4: Chittorgarh - the Mighty

A tall, proud fortress, built over an area 700 acres, with a perimeter of roughly 14 kms, instantly made me personify it as 'Ivan-the Mighty'! Plainly known as Chittor, it is the largest fort in India, and exudes charisma. A distant glimpse at the fort made us glad about the last minute inclusion of Chittorgarh in our itinerary.

As we climbed up to the mighty fort, past all the seven gates, Padan Pol, Bhairon Pol, Hanuman Pol, Ganesh Pol, Jodla Pol, Laxman Pol and the main entry gate of Ram Pol, I could imagine the royal Rajputs marching-up alongside, with their adorned horses and elephants. The climb to the fort was steep, and just before Ram Pol, the passage became narrower and the road bent, at a sharp right angle, to ensure that the enemy couldn't attack easily in huge numbers. The doors of the gates, with pointed arches, are reinforced to fend off elephants and cannon shots, and the top of these gates have notched parapets for archers to shoot at the enemy army. We also noticed the occurrence of number seven, signifying that the residents belonged to 'Suryavanshi' (worshipers of the Sun god) clan. A circular road within the fort linked all the gates and provides access to a plethora of monuments (130 temples and numerous palaces built by multiple rulers) in the fort.

We soon got down to tracing the lineage of the fort on Raghav's i-phone and here's what we discovered. The fort was constructed by the Mauryans during the 7th century and hence derives its name after the Mauryan ruler, Chitrangada Mori, as per the inscriptions on coins of the period. It was ruled initially by Guhilot and later by Sisodias, the Suryavanshi clans of Chattari Rajputs, from 7th century, till it was finally abandoned in 1568 after the siege by Akbar in 1567. In 734, Bappa Rawal, founder ruler in the hierarchy of the Sisodia rulers of Mewar, is said to have been gifted with the fort as part of Solanki princess’s dowry in the 8th century. Historical records show Chittorgarh fort as the capital of Mewar for 834 years!

The fort was sacked three times between 15th century and 16th century; in 1433 Allauddin Khilji defeated Rana Ratan Singh, in 1535 Bahadur Shah, the Sultan of Gujarat, defeated Bikramjeet Singh, and in 1567 Akbar defeated Udai Singh II, who left the fort and founded Udaipur. Following the first two defeats, 'Jauhar' were committed thrice by more than 16,000 women of the Rajput heroes who laid their lives in battles at Chittorgarh Fort, first lead by Rani Padmini wife of Rana Ratan Singh who was killed in the battle in 1433, and later by Rani Karnavati in 1537. A few minutes in the fort, and it seemed as if we had flipped through hundreds of pages of history!

We stopped by at many temples, including Mirabai's, where she prayed to her beloved deity, Lord Krishna, and was even attempted to be poisoned by her brother-in-law, Vikramaditya, who strongly objected to Meera's fame, her mixing with commoners and carelessness of feminine modesty. The other temples included Kalika Mata temple, Shiv temple, Ganesh temple, Ram temple, and so on. It broke our hearts to see how the way these temples have defiled these temples and defaced deities by Allaudin Khiliji, not so much due to religious reasons, but because of their sheer historical and cultural significance. Fortunately, the beautiful carvings in these temples speak out loud for the artisans and craftsmen of that era!

Let me elaborate on Khiliji's wrath. The legend says that Padmini's mahal (or palace) is where Khilji saw a glimpse of Rana Ratan Singh's beautiful wife Padmini, known for her captivating looks. While the queen was standing at the edge of her 'Jal Mahal' or the Water palace (which is surrounded by water on all sides; also queen's summer palace), her reflection in the water was reflected back in a mirror mounted in a room where Rana Ratan Singh was entertaining Khilji. The queen's beauty caught Khilji’s fancy; mesmerized, he attacked Mewar, hoping to win over Padmini. Rana Ratan Singh was killed in the battle, while Padmini set herself ablaze in the largest Jauhar of India, along with thousands of other queens and soldiers' wives, to save themselves from dishonor at the hands of Muslim invaders. When Khilji captured the fort, he just found Padmini's ashes, and enraged he ordered the destruction of all the temples. (Well, Padmini or no Padmini, I don't think Khiliji, his predecessors or his successors had spared any temple in any territory conquered by them!) Jauhar ground, at Chittorgarh fort, is a testimony to this. The Sati ground, not distant from Jauhar ground, also speaks of the horrific ancient Rajput customs, though the Rajputs yet refer to them proudly as an esteemed sacrifice.

By then the afternoon sun shone loud and bright, and was bent on dulling our spirits. Undaunted, we headed to the Vijay Stambh (also the Victory Tower) or Jay Stambh built by Rana Khumba between 1458 and 1468 to commemorate his victory over Mahmud Shah I Khalji, the Sultan of Malwa, in 1440. We climbed the 167 steps of the defiled monument tower to reach its top and by then, exhausted our camera batteries along with ourselves.

After goofing around at the Vijay Stambh for quite a while, we headed to pay our tribute to 'Gaumukh', where water from an unknown source flows out through a cow's mouth carved on a cliff, and falls directly on a Shivling carved beneath it. This was also the prime water source during the various sieges.

Then we set to visit the ruins of numerous palaces including Rana Kumbha's palace, Fateh Singh's palace, Padmavati's palace, Ratan Singh's palace, etc. We also saw the room where Panna Dai scarified her own son to save the life of infant Udai Singh, who later founded Udaipur. The story goes back to 1527 when Rana Sangram Singh died in the Battle of Khanua against Babur. Rana's brother Banbir was regent and wished to usurp the throne by killing the only son of Sangram Singh, thus wiping out his brother's lineage. Panna Dai clad her own baby in Udai Singh's clothes and placed him in the royal cradle while the gardener could escape with Udai Singh to Kumbalgarh through a hidden tunnel. After Udai Singh attained youth he Banbir and ascended on the throne of Chittor.

Kirti Stambha (or the Fame Tower), our last treat for the day, was a 22 m high tower adorned with Jain sculptures on the outside. Built by a Bagherwal Jain merchant Jijaji Rathod in the 12th century, it is dedicated to Adinath, the first Jain tirthankar. Jain religion has two orders, namely the Svetambara and Digambara; Digambara monks reject all forms of clothing and live naked or ‘sky clad’ while the Svetamabara monks wear thin white robes. We were forbidden to climb the narrow stairway which led through the six storeys, however, we could visit the beautiful temple adjacent to it.

A very memorable visit! The fort, even today, houses around 5000 people - the descendants of commanders, chiefs, courtiers, soldiers, etc of the Mewar kings.

Way back, between 7th and 16th century, the city of Chittor was limited to the ‘garh’ or the fort, and everyone including the commanders, chiefs, courtiers, soldiers and even the subjects, stayed within the fort perimeter. As was customary, the kings when pleased with some, often favored them by granting them gold, property, etc. So when the fort was acquired by ASI (Archaeological Survey of India), around 500 odd people provided documentary evidence of some or the other piece of land being granted or gifted to them by the ruler, and hence were permitted to continue their occupation. Today, these 500 people have multiplied to around 5000, along with their extended families.

These guys have signed an agreement with the government that they would evacuate the fort instructed in lieu of an adequate compensation. However, they have time and again refused to honor it because the fort not only means a house for them, but also a livelihood. These guys earn their bread and butter from the tourism in the fort.

So we could catch glimpses of the men drinking in a cool, quiet corner of Ratan Singh's palace, adjacent to their house – and the young boys taking a dip in the pond, again adjacent to their house! Needless to say, these residents throw their domestic waste, degradable or non-degradable, in their neighborhood, which happens to be the fort’s premises! The memorable visit therefore ended with a grave concern, and hope that Chittorgarh, quintessence of tribute to the nationalism, courage, medieval chivalry and sacrifice exhibited by the Mewar rulers of Sisodia and their kinsmen and women and children, could withstand the attack of ‘plastic’ and stand as tall and proud in the years to come!

- Namrta R (from my backpacking trip to Rajasthan)

Companions: Raghav and Lonely Planet

Also read about Pushkar, Ajmer, Ranthambore, Udaipur, Mount Abu, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and Thar
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5: Udaipur - Venice of the East

Google for Udaipur, and you will see pages on romance, leisure, culture and heritage pop-up. A fine example of shrewd marketing and perfect positioning, some websites even make it sound like a ‘Wonderland’ waiting for its ‘Alice’, which could be you!

Not paying heed to Raghav's advice of substituting Udaipur with more significant Kumbalgarh (an important citadel of Mewar, second in importance to only Chittaurgarh) and Ranakpur (renowned Jain temples of the 15th century), I fell for these marketing gimmicks and suffered the fate of a tourist. Thanks to City Palace in Udaipur which helped me justify this visit!

City Palace was built by the Maharana Udai Singh as the capital of the Sisodia Rajput clan in 1559, after he moved from Chittor. Located on the east bank of the Lake Pichola, on a hill top, the palace offers a panoramic view of the Jag Mandir on another island in the lake, the Jagdish Temple close to the palace, the Monsoon Palace on top of an overlooking hillock nearby and the Neemach Mata temple. The palace exhibits a fusion of the Rajasthani and Mogul architectural styles since the Moguls were a contemporary ruler of north India and had considerably influenced over the art and architecture of the era, and were avidly constructing in Agra and Delhi.

Raghav, the movie buff, could recall the James Bond movie Octopussy, which features the Lake Palace and the Monsoon Palace. It was the film which subsequently publicized Udaipur as "Venice of the East".

We spent a good half day at the museum, carefully reading the inscriptions, labels and other information about the articles on display. Interestingly, the palace had the most expensive Entry and Audio Tour fee amongst all the palaces or museums we had been to, in India or abroad – which helped us figure out that the palace was privately held, and not managed by the state government or the ASI (Archaeological Society of India). I must admit that this was also reflected in the commendable up-keep of the museum!

Amongst the other political, social and cultural memoirs in the palace, some artifacts narrated the tales from the iconic battle of Haldighati fought between Rana Pratap and Akbar. Rana chose Haldighati, a narrow mountain pass in the Aravali range, so that only a few Moghul soliders could enter the valley at any given point of time and the Rajputs could employ guerrilla warfare techniques from a vantage point - as the Rajput army was no match against the mighty Mogul army, either in strength or in ammunition!

Though the battle’s outcome was indecisive, it immortalized Man Singh, Maharana’s commander-in-chief, as also Chetak, Maharana’s loyal horse. Even though Chetak’s fore leg was wounded, it ran through the mountains for five kms, crossing over a stream (then a chasm) near Balicha village (now a two-lane highway) before it gave-up. Enthused, we decided to drive down to Haldighati, 40 km from Udaipur, sidelining the lunch at Fatehprakash palace, now a luxury hotel.

Haldighati, unbelievably, has a turmeric yellow-colored soil and hence the name! We visited the Haldighati museum and the spot where Chetak died. (This spot now has a tomb and a memorial stone). We noted that Chetak is one of the most famous animals in history with mention in documentaries, books and museums. It has a train, connecting Udaipur and Delhi, named after itself, besides a number of eating and shopping joints in and around Rajasthan. We also saw a documentary on the battle of Haldighati, with a special section on Chetak, in the museum!

After Haldighati, with a few hours in hand before dusk and nothing very interesting to explore, my religious companion, promised me an 'off-the-beat' religious experience - and took me to two ancient temples on the outskirts of Udaipur.

Nathdwara, located in the Aravali hills, on the bank of Banas river, around 45 kms north of Udaipur, houses the Shrinathji, a 12th century "infant" incarnation idol (murti) of Lord Krishna. I found it very hard to escape the charisma of Lord Krishna’s idol, which has a diamond studded in the throat. The idol was moved in the 17th century from Govardhan hill, near Mathura along holy river Yamuna, to protect it from the Mughal emperor Aurangzeb's campaign against Hindu worship in his empire. The Haveli of Shrinathji (as the temple is called), was once a royal palace of the Sisodia Rajput rulers of Mewar.

Our subsequent destination, Eklingji (a form of Lord Shiva), 22 kms west of Udaipur, was believed to be the Ruling deity of Mewar princely state and the ruler Maharana ruled as his Dewan (or Commander-in-Chief). Begun in 971, the temple was built by the Guhila (later called Sisodia) dynasty of Mewar, and includes 108 temples. The main temple, which dates to the 15th century, houses a four-faced image of Lord Shiva in black marble. Another temple in the complex is the Lakulish Temple and is the only temple of the Lakulish sect in India. We said our prayers, and sat for sometime in the temple before heading back for Udaipur.

We reached Udaipur by dark and were in two minds about attending the evening Light and Sound show at City palace. Basing our judgment on our previous experience with such shows (though mostly at the Red Fort in Delhi), we instead chose a quiet and romantic dinner in ‘Venice'. Raghav was convinced that we were more acquainted with the history of Mewar than any Light and Sound show could elaborate on, so we instead splurged on a drinking binge, our first in Rajasthan, and proposed a toast to Mewar.

We regretted for not being able to visit Kumbalgarh and Ranakpur, and even contemplated extending our trip by a trip. But then we found some consolation in the fact that we were visiting Chittorgarh and Delwara, the better versions of Kumbalgarh and Ranakpur respectively.

Travel to Udaipur did do some good to us! Shatabadi, connecting Chittorgarh to Udaipur, provided me with ample time to compile my memos about the travel and Raghav a chance to read-up more about Mewar, catch-up on his sleep and savor the local 'poha’.

Interestingly, in most cities of Rajasthan, the rick guys also double-up as a tourist guide and a commissioned agent for hotels and shopping arcades; these shopping arcades often add the suffix 'museum' to their name for attracting footfalls! So the rick guys carry cards, the size of a business card, printed either by hotels or shopping arcades, listing around seven to ten supposed tourist attractions on one side (some of them being public gardens and picnic joints), and publicize either a cheap hotel or free entry to the museums (or shopping arcade) on the other. Raghav theorized that their real earnings accrue from the commission that they receive by adding to the footfalls, and not by driving the rick!

We ended-up hiring a fancier version of the rick on our way from the station to the city. This rick was equipped with a fancy music system, playing popular Bollywood tunes, and with halogen lights that kept flashing and flickering through the entire way! As expected, the rick guy flashed tried to sell and push the tourist attractions on his card onto us, and even offered us a better (and cheaper) hotel than where we were booked. As he kept bettering his deal, we kept refusing politely, repeatedly :)

Udaipur was the last capital of Mewar, and also the last Mewar state that we visited. Fondly saluting the Rajputs of Mewar, we offer our tribute to their patriotism, courage and sacrifice.

- Namrta R (from my backpacking trip to Rajasthan)
Companions: Raghav and Lonely Planet

Also read about Pushkar, Ajmer, Ranthambore, Chittorgarh, Mount Abu, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer an Thar
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6: Abu - the Mount

Mount Abu for us was Delwara, the five legendary marble temples built between the 11th and the 13th centuries and considered the most beautiful Jain pilgrimage site in the world.

The five temples – Vimal Vasahi, Luna Vasahi, Peethalhar, Khartar Vasahi Temple and Shri Mahaveer Swami temple, are in the midst of a range of forested hills and have an opulent entranceway, the simplicity in architecture reflecting Jain values like honesty and frugality.

The main temple, Vimal Vasahi temple (or also Adinath temple), was built in 1021 by Vimal Shah, a minister of Bhimidev I, the Chalukya King of Gujarat. It is dedicated to the first Jain Tirthankara (teacher or guide), Adinath. This temple is carved entirely out of white marble and has numerous cells which contain tiny images of Jain Tirthankaras artistically carved on marble stone minutely. The artisans who carved this temple were paid in gold worth the weight of the marble dust that they collected while sculpting. We spent hours admiring the richly carved corridors, pillars, arches, and 'mandaps' or porticoes of this temple!

Luna Vasahi temple (or Shri Nemi Nathji temple), was built in 1230 and is dedicated to Shri Nemi Nathji (also famous as Arishth Nemi) who was the 22nd Jain Tirthankar of present age. According to Jain beliefs he lived some 5000 years ago. He lived during the legendary Mahabharat war and was cousin of Lord Krishna. This temple was built by two Porwad brothers - Vastupal and Tejpal, both ministers of a Virdhaval, the Vaghela ruler of Gujarat. Appatently, they had found a hidden treasure during their pilgrimage to Delwara and decided to use that money to construct the temple, in the vicinity of Vimal Vasahi. Since their wives oversaw the construction of the temple, it is also referred to as the ‘Devarani-Jithani’ temple. It has one hall named Rag Mandapa which has 360 tiny, minutely crafted idols of Jain Tirthankar and among all these white marble idols the idol of Shri Neminath Ji is made up of black marble. The pillars of this temple were built by Maharana Kumbha of Mewar.

Peethalhar temple (Shri Rishabdaoji temple) was built by Bhima Shah, a minister from Gujarat dynasty. The main idol in this temple is composed of 5 equal portions or 90 kg each of gold, silver, copper, brass and aluminum.

Khartar Vasahi Temple (or Shri ParshavNath temple) was built by Mandika clan between 1458 and 59. This temple has the tallest shrine and the carving on the pillars of this temple is yet another example of architectural superiority.

Shri Mahaveer Swami temple was constructed in 1582 and is devoted to Lord Mahaveer, the 24th Tirthankara. This temple is relatively small but equally exquisite, and the temple's upper walls have pictures of the porch painted by craftsmen of Sirohi in year 1764.

Delwara was the most beautiful thing we had ever seen, and I can’t find enough adjectives to describe it! The detailing in sculptures was intriguing, and made me wonder if they are more perfectly chiseled than the human figure itself. The artisans haven’t ignored even the minutest of details such as the eyelashes, bangles, sari border, etc, and the carvings just seem to be coming alive any moment. The only disappointment at Delwara was ‘photography not allowed’.

Gleeful after this visit, we sped across the town on the rented bike to the other places of interest in Mount Abu, aka Nakki Lake, Toad Rock and the Sunset Point – and didn’t really find anything interesting about them! We savored the local dish ‘dal bati’ on the bank of Nakki lake. Lonely Planet recommended the romantic ‘shikara ride’, which would have been truly romantic and worth trying if the lake was a little less dirty and the sun a little less bright.

We also rode to the Toad Rock, a peculiar rock formation overlooking the lake, which seems like a toad ready to jump-off in the lake, and then headed to the Sunset Point where we experimented with the ‘Sunset’ mode of our cam. A popular attraction at the Sunset Point seemed to be a to and fro horse-ride from the foothill, availed by most tourists while we decided to walk up (hand-in-hand :)

The sun set after a long wait and thereupon, we set out for Abu Road (the nearest railway station) from where we had to board our next train for Jodhpur!

More about Mount Abu:
Mount Abu was the home of many saints and sages in the old days. Legend has it that all the 330 million gods and goddesses of the Hindu pantheon used to visit this holy mountain. It is also the place where the great saint Vashishth lived and performed a yagna (sacrificial worship on a fire pit) to create four Agnikula (four clans of fire) to protect the earth from demons. The yagna was supposed to have been performed near a natural spring, which emerged from a rock shaped like a cow’s head.

According to another legend, once sage Vashishth’s cow Nandini was trapped in a deep gorge and could not free herself. The sage appealed to Lord Shiva for assistance. The Lord sent Saraswati, the divine stream, to help flood the gorge so that the cow could float up. Vashishth then decided to ensure that such mishaps did not occur in future. He asked the youngest son of Himalaya, the king of mountains to fill the chasm permanently. This he did with the assistance of Arbud, the mighty snake. This spot came to be known as Mount Arbud and was later changed to its present form – Mount Abu.

This place is held in reverence by Jains as well since Jain scriptures record that Lord Mahavira, the 24th Jain Tirthankar (spiritual leader), also visited Mount Abu and blessed the city.

- Namrta R (from my backpacking trip to Rajasthan)
Companions: Raghav and Lonely Planet

Also read about Pushkar, Ajmer, Ranthambore, Chittorgarh, Udaipur, Jodhpur, Jaisalmer and Thar
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7: Jodhpur - the Subservient

We began our journey to the immortal state of Marwar with Jodhpur. It was was founded in 1459 by Rao Jodha, a Rajput chief of the Rathore clan. Later, Jodha succeeded in conquering the surrounding territory and founded a state which came to be known as Marwar.

Early in history, Jodhpur became a fief under Mogul empire, and later British empire, enjoying internal autonomy while owing fealty to these foreign invaders. It was ruled by Moguls for almost two centuries until Aurangzeb’s demise and the subsequent decline of Mogul kingdom. Jodhpur entered in a subsidiary alliance with British as early as 1818, thus prospering under peace and stability while the rest of the country was struggling for freedom.

Interestingly, Maharaja Umaid Singh laid the foundation stone of Umaid Bhawan Palace, biggest private residence in the world with 347 rooms, in 1929 - the same year in which Bhagat Singh and Batukeshwar Dutt dropped a bomb at the Central Legislative Assembly, the All Parties Muslim Conference formulated the Fourteen points under Jinnah's leadership, and the Lahore session of INC adopted the goal of complete independence or 'Poorna Swaraj' for India.

The construction of this palace took place over a period of 15 years when the freedom movement was at its zenith. Oblivious of the freedom struggle between 1929 and 1944, the unaffected Maharaja Umaid Singh, also the president of the British Royal Institute of Architects, built not only one of India's most imposing palaces but also among its most recent! The palace was apparently built as a public relief and employment project during a long period of drought and employed around 3000 artisans. Over one million square feet of the finest marble was used in the construction of the palace. A special type of sandstone, called Chittar sandstone, has been used in its construction, which gives the palace a special effect. (It is also referred to as Chittar Palace by the locals). Its style of construction, with beautiful balconies, charming courtyards and stately rooms, makes it a fine example of Indo-Saracenic architecture.

In 1977, the royal family segmented the palace into the Royal residence, the Heritage hotel and a museum. The hotel is operated by Taj, which possesses 98 air-conditioned rooms elegantly decorated with antique furniture. We were flabbergasted by the pictures of lavish art deco of the Royal residence, and wondered if some of the millions spent on this palace could be routed to the Indian freedom movement!

Contrary to the modern Umaid Bhavan is the majestic Mehrangarh Fort, top a 125 m high hill, started by Rao Jodha in 1459 and sings the glory of ancient Marwar. Some of the extant fort dates back to the period of Jaswant Singh between 1638 and 1678, and houses an exquisite collection of palanquins, howdahs, royal cradles, miniatures, musical instruments, costumes and furniture and cannons (in the ramparts of the fort).

The massive main gate (or pol) exhibits well-preserved cannon shots and hand prints of the royal widows offered to their husband's pyre as 'sati'.We opted for an Audio tour of the fort as recommended by our loyal companion and guardian, Lonely Planet, and dived back into time. We listened patiently to our Audio guide that drew our attention to the only room with special Belgian tiles. These tiles had patterns of pretty English ladies amongst the other floral designs, thus signifying that the room was used for the 'entertainment' of the British. Entertainment of-course has been a very vague term since the means of entertainment vary diversely! The fort also makes for a breath-taking panoramic view of the city. Jodhpur is also referred to as the Blue City due to the blue-painted houses around this iconic Fort.

Jaswant Thada, at an approachable distance from Mehrangarh, is an architectural landmark found in Jodhpur. It is a white marble memorial built in 1899 in memory of Maharaja Jaswant Singh II. (Within this cenotaph, there are also two more tombs). The marble used is extremely thin and polished so that they emit a warm glow when the sun's rays dance across their surface. However, i0f you visit this memorial after Delwara, the visual experience may not be as aesthetic.

This was all Jodhpur had to offer to our appetite for art, history and culture. So we decided to get a flavor of the local spice market! A walk and a snuff in the bazar tickled our senses, a feeling which lingered on through the rest of our trip.

- Namrta R (from my backpacking trip to Rajasthan)

Companions: Raghav and Lonely Planet

Also read about Pushkar, Ajmer, Ranthambore, Chittorgarh, Udaipur, Mount Abu, Jaisalmer andThar
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8: Jaisalmer - the Golden mirage

The very thought of Jaisalmer has my mouth salivating! It reminds me of the out of the world apple pie, with homemade vanilla ice-cream, that we savored at the ‘8th July Café’, one of the many homely cafes run by a resident of Jaisalmer fort. The cafe also served us with a sumptuous fresh and unadulterated (alphonso) mango juice. For hundred bucks a glass, the juice was like a glass of bliss.

Jaisalmer fort, like Chittorgarh, is a living fort; the entire population of Jaisalmer used to live within the fort at one point of time, and about a quarter of city's population still lives in the fort. So it’s not unusual to find such home runs cafes, handicraft and souvenir shops, and even beauty parlors, inside the fort premises for tourists.

This massive yellow sandstone fort is also called the ‘Golden Fort’ because it has tawny lion color walls that turn to a magical honey-gold as the sun sets, sometimes even looking like a part of the picturesque yellow desert. (Satyajit Ray’s film Sonar Kela or the Golden Fortress was based on this fort.)

The fort dates back to 1156 when it was built by Rawal Jaisal (and hence the name), on Trikuta hill, where it stands sprawled out along the golden stretches of Thar. The fort has three layers of walls. The guide explained that the outer or the lower layer is made out of solid stone blocks and reinforces the loose rubble of Trikuta Hill; the second or the middle wall snakes around the fort; and the third or the inner most wall was used by the Rajput warriors to hurl boiling oil and water, and massive round blocks of rock as missiles on the enemies when they got trapped between the second and the third walls. The defensive mechanism of the fort had been further enhanced by the 99 bastions, out of which 92 were built between 1633 and 1647.

We climbed the steep slope to reach the main pol (or gate) and the center of the fort, known as Dussehra Chowk, where the seven-storied Rajmahal is located. Rajmahal is distinctly divided in two prominent parts - Raja ka Mahal and Rani ka Mahal, and the difference between both is stark! Raja ka Mahal features open balconies and a huge open courtyard, from where the king addresses the public even today on every Dussehra festival (built on the lines of dewan-e-aam), whereas Rani Ka Mahal has covered balconies with intricately carved meshes to adequately cover the queen (Rajputs followed the ‘purdah’ system) while letting her take a peek at the outside world.

The interiors of these palaces, also museums now, house an exquisite collection of royal sculptures, weapons, Gangore dresses of queens, cooking vessels, coins, stamps, and other antique articles. A large part of the decor has been done in wood, to keep them cool in the heat of the Rajasthan.

At a stone throw's distance from Rajmahal, there are seven beautiful Jain temples of the 15th and 16th centuries, dedicated to 16th Tirthankar Lord Shantinath and 23rd Tirthankar Lord Parshvanath. (Jaisalmer also boasts some of the oldest libraries of India which contain rarest of the manuscripts and artefacts of Jain tradition, and there are many Jain pilgrimage centres around Jaisalmer like Lodarva, Amarsagar, Brahmsar and Pokharan.)

The fort has been unperturbed by many battles including the attack of Ala-ud-din Khilji in 13th century. When Khilji succeeded in capturing the fort, the Rajput women committed the only Jauhar held here in order to save themselves from dishonor. (Khilji held the fort for 9 long years). The second battle that the fort witnessed was in 1541, when Humayun attacked the fort city.

Jaisalmer, once a part of the SilkRoute, played a major role in the trade with Persia, Arabia,Egypt and Africa during the medieval times, so the city was home to many wealthy merchants such as Guman Chand Patwa. Patwa hailed from Oswal Jain community and dealt in brocade, gold and silver embroidery, and was also a banker with over three hundred trading centers from Afghanistan to China.

His ancient haveli (or residence), popularly, Patwaon ki haveli, is a popular landmark even today. The ornate five-storey palace that took fifty years to complete (from 1800 to 1850) and costed more than ten lacs, is divided into five blocks meant for each of his five sons initially. These havelis were constructed by Hindu and Muslim craftsmen hailing from Gujrat, Malwa and Sindh.

After the decline of the sea trade and growth of the port of Bombay, during the British rule, the city went through a major economic recession. So the Patwa family later sold the haveli to Bafna family for mere Rs 80,000 and migrated to Madras, Maharashtra and Bengal.

It was only during the first Nuclear test in Pokhran, when Indira Gandhi was heading to Pokhran, via Jaisalmer, that she recognized the cultural significance of this site as a heritage monument. Since then two parts of the haveli have been converted to a museum owned by ASI (Archaeological Survey of India). On the other hand, the largest and the most splendid part of the haveli, bought over by Bafna family from the Patwas, has also been converted to a private museum and is probably the best amongst all. The remaining two parts house a shopping arcade and a private residence.

Nathmalji-ki-Haveli is yet another example of art in Jaisalmer. Constructed by another merchant named Nathmal in the 19th century, it continues to be a private residence for his descendants even today - and flaunts an ornamental facade with splendid carvings of flowers, birds, elephants, soldiers, a bicycle and even a steam engine. Salim Singh-ki-Haveli, another residence built in 1815 by the infamous Dewan (or prime minister) Salim Singh, now in ruins has beautifully carved brackets in the form of peacocks and murals on its walls inside!

‘Tummyful’, with these architectural delights and the delicacies served by the '8th July Cafe', we headed out of Jaisalmer, with a sweet taste in mouth and even sweeter memories!

- Namrta R (from my backpacking trip to Rajasthan)
Companions: Raghav and Lonely Planet

Also read about Pushkar, Ajmer, Ranthambore, Chittorgarh, Udaipur, Mount Abu, Jodhpur and Thar
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9: Thar - the Sea of Sand

Our insatiable desire to explore the Great Indian Desert led us to the interiors where we spent a night by sand dunes. We camped on virgin sand dunes, beneath the clear, royal blue sky that was studded with diamond-like stars.

We rode on our respective camels, Raghav on Simon, and I on the gluttonous Dandar, who stopped by every bush to graze, for hours. Not minding the sun, we enjoyed riding on our camels and even learnt how to navigate them using the strings. A seldom painful, we did keep re-adjusting our positions but didn't halt for the want of exploring more of Thar. The scrubby terrain of the desert so reminded me of Clint Eastwood's 'The Good, the Bad and the Ugly'! We rode much farther than the touristy (and dirty) Sam sand dunes that flaunts a neat line of luxury Swiss tent, to reach these virgin dunes that were to be our base by the evening.

Leaving our bags and chappals, we goofed around the high and low landscape, eager to leave our footprints all across the sand, and watched the sun set behind the dunes! By then our spirits had also dulled along with the sunlight, and we decided to get some rest by sprawling out on the dunes.

Soon it was time for dinner, so we headed towards the hearth where our cook, who was accompanying us, had spread out a lavish dinner buffet and a local dessert. We were joined by Kate, Catherine and Ann, along with Mr Desert who had brought us a special Rajasthani dessert from Jaisalmer. As we ate to our heart’s content, by the bonfire, literally in the middle of no-where, Mr Desert collected the intruding beetles in a pot, feeding them some rice too, and entertained us with his stories about the desert.

A few minutes before midnight, we decided to hit our beds to wake-up in time for sunrise. So, we walked to the isolated sand dune where our beds were neatly laid, and were surprised to find one of the most fancy and clean linens! Huddled together in the quilt, we slept an unusually sound sleep in the serene sea of desert lit with moonlight – truly memorable experience!

The morning was very windy, and pleasant. We had toast and egg for breakfast, again cooked on the same hearth, on a neatly spread mattress aka dining table, while our camels drank plentiful of water. We sat there for a long time, by the calm, quiet sand dunes, in this sea of desert, admiring the no-man’s land, with no trace of anyone or anything!

By noon, the sun was shone bright and our camels longed to head back to their village, so we set out towards the city. After a long ride, we reached the rendezvous, and were greeted by our jeep driver. Hopping off our camels, we turned over our backs to cast a last glance at the splendid distant dunes, our abode for a handful of hours but memories of a lifetime.

About Mr Desert:

LN Bissa, aka Mr Desert, then a truck driver, won the title ‘Mr Desert’ for four consecutive times in 1988, 1989, 1990 and 1991, and received a paltry sum of Rs 500 as the prize money each time. The only criterion for selection was to look good in traditional Marwari costume. In 1991, he was entitled as ‘Mr Desert Emeritus’ and barred from participating in the pageant henceforth. (This was also followed by a rule that any winner wouldn’t be allowed to participate in the contest more than once.) Since then he has been on the selection panel of the pageant as a judge.

In 1991, Mr Desert’s friends recommended that being famous as he was, he should quit driving trucks and take to a more respectable occupation such as organizing safaris to Thar, a potential source of income in the touristy town of Jaisalmer.

For want of a name, since Thar Travels already existed, Mr Desert asked around for suggestions when he was told that there was another desert by the name of Sahara, which was bigger than his Thar. So, he rented a place near Jaisalmer fort to convert to a travel agency and named it ‘Sahara Travels’, as it exists even today.

As luck would have it, Mr Desert had no tourist or customer drop by for the initial two months, and he just sat at Sahara Travels fretting about how to feed his family. Like others, he tried visiting the railway station to catch the tourists as they get off the train, but couldn't be persistent enough as the other agents.

While he was contemplating to go back to driving trucks, suddenly around 10-12 guys from Mumbai dropped in and enquired if they could photograph him. He readily agreed, seeing no harm, and as luck would befall, the same group of guys came back after around two weeks with a contract to crown him as the ‘Marlboro Man’ of India. They even selected him as the face for their new cigarette ‘Jaisalmer’.

Soon he became a popular face in the country, with his pictures on hoardings and in magazines (or print ads), which also fetched him customers. In the meantime, he was covered by Lonely Plant, which also recommended his ‘off-the-beat’ safari, as opposed to the others offering a luxury Swiss tent around the crowded and filthy Sam sand dune. (That’s how we landed there!)

Today, Mr Desert has become a popular Jaisalmer icon in the Bollywood industry. He has gone on to do advertisement with Coke India Hritik Roshan and Tinu Anand, with Coke US which was featured during the World Cup 1996, with Asian Paints and one more with an international brand.

A simple, down-to-earth person, he continues to live a meager life even today, and operate from the same shop as back in 1991. I became the first Indian to join his fan-page on Facebook.

Thank you Mr Desert for the best night of my life!

- Namrta R (from my backpacking trip to Rajasthan)
Companions: Raghav and Lonely Planet

Also read about Pushkar, Ajmer, Ranthambore, Chittorgarh, Udaipur, Mount Abu, Jodhpur, and Jaisalmer.
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