Jaipur Heritage

Albums of Heritage The Jaipur Chapter

Amit Parekh Ashwin Vir Dayal Hanumant Pandey

Shashank Bharadwaj Tushar Bhargava

Albums of Heritage The Jaipur Chapter

Amit Parekh Ashwin Vir Dayal Hanumant Pandey

Shashank Bharadwaj Tushar Bhargava

Albums of Heritage Chicago, Illinois

USA

© 2007

LEFT A gate to the Bolee Walon Ki Haveli in the Sankari Gali. The haveli is one of twelve and two Mandirs restored by the Jaipur Virasat Foundation over 2005-06 in the Singhji ka Rasta. Funding for the restoration of the facades was provided by the Prince of Wales and Prince Charles Trust. Prince Charles subse-quently visited these havelis in 2006.

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3

4

2

1

8 9

1. Amber & Shoor Singh ki Haveli

2. Char Darwaza

3. Balanandji ka Math

4. Choti Chaupar

5. Bari Chaupar

6. LMB

7. Modi ki Haveli

8. Sharma Bhawan

9. Jargab Haveli

10. Mathuresh Bhawan

11. Johari Bazar

12. Ram Prakash Theater

13. Talkatora Lake

14. Chaugan Stadium

15. Ajmeri Gate (Back Cover)

11

To Sanganer

To Galtaji

To Amber & Delhi

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13

14

12

15

3 The Jaipur Chapters

PREFACE 4

FOREWORD 6

THE ASTRONOMER’S CITY 8

THE JAIPUR CHAPTERS 10

THE EXPERIENCE 48

MEDIA NOTES 50

ACKNOWDGEMENTS 52

THE TEAM 54

LEFT: A Google satellite image of the Jaipur City highlighting the sites featured in this book..

4 Albums of Heritage

In the early nineteenth century, it was said that Jaipur City had the best skyline in the world. Built in 1727, with grand avenues resplendent in gilded palaces and majestic havelis, the city was the fitting abode of the maharajas and their people. Jaipur was the unblemished conception of the vision of Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II and the architec-tural genius of the Bengali architect Vidhyadhar Bhattacharya. Each building served a distinct utilitarian purpose, and yet was an artistic expression of the cultural propriety of its owners. By every conceivable measure, Jaipur was one of the great cities of its time. Unfortunately, the famed city is now a shadow of its former self. One of India’s great treasures is being lost, perhaps ravaged by the inattention of the very people whose priceless legacy it was. Jaipur was designed by Vidhyadhar according to the principles of Vaastu, the traditional Indian system of architec-ture, and is considered by urban planners to be one of the best planned cities. It is set in a grid system, arranged in nine rectangular sectors. A wall with seven gates was built to fortify the city from invaders and wild animals. Every haveli or home was intricately designed with beautiful jharokas (windows), aangans (courtyards), cornices, plinths and pillars. The walls inside and on the outside of homes were embellished with colorful paintings and the ceilings be-decked in intricate mosaics of mirrors. Today, we can only imagine what this city once was. A hint of its former grandeur can be seen in a mid-19th cen-tury canopy fresco painted on one of the turrets of the old fort of Nawalgarh, a stunning photograph of which ap-pears in Jaipur – The Last Destination by Aman Nath and Samar Singh Jodha. The beauty of the city was not lost on the well traveled pardesis, conversant with the great cities of the world of the time. In the year 1890, British civil en-gineer, Colonel Sir S. S. Jacob, recognized Jaipur for the treasure it was. He commissioned his office to produce over three hundred hand drawn sketches of architectural elements of the city’s best known structures. These incredible printed volumes, Jeypore Portfolio of Architectural Details, are held in various private collections and are in precarious condition. The studio of Gobindram and Oodeyram in Jaipur and various British photographers (Bourne & Shepherd) of the time took some of the best pictures of the city in the period 1880-1920 . The photographs that survive are scat-ter all around the world in various private collections, libraries (see British Library, Queens Library and the Smithsonian) and unavailable to the general public in India. The Albums of Heritage Foundation is actively engaged in an effort to acquire digital copies of these images from various owners and present a pictorial record of the city on its website.

Preface Vireshwar Dayal Mathur, Senior Citizen, Jaipur


The Album of Heritage Project emanated from the desire of a few concerned citizens of Jaipur to create a visual record of their histori-cal city before it withered beyond recognition. While the best known sites, such as the Hawa Mahal and Jantar Mantar are well pre-served, other parts of the city are falling victims to neglect and urban destruction. It is these secondary sites, outstanding in their own right, that are the focus of this project. Without them, Vidhyadhar’s grand composition of a single great city of unprecedented scale and beauty is precipitously endangered. Today, much of the city itself is gone, but notably not long gone. The urban destruction surely has taken place in our times and on our watch – namely, in the post-independence years of economic development. The goal of the project was to seek out the havelis that survive, but are at risk of annihilation, and commission artists to recreate images of what these structures may have looked like in their pristine state over three hundred years ago. In this manner a visual history of the archi-tecture of the Jaipur city may be preserved. Some ask how such a devastation of a national treasure was possible with no armies of pillaging invaders to assign blame to. We have to wonder if the generation of our forefathers will be remembered best for architecting one of the greatest cities of the world, and the generation of their sons remembered most for its destruction. A prominent historian has argued that Jaipur citizens, who always relied on the Maharaja for the maintenance of the city, were never adequately prepared to live up to their own civic duty. But ultimately it is we, the citizens of Jaipur, whose rightful legacy and heritage it is, who have to raise their voice. When in the next instance, a three hun-dred year old jharoka is torn asunder to accommodate a desert cooler or accommodate a chappal store display, and a citizen of the city raises his voice, the Albums of Heritage will have found a voice. If only one more citizen of Jaipur adds her voice to those that say that “something can and should be done”, the Albums of Heritage will have been heard.


I congratulate the Albums of Heritage team on completing a remarkable project that celebrates the architectural heritage of the city of Jaipur.

In my tenure as the Principal Secretary of Arts and Culture for the state of Rajasthan, I have come across many projects led by professional organizations interested in preserv-ing the precious arts and architectural heritage of the Jaipur city. The task is daunting and there are no easy answers to what to do and how. Hence, many such efforts begin nobly but end quickly in frustration.

When a small band of high school students approached me about helping them with their Albums of Heritage project, I was inwardly skeptical about what they could really accomplish in just six weeks of the hot season. But the quiet passion with which the young men spoke of their desire to do something for preserving the city, intrigued me and moved me to assist them.

There is something unique about the Albums of Heritage project. Firstly, it is an initia-tive conceived and conducted by the children of Jaipur, whose heritage ultimately this is. When the children themselves take such pride in their city, the complex task its restora-tion seems so much more worthwhile and doable. Secondly, the Albums of Heritage is an initiative led by the citizens for the citizens. This effort is therefore unique because in this instance the involved citizens asked only what they themselves could do and without much ado set about doing it.

The task of restoring our great city’s architectural heritage is a diffcult one, beset as it is by questions of property rights, national legacy, social equity, politics, and economic de-

Salahuddin Ahmad, Principal Secretary of Arts and Culture, Government of Rajasthan Foreword


velopment. However, when proud citizens of the city themselves make a personal commit-ment and Jaipur’s own children take steps to control their destiny, I am left feeling person-ally energized and optimistic about the future of the city.

If I said I was skeptical of the idea at the beginning, I hasten to add just how amazed and proud I am now at the result. This book presents a visually stunning collection of “before and after” images of the havelis, temples and courtyards that at one time were the pervasive adornments of the walled city of Jaipur. They were more than just impassive stone and stucco struc-tures. They represented the very spirit of the city; a spirit of unpar-alled elegance, honor and solidarity.

This Album of Heritage is there-fore a tribute to that spirit and perhaps the only such album of its kind. No reader can look at these images and not feel pride in and hope for our great city and heri-tage. It deserves the widest possible circulation in the city and I hope it compels more citi-zens, and especially children in schools, to participate in and support efforts to conserve the city in their own way. In that manner, the contribution of the Albums of Heritage project will be immeasurably more far reaching than the pages of the Album themselves.

8 Albums of Heritage Jaipur – The Astronomer’s City

Perhaps there is no better way to intro-duce the erstwhile city of Jaipur than to let a traveler of the 1920s describe it. Major H. A. Newell, was no ordinary tourist. He wrote succinct and highly regarded guide books on a handful of Indian cities before heading off to active service with the Expeditionary Force in France.

Jaipur was surely special for him, for in his introduction he gushes, “In Jaipur, the traveler realises the India of his dreams. Ele-phants and camels, tigers, peacocks, monkeys and alligators, temples and palaces are here pre-sent in number and variety, greater even than his fancy had painted. … Not only does the Dhoondar capital provide the Westerner with the mise en scene his fancy had conjured up as typically Oriental, it introduces him to an undreamed world of Eastern romances.”


LEFT & RIGHT: Scanned introductory chapter from Major H. A. Newell’s definitive travel guide to the city of Jaipur. The full 38 page booklet with a 2 day walking itinerary is available for download from albumsofheritage.com.

SOURCE: Acquired by Shri Ashwin Dayal in an ebay auction


Before Jaipur city, there was the town of Amber, which was established in 1135. Then it was the home to the Kachhawahas, a Rajput tribe, that eventually built Jaipur. When Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II came to power, he realized that Amber was no longer large enough to meet the peoples’ needs. They required a city that could support trade with the major cen-ters of the Mughal Empire, such as Delhi and Agra, while being able to defend itself. The site for Jaipur was finally chosen on land that used to be the Maharajas’ personal hunting reserve.

Located by the Amber Palace, the Shoor Singh ki Haveli is a majestic building that has unfortunately fallen into ruin. Maharaja Man Singh I’s cousin, Shoor Singh was the kotwal of Amber and in charge of maintain-ing the discipline in the area. The building was used not only as Shoor Singh’s home, but also for holding court.

Eventually, when the citizens of Amber moved to Jaipur, the haveli was abandoned. Over time, people began to encroach upon the building, in-cluding a Bengali priest named Bhattacharya. In both 1968 and 1974, the government attempted to intervene and protect the building as it had collapsed from decay. The government is currently involved in a court case with the Bhattacharya family over control of the haveli and has plans for its restoration.

The Amber valley at one time must have had 20-30 havelis descending from the grand palace of Amber and down the hills. After the migration to Jaipur, Amber became a ghost town and its havelis started falling in disrepair. Visitors in the late 1800s described the abandoned Amber as “the city of dead splendors”. Of the original havelis and mandirs, five to eight still survive and can be restored.

Shoor Singh ki Haveli

RIGHT Artist Shri Hamlet uses a pencil sketch to show what the Shoor Singh Ki Haveli may have looked like in its original condition about five hundred years ago. No exact images are available but the Albums of Heritage team was able to recreate the most probable view based on surviving elements of the building, location of the ruins and the advice of architects familiar with the Jaipur heritage architecture.

FOLLOWING PAGES Show a July 2007 photograph of the ruins of the Shoor Sing Ki Haveli. Hard as it may be to believe, parts of the Haveli are still in use by the Bhattacharyas. The stunning image of the original building is also brought to life in a 3D rendering by Shri Surjit Singh and the Studio IMCON.

SOURCE: Information supplemented by interviews with Dr. Zafferulah Khan, Superintendent of Amber and Hawa Mahal and Shri Prakash Verma.


THEN


Shoor Singh ki Haveli


NOW & THEN


The old city of Jaipur was surrounded by a wall about 6 meters high and 3 meters thick. It had seven gates, a model number in a temple de-signed according to the shastric principles, one each on the east, west and northern flank and four on the south. The more exposed southern side, was further protected by a ditch, which is now mostly filled. The gates were closed at night, a practice continued in the city until as late as 1942.

There were other smaller gates inside the city that separated some of the city’s chowkris (wards) one of which were the Char Darwazas, or the Four Gates. While two of the gates have been re-stored and one is currently being worked on, the Moti Katla Darwaza is not one them.

Char Darwaza

RIGHT: Moti Katla Darwaza, one of the four gates that make up the Char Darwaza, in a July 2007 photograph.

FAR RIGHT: A painting by Shri Hamlet of the Moti Katla Darwaza depicts the structure as it may have looked today had it been preserved in its original state.

SOURCE: Information supplemented by interviews with Shri Ranbir Sing, Shri Vinod Joshi and Sushri Reema Hooja.


NOW & THEN


The Math was built on land given by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II to his guru Shri Balanand Ji. It preceded Jaipur and was an important gathering place. The west side of the Math was the city wall. The small Balanand Ji ki Mori (tunnel) in the wall provided the only city access for late night travelers as the main gates would be closed.

Shri Balanand Ji belonged to the Balanandi Ramanandi Vai-shno Sect, a community fa-mous for having ascetic war-riors. The head gurus of the Math were highly revered be-cause they led the Jaipur army into battle, astride on their elephants. Laxaman-andcharya, the current mathadish, is the 22nd guru of the sect.

Interestingly , given the god fearing nature of Indians,

Balanand Ji Ka Math the temples of Jaipur are among the few structures that have not been ravaged by urban development, though many, including this Math, suffer from the lack of funds and neglect. The Math had a pond that supplied water via canals to tanks in the Chaupars (see later pages). A government school also operates in the Math now.

BELOW: Balanand Ji Ka Math in a July, 2007photograph. Behind the tree, the only standing right tower of the building is visible.

RIGHT: A traditional Jaipur style painting by Shri Vishnu Soni shows what the Math may have once looked like in its day. The surviving right side of the building as well as old documents with the priest helped the team recreate the dramatic original façade.

SOURCE: Interviews with Shri Vinod Joshi and the temple priest.


NOW & THEN


The Choti Chaupar forms a large town square which was constructed along with the rest of the city. It originally had a water tank and well. A fountain was added later. The source of the water to the tank was another tank in the Balan-andji ka Math.

In the 1900s, the tank was

Choti Chaupar filled and replaced with the square that exists today. The removal of the original water collection points has been an endemic problem for the city. It faces depleting ground water levels caused by the destruction of wells previously used for rain water harvesting and a rapidly growing population. Fur-thermore, street merchants have encroached upon the square on all sides, worsening its condition.

BELOW: Choti Chaupar in a July 2007 photograph.

RIGHT: Choti Chaupar in a rare postcard created before 1875 from the private collection of Shri S. D. Mathur.

SOURCE: Information supplemented by interviews with Shri Pankaj Sharma.

NEXT PAGE: Panoramic 1900 photograph of Bari Chaupar by the Gobindram and Oodeyram Studio of Jaipur. Some of the finest pho-tographs of Jaipur were produced by this duo and their studio survived until 1975.


NOW & THEN


Bari Chaupar


EARLY 1900


At one time, the LMB Hotel may have been a classic example of Jaipur architec-ture and lifestyle. The lowest storey was used for shops and the upper two as a residential area. The shop owners likely sold jewels as the building was situated in the jewelers’ bazaar.

However, this changed in the 1900’s, with the opening of the Lakshmi Industrial Works’ Jaipur branch known as the Lak-shmi Bhandar. This business was estab-lished in 1929 and sold cosmetic prod-ucts, including an especially popular type of hair oil.

Shortly afterward, the location attracted the interest of a man named Mr. Maliran Ghodhawat. He was a neighborhood hal-wai, or sweets maker, and felt that Jaipur lacked good vegetarian food. He was in-spired to convert the building into a vege-tarian hotel and restaurant. Maliran had little money and had to sell many of his possessions and take heavy loans, but

The LMB Hotel eventually bought all of the Lakshmi Bhandar. He then began constructing LMB Ho-tel in 1958 and finished in 1962.

He built the hotel by demolishing the original structure in favor of a more modern look with glass windows. The LMB hotel, or Lakshmi Mishthan Bhandar, was thus


LEFT PAGE The LMB Hotel as seen in a July 2007 photography

RIGHT PAGE 3D depiction of what the LMB hotel may have looked like had it been developed within the constructs of its his-torical architecture. 3D rendering by Shri Surjit Singh Ji of archi-tectural design firm Studio IMCON

SOURCE: Informa-tion supplemented by interviews with LMB owner Shri Ajay Agar-wal and Shri Om Prakash Sharma, Head of Archaeological So-ciety in Albert Hall.

NOW & THEN born. Unfortunately, while the LMB Hotel is a great success story, it may have unknowingly set a prece-dent at the time and inspired others to follow suit. Johari Bazaar, where the LMB hotel is located, now is lined mainly by many unsightly urban structures that have replaced the old havelis.


Modi Ki Haveli was built 150 years ago on land called the kuncha upaad zameen (uncleared land). It has one courtyard and is three stories high. The eventual owner, Ramnath Modi, di-vided the haveli amongst his four children. His eldest son, Lalith Modi, currently has control and has left the haveli largely unattended. In 1952, electricity and water was added to the building to improve the living conditions. But poor execution only contributed to the dete-rioration of the haveli.

Pro-tenancy laws may have forced owners to give up on the haveli. Some tenants pay only Rs. 25 per month in rent, but cannot be evicted.

Modi Ki Haveli

CENTER Modi Ki Haveli in a July, 2007 photograph. The ground floor of this grand home now serves as a collection point for discarded paper which is recycled into hand-made paper.

LEFT A 3D rendering of the Modi Ki Haveli depicts the structure in its original state. Drawing by Shri Surjit Singh and the Studio IMCON

FAR RIGHT A pencil sketch by Ajit Singh also shows a restored perspective of the Modi Haveli.

SOURCE: From interviews with Shri Vinod Joshi.


NOW & THEN


The Sharma Bhawan on Maniharon ka Rasta derived its name from its original owners who belonged to the Sharma caste.

Today the Sharma Bhawan has a tunnel that connects Maniharon ka Rasta to Kishan-pol Bazaar and is a key route on a heritage walk designated by Dharmendar Kanvar. in her book "Ten Heritage Walks of Jaipur".

Unfortunately, much of the history of this building is lost.

Sharma Bhawan

RIGHT A 3D rendering of the Sharma Bhawan depicts the structure in its original glory. Drawing masterminded by Shri Surjit Singh and the Studio IMCON. While some buildings in the original city were made of pink sandstone, most were white as shown in this image. Maharaja Man Singh, who renovated the city in the 1870s, had it painted pink and the name “The Pink City” for Jaipur has since endured.

LEFT Sharma Building in a July 2007 photograph.

SOURCE: Information supplemented by interviews with Shri Vinod Joshi.


NOW & THEN


The Jargab Haveli or Pahari House is located in Johari Bazzar, almost directly opposite from the LMB hotel. It is a typical example of the old Jaipur architecture and was painted in the pink color made out of sand stone (garu). Built by a feudal lord in the 1700’s, it was a large estate that included three separate courtyards and dozens of rooms. The courtyards were used for music and dance performances as also for holding court and conducting business. These courtyards still survive today but lie locked up and in neglect.

The last feudal lord to live in this house was Mohan Singh, who owned the building until 1948. After that the building was sold multiple times. The majority of its owners were farmers who ran shops from the haveli. At the present time, the ownership of the haveli is in dispute. On one hand this is the reason for its decay, but on the other it may also be the rea-son for survival. Had it been sold, the haveli’s new owners would have been free to tear it down and replace it with lucrative commercial structures, as so many others have done.

Jargab Haveli

RIGHT Jargab Haveli in a recent photograph in July, 2007. Even though the structure is clearly in neglect, visitors passing by are still awed by the breathtaking beauty of its façade. In many ways, this building is a perfect example of how the skyline of Jaipur was lost to surreptitious ravaging by its residents. The original windows on the building are seen to be intricately carved meshes from stone. To the far right, one can see that some of those open jharoka have been replaced by crude, planked windows to allow residents to close and lock them. Likewise, arched doorways have been replaced by wooden doors. A window at a time, history itself is disappearing.

FOLLOWING PAGES Artist Shri Hamlet uses masterly strokes with his paint brush and pencil to restore the Jargab Haveli to its former glory.

SOURCE: Information supplemented by interviews with Shri Hem Singh and his father, Pratap Singh, whose family owns the Sankotra Haveli, another prominent home in Johari Bazaar.


NOW …


Jargab Haveli


… THEN


The Mathuresh Bhawan was so named because it was originally owned by Shri Mathur Prasad Saxena of the Kayastha caste. The building was built in 1890 and had one courtyard. In 1892, the building of the third floor began and six years later, a temple

was added to the haveli when the owner’s eldest daughter’s husband died at a young age.

In 1936, electrical lines were set up in front of the house and water lines followed four years later. In 1952, the third and fourth floors were made by Jag Mohan Prasad Saxena. Now, shops have encroached upon the home including in front of the entrance.

Mathuresh Bhawan LEFT: Mathuresh Bhawan in a July 2007 photograph.

RIGHT: A 3D rendering of the Mathuresh Bhawan depicts the structure in its original state. Drawing by Shri Surjit Singh and the Studio IMCON.

SOURCE: Information supplemented by interviews with Shri Vinod Joshi.


NOW & THEN


Johari Bazaar

ABOVE: The bustling Johari Bazaar in a July 2007 photograph. The beautiful haveli facades that once lined this street on both sides, are all but gone. The lampposts running through the center of the street adorn an


NOW

image of the rising sun, a common symbol of the ruling dynasty. The original street was partially cobblestone and had broad sidewalks. The verandahs to shops were added later by Mirza Ismail, Diwan f Jaipur 1942-46.


Johari Bazaar was built along with the rest of the city around 1727 by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II. Originally, this main road connected the old city of Amber to the town of Sanganer, a major trading post. Hence, the gate at the en-try of the bazaar was called the Sanganeri Gate.

From the outset, Jaipur had prospered quickly and become a major regional trading center. Jai Singh decided to build houses for all the important jagirdars of his state in the city, ordering them to send 10% of their income to Vidhyadhar annually. These jagirdars, business persons and government officials formed a large population of the city and there was thus a market for costlier luxuries. The term johari literally means jeweler and Johari Bazaar was and is home to jewelers, who likely served the needs of this affluent community.

The advent of the British brought about the influence of the western architecture. Maharaja Ram Singh the IInd modernized Jaipur adding gas lights throughout the city and its avenues. He also built the Ram Prakash Theatre which was based on the Victorian style of architecture (see later pages).

After independence, the Maharaja of Jaipur relinquished power to the government of India. The codes that regu-lated the building construction within the walled city, were effectively erased and the door to urban destruction opened. City residents, who had always relied on the Maharaja to provide order and civic services, were unpre-pared to take on the responsibility of maintaining their city, and it deteriorated steadily. Now, one can barely see remnants of the havelis of the jagirdars that at one time must have dotted the peripheries of Johari Bazaar.

RIGHT: A watercolor painting of Johari Bazaar by Shri Hamlet portrays an impressionistic view of the erstwhile havelis that lined the street on both sides.

Johari Bazaar


THEN


Built in 1879 by Maharaja Sawai Ram Singh II, Ram Prakash was the first theatre to be built in Jaipur. It was part of Ram Singh’s strategy to modernize the city and its design reflected Victorian architectural principles. Upon completion, it was promptly listed amongst the top performance theatres of India.

Ram Prakash not only was the home to Parsi (Hindi) theatre, but also was fre-quented by the traveling British theatre groups. It had one of the largest collec-tions of translated Sanskrit plays and at its time was something of a revolution. Back when men and women were separated by the purdah system, the plays

Ram Prakash Theatre

RIGHT: A pencil sketch of Ram Prakash Theatre by Shri Manish Raj depicts the front facade in its original state, a model of which lies in the City Palace.

SOURCE: Information from interviews with Shri Ranbir Sing, Vinod Joshi, Pankaj Sharma nd Sushri Reema Hooja.

BELOW Ram Prakash Theatre in July 2007.


THEN & NOW staged at Ram Prakash were amongst the first in India to have female roles played by women.

Originally cream-colored, Ram Prakash received a pink coat later to match with the rest of Jaipur. In the 1940s, it was remodeled into a cinema hall and the rear that harbored the stage fell in disuse. The back area was once oranate and had a fountain, but is now in disrepair and used as a bakery. After it was sold to a new owner, Ram Prakash was closed down and its ownership disputed by the government and a pri-vate citizen who did not pay the property tax. Some therefore argue that the government should with-draw property taxes for owners that maintain their buildings in a heritage condition.


Traveler H. L. Showers described Talkatora in his “Notes on Jaipur” in 1909 as follows: “The Talkatora (Cup Lake) or as visitors call it the Alligator Tank, lies at the northern extrem-ity of the Palace Gardens and immediately beyond the Badal Mahal (Cloud Palace). There was always a lake in this place, and in the days when Amber was still the Capital the forests about the lake provided a favourite hunting ground for the Chiefs. What is now the Badal Mahal was then a Shikar Odi. This Palace may therefore claim to be the oldest building in Jaipur. The tank is now crowded with alligators. These are regularly fed at the Darbar expenses. They are quite tame and come up the steps of the tank to receive food from the hands of the attendants.

A pastime occasionally indulged in is the feeding of the alliga-tors with a bait tied to a long rope. This is thrown out into the tank and there is soon a battle royal for its possession. The successful combatant having bolted the bait, rope and all, a tug-of-war ensure between him and the men holding the rope. It takes many men to haul the monster on shore. Finally he bites the rope through and escapes.”

Talkatora Lake

Later in 1948, traveler B. L. Dhama, who wrote “A Guide to Jaipur and Amber”, described Talkatora thus: “From the vi-cinity of (Maharaja Ishwari Singh’s) cenotaph a view of the Talkatora may also be had … enclosed on three sides by broad embankments and on the fourth or the south side by Badal Mahal … The embankments were once laid out with fine gardens. They were approached fro the Palace by the corridors on either side of the Badal Mahal.

The north bank of the Talkatora is odorned with octagonal pavilions placed at the corners and a fine curvilinear roofed pavilion in the middle. Between the central pavilion and the corner chatris are built rectangular pavilions with flat roofs and their openings filled with jails.

Here in the tank the immersion ceremony of Gangaur and Teej is performed which is watched by the Royalty in the midst of amusement, dances and singing in durbar held on the occasion.

The Talkatora, situated in the midst of the lake, the Raja Mull-ka-Talao, when full with water and with its inmates, the


NOW & THEN

NEXT PAGE (LEFT): Talkatora in an October 2007 photograph.

NEXT PAGE (RIGHT): Talkatora Lake in an early 1990’s an-tique photograph acquired by Shri Ashwin Dayal in an ebay auction.

SOURCE: Shri Vinod Joshi. The two guides references in the text are available in the University of Chicago Regenstein Library.

crocodiles, must have indeed appeared to be like what its name implies, namely, a cup floating in a lake.

The lake of Raja Mull, named after the eminent prime minis-ter of the founder of the city, spreads over an extensive area. It receives the drainage of the north part of the city and that of Nahargarh hill. The latter is first received into a catch-ment area by twelve huge and massively built arched openings placed at skew in the fortification wall and then discharged into the lake by means of three rows of four square orifices arranged one over the other, thus making in all twelve orifices which are called Bara Mori (Big Channels). The Bara Mori are situated at the foot of the Nahargarh Fort and close to the Tiba or the sand-mound of Fatehram which fall ahead on the road from Gangauri Bazar to Brahmpuri, while the sluice of the lake exists by the north side of Madhobilas.

The ravine along the foot of the Nahargarh hill is called Nandi (nadi) or river which flowed full in the time of good rains into the Raja Mull-ka-Talao. The population along the Nandi is largely or exclusively of cloth printers.”

Today, the Talkatora lake, if it can be called that anymore, is usually barren, its famous crocodiles a distant memory. Col-lector canals that were the life line of its water supply have been blocked by urban development. The area next to Talka-tora Lake was used as a major dumping ground for the city’s solid wastes until 1991 . Commercialization of the northern part of the lake resulted in further disposal of wastes into the lake.

A 1999 study by the Malaviya Engineering College found sig-nificant amounts of pollution in the lake, accounting for the black color of the water, the surrounding odor, the persis-tence of mosquitoes and risk of epidemics. A mitigation plan was submitted to the Jaipur Municipal Corporation that included covering the drains to prevent open defecation, de-veloping a solid waste disposal system including scheduling a solid waste pick-up by the Municipality, maintaining the exist-ing sewer as well as a planning a comprehensive public educa-tion program. These improvements are needed urgently.


Talkatora Lake


NOW & THEN


Chaugan Stadium Chaugan literally means an open space. The stadium was built as a fortified maidan (ground) consisting of a larger enclosure and several smaller playgrounds. It is situated between the Gangauri Bazar and the west wall of the City Palace and is close to the Talkatora Lake. The Teej festival used to be held here and still is, as also other amusements, including equestrian displays and elephant fights. The latter continued till the early 1900s.

Chaugan is also a pharsi word for a hockey stick like piece of wood which is curved on one end. The game played with that stick and a ball was also referred to as Chaugan. At the time of Akbar and other Moghul emperors, even the princesses used to play Chaugan astride on their horses.

There are three octagonal bastions at the Chaugan Stadium surmounted by pillared and flat roofed pavilions within the larger enclosure. The first burj on the right at the north-west corner of the smaller playground, where the elephants were kept, is known as the Chini-ki-Burj. Its walls and ceilings were covered with blue porcelain (Chini) tiles. The British resident and other foreign officers watched the festivities from here.

Further at the north-east corner of another playground, ad-joining the Palace is the Moti Burj, which was built by Ishwar Singh. This was reserved for the Raja himself. In the north-east corner is also the Chatar Mahal with fine arched dalans and the Chatar Burj. The dalans were used by the Royalty as pavilions for watching the elephant fights within the enclosure below.

To the north of the Moti Burj lies the Shyam Burj. Within it was a big well, whose water was raised to a high level to work the fountains in Palace Gardens. On its upper storey was an octagonal verandah whose arched openings were fitted with jails (meshes) for the privacy of the Royal ladies watching the sports. The roof was used by the Maharaja and his nobles.


Today, the Chaugan Stadium has lost its royal amphitheater like elegance. A number of structures have been erected without much planning and unsightly buildings surround the stadium.

However, all is not lost and the stadium comes alive during Holi, when an elephant festival is held at the stadium. The owners decorate their elephants with bright colours, jhools (saddle cloth) and jewellery. Cow elephants are made to wear payals or anklets, which tinkle as they walk. Prizes are given for the most beauti-fully decorated elephant.

Some of the events are a polo match, an elephant race and even a tug-of-war between one elephant and 19 men and women, of-ten tourists. Those that feel that the challenge is unfair will take heart in noting that the elephant usually wins hands down drag-ging the tourists around the stadium for good measure.

The most exciting part of the festival is playing holi while seated on the elephant. The elephants put up a variety program and Chaugan Stadium blooms with musicians and dancers. The cere-monial procession has caparisoned elephants, lancers on horses, chariots, camels, canons and palanquins.

NOW & THEN


Chaugan Stadium


BELOW: An antique postcard by the studio of Gobindram Oodeyram, from the private collection of Shri Ashwin Dayal (purchased on ebay) shows an Elephant Fight in progress sometime in the early 1900’s. In the “bhurji” on the left one can see purdahs sheltering the women above and perhaps the Maharaja himself standing below watching the fight from a vantage point. Farther away the crowds of commoners watch the spectacle free, from a safe distance atop the gate.

NOW & THEN


Traveling to Jaipur and working on the Albums of Heritage project has been an experience that none of us will ever forget. While we greatly enjoyed the group camaraderie, it was the lessons that this ex-perience taught us that were invaluable. We learned how to work with different kinds of people (from government officials to art experts), navigate a city unfamiliar to most of us, and adapt to a new cul-ture. Ultimately, these lessons will shape our lives and future endeavors in innumerable ways.

We surely expected the work to be hard, but never did we imagine that the challenges would descend upon us from the very first day. The original plan had been to have four students from local schools join the team so as to have some members with local knowledge, Hindi speaking skills and the means to continue the work beyond the summer. But two of the girls dropped off immediately upon learn-ing how much work was entailed at a time when they needed to focus on their board exams and one other student had a family emergency. Young Hanumant who had been following us around every-where was quickly drafted to the team and went on to become a popular media icon and project spokesperson. By the end of the first day a much more had happened; we had met the Maharaja of Jaipur who bought the entire team a round of ice cream, we saw incredible but deteriorating havelis, one owner offered to sell us his for the trivial sum of $1 million and a conservation team invited us to roll up our sleeves and work at an actual restoration in progress. We did not buy the haveli but the in-trepid, Ashwin Dayal, undeterred by the 46 degree heat did spend one morning working at the site.

We had to not only overcome the language barrier, but also understand the local “style” of communi-cation. Initially, we tended to be very direct in our approach and were eager to get to our questions quickly. Many of our interviewees, however, liked to chat cordially before settling down to “business”. Eventually, we figured the system out, even learnt to savor the tea and cookies first and adjusted our interviewing techniques to local customs and practices.

Much later, another difficulty arose when we tried to get our viewpoint across to the school children of Jaipur. Many questioned the value of a “fruitless” exercise to preserve the city given its impending

The Experience


and certain destruction. Being outsiders to the city, we felt uncomfortable preach-ing to local students about the need to preserve their own city. We tried desper-ately to convey both our enthusiasm for our project and our concern for Jaipur. We hope we were successful.

Adjusting to a new city was in itself a ter-rific learning experience. Two of our members had never been to Jaipur before, but by the end of the trip, they felt like they knew the city of Jaipur inside and out. They even learned where the best dosa restaurants were! Thanks to the fam-ily with whom we stayed, integrating into a new lifestyle was made into a much eas-ier, smoother process. All in all, the end result was quite exciting.

After we had returned to our respective countries, we learnt that the Mayor of Jaipur, Shri Ashok Parnami, had invited Hanumant to an important meeting held with the citizens of Jaipur to discuss the heritage of the city. He expressed hope that the children of Jaipur would draw inspiration from the Albums of Heritage project and continue the work in future years. To our great surprise, he made a spot honorary award of Rs. 21,000 to the team, funds that will be used for the printing of the Jaipur Chapter of The Albums of Heritage.

ABOVE: The Albums of Heritage team at the Ganesh Pol in Amber Palace


Hopes! Hopes!... … The five students traversed every corner and lit-

tle streets of the walled city, taking thousands of

photographs, researching the history of the havelis

by interviewing surviving elderly owners and resi-

dents. With the help of artists and computers they

recreated the images of these buildings… Team

spokesman Ashwin said, “I hope in subsequent

years such an effort is unnecessary and that

Jaipur

citizens

them-

selves put those that would destroy the heritage on

notice” … If Jaipur’s great havelis are to survive,

citizens have to have respect for their heritage. If

these buildings continue to be ignored, Jaipur’s ar-

chitectural heritage may be lost in as little as ten

years. The conservation of heritage and moderni-

zation are not ideals at odds with each other but

must live together. July 21, 2007

Media Notes The Albums of Heritage team held four exhibitions highlighting its re-search and the picture collection. To engage high school students in a dia-log of heritage, three exhibits were held at St. Xaviers School, the Maha-rani Gayatri Devi School and the SMS School. A final two day exhibit was held at the Jaipur Kala Kendra, a leading center for the developments of arts and culture. Several people from Jaipur attended the event and the Albums of Heritage project was covered extensively by the local press, on radio and on national television (Doordarshan and Bhaskar TV). Sev-eral of the attendees also wrote words of encouragement to and sup-port for the team in a guestbook. The following are translated excerpts from some of the local Hindi news-paper coverage.


A Heritage Wrapped in Pictures Five students take on the responsibility of highlighting the

city’s heritage in pictures

If Jaipur’s heritage is not protected in a timely fashion, then in

a few years we will have to content ourselves by looking at

these pictures alone.

To direct peoples’ attention to the city’s rundown havelis, five

students set up an intriguing exhibition of pictures called the

“Albums of Heritage”.

These students researched the

city’s buildings, havelis, and

streets extensively … and pro-

duced pictures that show them in their current condition and

under the possible and beautiful restored condition.

The team wants to gift its pictures to the children of Jaipur so

they develop an interest in the heritage of the city. They will

be assembling an album of these images and take the mes-

sage of conservation of Jaipur’s havelis to a worldwide audi-

ence. July 24, 2007

Pictures Tell the Secret

Story of Crumbling Havelis A group non-resident, Indian origin and

local students joined hands to put together

the “Albums of Heritage” project, which has

brought residents of the city face-to-face

with the delicate condition of their havelis and maths. … Guru Padamshri Kripal

Singh inaugurated this colorful exhibit at

the Jawahar Kala Kendra …He said the ex-

hibit was a “must see” for the responsible

leaders of the state so that they may pur-

sue efforts to preserve the true heritage of

Jaipur with renewed vigor.

July 24, 2007

52 Albums of Heritage Acknowledgements The Albums of Heritage project was completed in only eight weeks of the summer of 2007. Three of the five team members came from abroad, spoke no Hindi and had not lived in India for more than a week or two at a time. An undertaking of this magnitude would have been impossible without generous assistance from many in Jaipur. Shri V. D. Mathur, an 80 year resident of the city and ex-Senior Vice President of NEI, but babaji to us, mentored the group brilliantly with his knowledge of Jaipur, its architecture, history, and people. He prepared the group meticu-lously for its myriad tasks, so that work that should have taken months took only days and weeks. It is his commit-ment to the city of Jaipur that made this album possible. Recognizing our inexperience, several prominent Jaipur residents stepped forward to give us a crash course in art and architecture. Principal Secretary of Art and Culture of Government of Rajasthan Shri Salahuddin Ahmad opened doors and provided valuable counsel on the conduct of the project. Dr. D. Kanwar led us on heritage walks, helped create a list of deteriorating sites and educated us on the methods of restoration. In a rare treat, Padamshree Kripal Singh gave the group an impromptu, personal lesson on the different techniques used for painting the buildings of Jaipur (photo on next page). Sushri R. Hooja enlightened us on the hard-to-find histories of many buildings. Shri Vinod Joshi, an anthropologist with the Jaipur Virasat Foundation, a veritable walking-talking human encyclopedia on the history of Jaipur havelis and galis, gave us a personal tour of the city and helped select the final sites for this album. Without his assistance, many of these havelis would be consigned to be being faceless buildings without a living past. Shri Garg arranged for us to get hands on experience in restoration work. Shri V. K. Mathur, a leading architect of the city, taught the group the technical aspects of Jaipur architecture. Many others helped with valuable research, among them Dr. A. Shekhar and Shri P. Sharma, Curator of the City Palace Museum, who provided us with access to the INTACH listings and museum archives respectively. Critical to the success of the Albums of Heritage was the genius of its artists. Shri Surjit Singh of IMCON, was so passionate about our cause that he allowed the team to in effect hijack his design studio and redirect its talents to the building of the Albums of Heritage. He and his colleagues worked with the us to create sophisticated Autodesk 3D renderings, sometimes till the wee hours of the morning. They also helped setup the Jawahar Kala Kendra exhibition, hanging pictures on the wall and arranging exhibits. Shri Hamlet, an accomplished professional artist in his own right, traveled all the way from Gurgaon and hoteling in Jaipur for three days to paint some of the most fascinating water-color impressions and pencil sketches, bringing near dead havelis to life with the brilliant strokes of his brushes. Shri Nikhil Pandit, director of Tourist Guide Service, gave the Albums of Heritage team a running start. Always mi-


raculously present in times of dire need, “Nikhil Uncle” was virtually a team member, hiking up the hills of Galtaji, Amber and travers-ing every nook and corner of the city. As our designated photography advisor, he schooled the team on digital SLR photography, spending many sunny and odd hours of the day taking pictures. Furthermore, it was the close inspection of his inscrutable traffic hopping skills that revealed to us the secrets of crossing Jaipur streets without being run over by rickshaws or muscled out by cows.

The Albums of Heritage exhibitions would have been be-reft of an audience without timely rescue efforts from other Jaipur citizens. Shri Rajiv Acharya gave us free use of the JKK exhibition space for two full days. Shri and Shrimati S. D. Mathur educated us on the fine art of inviting residents to the exhibition in the Jaipur way. (hand-delivered card, personal entreaty and reminder in that order). Shrimati Su-jata Parekh, young Nikita and Shrimati Chandralekha Sahai aided the group in setting up the exhibitions and ensuring that the images did not simply flutter to the ground with the first whisper of the monsoon winds. Shri Ishwar Mathur, a one-man, public relations machine, helped the Albums of Heritage find a voice well beyond the

exhibition. His efforts resulted in the project being covered in all of the major local publications in Jaipur, and on Radio and national television (Doordarshan and Bhaskar TV). Shri Harish Tyagi’s technology firm Taarak built the first website albumsofheritage.com in just one week and continues to provide high-tech support to the team. Sometimes the best of intentions can go a little farther with a bit of funding. Several individual stepped up to the plate and donated nearly Rs. 3,00,000 in cash to fund our activities, not including travel or equipment. We thank Shri Vijay Parekh, Shri Sundar Bharad-waj, Shri Nikhil Pandit, Shri V. D. Mathur, Shrimati Sujata Dayal and Shri Sandeep Dayal for their unstinting donations. The team may have quickly wilted in the face of the 460, boiling summer had it not been for the unrelenting pampering by host Shri-mati Damyanti Mathur, or Daadi. Shri Puran Arya and Shri Dinesh Pandey kept the team in fighting fit shape with a factory stream of samosas, mutton pullao and daal chawal. Driver Shri Deepak Bahadur made it physically possible for us to be where and when we needed to be with adroit gali navigation. For all of that and much more, we are deeply grateful to these individuals and so many others.


Amit Parekh is 15 years old and in grade 10 in the Singapore American School. He enjoys playing tennis, fol-lowing sports and reading. When that is not enough, he bails out of airplanes in tandem parachute dives with his instructor. Back on earth and in the future, he would like to go to a leading college in engineering and fi-nance. He retains a passion for continuing the work on preserving the heritage of Jaipur. On the Albums of Heritage team, Amit was finance manager and photographer.

Ashwin Vir Dayal is a 16 years old, 11th grade student at the Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire, near Chi-cago. His interests include traveling to interesting parts of the world, reading non-fiction, history and politics, rollerblading at breakneck speeds around the neighborhood, and teaching his nine-year old younger brother ob-scure facts. He has broad academic interests, but knows that in whatever he elects to do in the future, history, people, and doing more of the right stuff will matter. On the Albums of Heritage team, Ashwin was the project coordinator, researcher and PR manager. He also led the production of the printed volume of the Albums of Heritage.

Hanumant Pandey, just 13 years old, is the youngest team member and an 8th standard, scholarship student at the St. Xaviers School in Jaipur. His interest include watching and playing cricket, programming babaji’s com-puter, running errands and helping anybody and everybody. When he grows up, Hanumant wants to be a com-puter engineer. On the team, Hanumant was chief assistant to anyone that needed help and a passionate and elo-quent advocate of the cause in interviews with the media.

Shashank Bharadwaj is 15 years old and in grade 10 of Westminster Schools in Atlanta. He enjoys playing ten-nis and chess and likes to travel. He is also a sharp “techy” and took the lead in managing the “freewebs” web-site for the project. He was the scribe of the teams daily journal and managed the guest book. Never shy from

The Team


engaging in political debates and always ready with a thoughtful word, Shashank has a passion for social causes. At the moment, he is undecided on what career he will pursue.

Tushar Bhargava, is 16 years old, 10th standard student of the St. Xaviers School in Jaipur. He is an avid football (soccer) player and wants to serve in the Indian Armed Forces when he grows up. On the Albums of Heritage team, Tushar was the local cul-ture liaison and helped the team navigate its way in the city as well conduct field research.

BELOW: From left to right: Amit Parekh (15), Tushar Bhargava (16), Hanumant Pandey (13), Shashank Bharadwaj (15), and Ashwin Dayal (16).

Albums of Heritage Foundation 1747 RFD Tanager Way Long Grove, Illinois 60047 USA

2 Bhagat Marg C-Scheme Jaipur, Rajasthan 302001 INDIA

If you wish to volunteer to work on the Albums of Heritage project, or share historic information, old photographs, postcards and movies about Jaipur Havelis, or request the team to cover other parts of the city’s heritage build-ings please contact us at: [email protected].

© 2007

BACK COVER: Ajmeri Gate. July, 2007


Documents

Jaipur Heritage