13 ~ Shame Mandawa Havelis need so much work to restore them
Age old beautiful buildings & paintings with little or no restoration or conservation efforts
19.12.2018 - 19.12.2018
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India 18 - 19
on bruceontour's travel map.
Left the hotel at 3.30pm / 15:30 for Mandawa.
Here is the link to Tripsavvy:
The small market town of Mandawa has more of a rural Rajasthani village feel and dozens of decorated Shekhawati havelis. However, some of them are sadly dilapidated. The town is dominated by an imposing fort, turned into a hotel. For a panoramic view over the town, head up to the terrace of the Mandawa Castle.
https://www.tripsavvy.com/shekhawati-rajasthan-travel-guide-1539655
What does Wikitravel have to say?
Mandawa is a town of approximately 25,000 in the Shekhawati region, Jhunjhunu district of Rajasthan. It is famous for its numerous havelis and the Mandawa Fort. The Mandawa Fort was built by Thakur Nawal Singh in 1755 AD. The fort has now been converted into a heritage hotel and is not freely accessible to visitors. Visitors have to pay a sum of Rs. 500 to visit the fort.
There are many grand havelis in Mandawa, noteworthy among which are the Hanuman Prasad Goenka Haveli, the Goenka Double Haveli, the Murmuria Haveli and the Gulab Rai Ladia Haveli. All the havelis are adorned with beautifully painted frescoes on the walls and ceilings depicting Rajput rulers, traditions, mythological events and general daily happenings. Most of the havelis are however not accessible from inside, as they are locked or entry is barred by the owners. However, one can view a considerable amount of frescoes from a streetside view on foot. As almost none of the owners reside currently in these havelis, the conditions of some of the age old beautiful paintings are deplorable, with little or no restoration or conservation efforts.
https://wikitravel.org/en/Mandawa
Mandawa is also known as an “Open Art Gallery” due to the profusion of beautifully painted havelis both in the town and surrounding areas. I certainly agree that more than a few rupees are needed to restore them to their former glory. Unfortunately, many are left abandoned with just a caretaker looking after it as the owners have moved to the cities.
Deepak was my local guide of the havelis.
Deepak
These are mansions of a unique residential architectural style that evolved around courtyards to serve the purpose of family security, privacy for the women as also protecting the inhabitants from the long, harsh summers. The enormous havelis with fascinating murals were built by the wealthy Rajasthani merchants (Marwaris) in the 19th century.
Chokhani Double Haveli - Two separate wings built for two brothers
Sneh Ram Ladia Haveli
Sneh Ram Ladia Haveli
View from roof top of Sneh Ram Ladia Haveli
View from roof top of Sneh Ram Ladia Haveli
Sneh Ram Ladia Haveli
I was fortunate to be on the roof top of a Haveli when the sun went down around 5.35pm / 17:35, so I stayed a bit longer here to see it.
In the fast fading light there was time to see another Havelli.
It was a short walk back to the car through Mandawa’s short main shopping street. Again would have loved to spend more time here.
Naveti Haveli turned into a bank
Asked if I wanted to see some local hand sewn items such as the mirrored and embroidered patchwork which I did and guess what … “Do you want to buy?” It was so different to the textiles that I saw yesterday in Delhi. These were what I will call “rustic”. Not for me.
Now 6pm / 18:00 and it was dark so time to head back to the Udai Vilas Palace for dinner.
Three waiting staff, me and another couple for dinner. What better service could I ask for?
Dinner = Kadai Murg - A traditional preparation of chicken flavoured with onion and capsicum finished with tomato and grounded spices & gravy 490 rupees / NZ$9.90 / US$6.80.
Onion garlic naan 110 rupees / NZ$2.20 / US$1.50.
Mulgatwani Soup - a mouthwatering Indian soup made of lentils flavoured with ginger, garlic and lemon 250 rupees / NZ$5 / US$3.50.
Plus GST and a tip came to 950 rupees / NZ$19.20 / US$13.30.
Weird and reminded me of my stay in the Sacred Valley in Peru where again I was one of the few guests and that time the only person at the hotel for dinner.
http://v2.travelark.org/travel-blog-entry/bruceontour/7/1326010033
Posted by bruceontour 00:56 Archived in India Tagged mandawa havelis nand_lal_murmuria_haveli chokhani_double_haveli sneh_ram_ladia_haveli naveti_haveli Comments (0)