cashew capital. | |
| Kozhikode | City of Spices | Kozhikode is regarded as the major trading point of spices because of which it is nick-named as the city of spices. | |
| Madhya Pradesh | Bhopal | City of Lakes | Bhopal is called the city of lakes because of presence of various natural and artificial lakes. |
| Indore | Mini Mumbai | As Mumbai is to Maharashtra, Indore is to MP. Indore and Mumbai also have some cultural similarities which is a reason behind regarding Indore as Mini-Mumbai. | |
| Ujjain | City of Temples | Ujjain is called the city of temples because of the large number of temples present in the city. Ujjain is also one of the sacred city of Hindus. | |
| Maharashtra | Mumbai | Financial capital of India, City of Dreams | The Economic Hub of India lies in Mumbai and is also the wealthiest city which is why it is regarded as the Financial capital of India. Thousands of people who dream of name and fame move to Mumbai to fulfill them. This is the reason Mumbai is often regarded as the City of Dreams. |
| Nagpur | City of Oranges | Nagpur is a major trade centre of oranges. This is the reason it is often regarded as the city of oranges. | |
| Nasik | Wine capital of India | Half of India’s vineyards and wineries are located in Nasik so it is called as Wine capital of India. | |
| Pune | Queen of Deccan, Oxford of the East | Earlier, Pune was an extremely clean and green city and was therefore nick-named as the Queen of the Deccan. The city of Pune has earned this nick-name due to the large number of the educational institutions present in the city which attract international students. |
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| Meghalaya | Shillong | Scotland of the East | As Shillong too has several similarities with Scotland it is often regarded as Scotland of the East. |
| Odisha | Rourkela | Steel city of Odisha | As Rourkela has one of the largest steel plants of the Steel Authority of India Limited (SAIL), it is known as the steel city of Odisha. |
| Deogarh | City of waterfalls | Deogarh, which is home to beautiful waterfalls, is nick-named as the city of waterfalls. | |
| Puducherry | Puducherry | Paris of the East | Puducherry has resemblance to French culture in terms of assortment of cuisines, traditions, ambience and surrounding environment like beaches etc. which provides it a French touch. This is the reason Puducherry is often regarded as the Paris of the East. |
| Punjab | Patiala | Royal City | Patiala is known as the Royal city as in this city Bala Ala Singh founded the royal dynasty of Patiala and laid the foundation of “Quila Mubarak” around which the state of Patiala developed. |
| Ludhiana | Manchester of Punjab | Ludhiana is often regarded as the Manchester of Punjab for its large-scale production of hosiery products. | |
| Rajasthan | Jaipur | Pink City | Once a king named Ram Singh painted the whole city pink (as pink denotes the colour of hospitality) in order to show hospitality and welcome his guests. Since then the city is regarded as the pink city. |
| Jodhpur | Blue City | Most of the houses in Jodhpur were painted blue in order to prevent them from scorching heat of the sun. Hence the city is nick-named as the Blue City. | |
| Udaipur | Venice of the East, White City, City of Lakes | Udaipur is well known for its history, culture and scenic beauty and it has several lakes which is why it is often regarded as the Venice of the East and City of Lakes. Because several Rajput style palaces of Udaipur are made of scenic white marble, the city is also known as White City. |
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| Tamil Nadu | Chennai | Detroit of India, Gateway of South-India | Chennai has become the hub of automotive companies like Ford, GM etc. which is a reason to regard it as the Detroit of India. Chennai is the keeper of artistic, religious and culinary traditions of south so it is also known as the Gateway of South. |
| Coimbatore | Manchester of South India | Due to the cotton production and textile industries based in Coimbatore, it is popularly regarded as the Manchester of South India | |
| Ooty | Queen of hill stations | Ooty is located on one of the highest hills of south. Moreover it is magnificent, serene and alluring. Because of these reasons Ooty is often regarded as queen of hill stations. | |
| Telangana | Hyderabad | City of Pearls, City of Nizams and City of Biriyani. | Hyderabad is dominant in trading of pearls which is why it is nick-named as City of Pearls. Because the city had Nizam’s rule it is regarded as the city of Nizams. Hyderabadi Biriyani is famous not only in India but also outside the world so it is also called as the City of Biriyani. |
| Uttar Pradesh | Agra | City of Taj, Petha Nagri | As Agra is renowned for both its Petha and Taj Mahal, the city is nick named as the City of taj and Petha Nagri. |
| Allahabad | City of Prime Ministers, Sangam City,Abode of the God. | Allahabad is known as the City of Prime Ministers because post independence seven out of 15 Prime Ministers of India belonged to Allahabad
Because of the confluence of Ganga, Yamuna and Saraswati at Allahabad, the city is regarded as the Sangam city. The confluence is of great religious importance hence the city is often regarded as the Abode of the God and is visited by various pilgrims. |
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| Kanpur | Leather city of the World | In earlier times, Kanpur was home to several big and small tanneries. Since then the city is nick-named as the Leather City of the World. | |
| Varanasi | The City of Light | According to a legend Varanasi is the place from which first ever Shiva Jyotirling emanated from Earth and flared straight into the sky. This is why Varanasi is also known as the City of Lights. | |
| Uttarakhand | Mussoorie | Queen of the Mountains | As there is a plethora of mountains and abundance of scenic beauty, Mussoorie is often regarded as the Queen of the Mountains. |
| Rishikesh | Yoga City | Rishikesh has been one of the holiest cities in the world. It has been spiritual centre since thousands of years. These days it has become popular for Yoga and is often regarded as Yoga City. | |
| West Bengal | Asansol | Land of Black Diamonds | Asansol is one of the major producers of coal in the country and this is why is often regarded as the Land of Black diamonds. |
| Kolkata | City of Joy, Heaven of the Aged | Kolkata is popularly known as City of Joy because of a 1985 novel which was set in Kolkata. The city still has its customs and traditions preserved which is why it is sometimes referred to as the Heaven of the Aged. |
