Jaisalmer - A Jewel of Rajasthan

Jaisalmer was not so much in the public eye before the film "Sonar Kella" by the famous director, Satyajit Ray, in 1974 brought it to popular notice. Set as it is at the extreme western extremity of Rajasthan, about 300 kms from the city of Bikaner and about 280 km. from the great fortress city of Jodhpur, Jaisalmer has not been easy of access. Only in the last decade or so, has it been connected by rail directly to Delhi and even later by flights to Delhi and Jaipur. Of course, the Jaisalmer Fort, the famous "sonar kella" or the golden fort, gleaming in the sun with its yellow sandstone construction is the main attraction. Inside the fort, the palace halls and pavilions have their own attraction, and change colours with the shifting sun-light.

But, equally, one often pauses to listen to the playing of the stringed "ravanahatta" by the local musicians to accompany their lilting folk songs. But most people look forward to the drive to and roaming around or taking a camel-ride amid the sand dunes at Sam that are a couple of hours travel from the city. That is an experience all by itself.

Kumbhalgarh Fort in Rajasthan

 Kumbhalgarh is located about 80 kms. from Udaipur town and boasts a grand fort that is said to have been constructed in the reign of Rana Kumbha of Mewar in the 15th century. Architecture of the Kumbhalgarh Fort is quite unique in that the outwardly bulging walls made it difficult for any invaders to approach closely. The name of Rana Kumbha is associated with several heroic deeds in the history of Rajasthan. It was here that Rana Pratap is said to have been born. The inner buildings are approached a number of high gates such as Bhairon Pol and Vijay Pol. The fort encompasses a number of temples such as the Neelkantha Mahadeo and the Parshvanath temples. 

The length of the fortress walls runs for 26 kms. thus making it the second longest protective wall after the Great Wall of China. The width of the wall is also remarkable being about 5 mtres wide.  It is certainly a grand spectacle.

Jaisalmer in Rajasthan

 As most people know, Jaisalmer is situated in Rajasthan right on the western border of India. It is well-known for its fort and the desert scenery nearby. It is connected by air and rail from the major cities like Delhi, Mumbai and Ahmedabad. 

 

The Jaisalmer fort is truly magnificent and towers over the city. The golden-yellow sandstone with which it has built given a spcial glow in the early or late sun-light. 

Inside it is equally impressive with beautifully designed pavilions and intricate carvings.

But it is the evening out in the desert together with a camel ride over the sand dunes that is most attractive to tourist.

"Artful" cities of Shekhawati and Bundi

India has so many beautiful cities, some boasting great antiquity, such as Benaras or Ujjain, or cultural institutions as at Chennai, Kolkata and Mumbai, or fine architecture as at Bhubaneshwar, Hyderabad, and  Jaipur and in quite a few others. Almost lost among these numbers are two from Rajasthan that are "artful" in the true sense of the term. As one walks down almost any street in the towns of Bundi and Shekhawati, there are the beautiful paintings on the wall, finely executed and bright in colours that leave one lost in wonder.
Bundi, often overlooked by visitors thronging to Jaipur and Udaipur, lies to the south-east of Rajasthan, close to the industrial centre of Kota..It is a lovely city to go walking about in, with painted walls greeting one almost at every turn of a winding street.

Shekhawati, which lies to the north of Jaipur, is somewhat better known for the lovely paintings in the "havelis" of the some well-known business families, but is not commonly visited, except by the aficionados of the Rajasthani style of miniature paintings.

Some of the examples of the art to be seen at Bundi ( the 3 pictures above) and at Shekhawati (  the 2 below) should perhaps interest more visitors to see these two "artful" towns.

Bundi (Rajasthan) - A Good Place to go to

Rajasthan is the place to see forts and palaces to one's heart's content. Bundi, a quaint, small town in south-east Rajasthan has somethings more to offer. Made memorable by the poem "Nakal Garh" by the poet Rabindranath Tagore about Bundi's chivalrous past, but somewhat far from the "maddening crowds" the town trundles along carrying its considerable history without much ado. But within the fort walls, in the "Garh Palace", is one of the finest range of paintings that one could expect to find in the Rajasthani miniature style. In the "mahals" of the Garh Palace that rise tier upon tier clinging to the hill-side, these paintings take the place of the inlay work and the pilaster decoratives that one finds in other palaces elsewhere - and is the better for it. Going back 300 to 400 years, these paintings - though somewhat faded in some places with passage of time - still glow with a light and a life all their own. It is one of the finest and largest "art exhibitions" of its type one could expect to see anytime anywhere.

A view of the "Garh Palace", Bundi

 One of the many murals in the Rajasthani miniature style at Garh Palace

But where Bundi really scores over the others is in the wide range of "rock art" that have been found near and around by a local "aficionado", Om Prakash Sharma, popularly known as "Kukki-ji" in the locality. Single-handedly Kukki-ji has explored hillocks and stream-beds around Bundi and today he can rightly boast of having identified over 100 rock art sites within about 15 to 20 kms of the town. Thus with Kukki-ji as the guide, one can literally and metaphorically travel from enjoying 17th century miniature paintings in the Garh Palace to pre-historic paintings by early man in India, possibly 6000 to 7000 years old in the course of a day. It is not an experience easily to be had. It is perhaps not an exaggeration to consider that these 100 odd sites (and still counting) along about a 35 kms. stretch as discovered by Kukki-ji  near Bundi equal the famous assemblage of rock art at Bhimbhetka near Bhopal. 

"Kukki-ji" at one of the rock art sites

A rock art painting of a buffalo, made by early man

All in all, a visit to Bundi can be quite be quite satisfying. The local "kachouris" and "samosa"  are delicious add-ons.