India Travel

The first people to settle the lands north of Jaipur, Muslims of the Khaimkani clan, established two small states based at Jhunjhunu and Fatehpur in 1450. Their hold on the region was broken in 1730, when the Rajput Sardul Singh of the Shekawat clan took over Jhunjhunu. Two years later he consolidated Shekhawati rule by helping his brother (already ruler of Sikar) to seize Fatehpur from its Muslim Nawab.

Although the area is known as Shekhawati. the Shekawat Rajputs were only responsible for the construction of the forts in each town. The caravan route known as the “spice road” passed through the region on its way between China and the coast of Gujarat, and it was the Jocal merchants - the Marwaris, Hindus of the vaisya caste, and Jains - who funded the building and painting of family houses, temples, wells and rest houses. The Marwaris were often rivals in influence to the local Rajputs, and it was this that led the Shekawats to turn a blind eye to, and even sponsor, brigandry against them. In response, the merchants formed an alliance with the British, ever eager for means to get a foothold in this fiercely independent region. In 1835, and with funding from the maharajas of Jaipur and Bikaner (to whom the Marwaris had also applied for help), a small force of cavalry called the Shekhawati Brigade was set up under the command of Henry Forster and based in Jhunjhunu to control the brigands. This gave the Marwaris the security they needed to build their magnificent havelis, and though many of them moved, encouraged by the British, to Bombay, Madras and especially Calcutta, they continued to send their profits back to Shekhawati, erecting elaborate buildings either to prove their worth as prospective bridegrooms, or simply as aid projects during times of famine.

When the British left India a number of Marwaris bought British industries, and such names as Birla and Poddar remain prominent in business today. However, many merchant families have now left Shekhawati and settled more permanently in the major urban centres, which is why so many of their buildings have been allowed to deteriorate. The region’s current inhabitants continue to rear goats and sheep for their wool, and coax crops of winter wheat, mustard and millet from the dry earth, while maintaining traditional crafts: tie-dyeing, screen printing, lacquer working, woodcarving and silver-work.

Beyond the last ripples of the Aravalli range, north of Jaipur, lies the easternmost extent of the Thar Desert, where small sand-blown towns nestle between dunes and sprawling expanses of parched land. Before the rise of Bombay and Calcutta (and the arrival of railways) diverted the trans-Thar trade south and eastwards, this region, known as Shekhawati, lay on an important caravan route connecting Delhi and Sind (now in Pakistan) with the Gujarati coast.

The merchant Marwari and landowning thakut castes of its small market towns grew rich on trade and taxes from the through traffic, but instead of erecting impressive temples and supporting religious institutions, spent their fortunes competing with each other to build grand, ostentatiously decorated havelis. Many have survived, and now collectively comprise one of the richest artistic and architectural legacies in all India: an incredible number of mansions, palaces and cenotaphs plastered inside and out with elaborate and colourful murals. Executed between the 1770s and the 1930s, these depict not only traditional themes, scenes from folk tales and religious stories, animals and local customs, but also faraway cities, merchants and their families, British sahibs of the Raj, and Victorian technology, each mural bordered with ornate floral designs. Sadly, nowadays, most are faded, defaced, covered with posters or even just whitewashed over, but there are so many - and the towns are so small - that you cannot fail to see a work of art virtually everywhere you look.

Considering the wealth of traditional art here, and the region’s proximity to Jaipur, Shekhawati feels surprisingly far off the tourist trail - few local people speak English, accommodation is thin on the ground, and there’s little prospect of Western food. But this ranks among the most rewarding parts of Rajasthan to explore: the towns are compact, the air clear and fresh and local people still pleasantly surprised Co see foreigners. Of the few independent travellers who find their way up here, most invariably stay longer than planned, using Nawalgarh as a base for day-trips or leisurely walks into the desert.

Only the mam towns have been covered in the following account, but - ideally with the help of Hay Cooper’s excellent The Painted Towns of Shekhawati, published by Mapin and available in Delhi, Jaipur and Mandawa - you should be able to find interesting sites in any town or village you pass through. Most of the buildings are still privately owned, and many of them are homes; ask permission to enter any house, and respect the custom of removing your shoes before you do so.

Hidden among the scrubby Aravalli Hills, SAMODE, on the outskirts ot Shekhawati, is notable for its impeccably restored eighteenth-century palace, which became famous in the 1980s as the setting for the hit Raj-romance movie The Far Pavilions. It’s possible to come here on a day-trip from Jaipur, 42km southeast, but if your budget can stretch to it, spend a night in one of the palace’s uncompromisingly romantic rooms, plastered with murals and filled with antiques and ornate stonework. Nonresidents have to shell out a hefty Rs100 to visit, but it’s worth it just to see the beautiful Sheesh Mahal, or Hall of Mirrors, on the south side of the building.

Samode village itself is a centre for block printing and lacquered bangle making, and you can climb the three hundred steps leading from the palace to a hilltop fort, the maharaja’s ruined former residence, for impressive views over the surrounding countryside. Sections of it have been converted into a luxury heritage hotel, the Samode Palace.The same owners also have fifty richly appointed tents, 3km southeast of Samode at Samode Bagh, in a campus with its own swimming pool, croquet lawns and tennis courts. Bookings both for this and the palace can be made in Jaipur through Samode Haveli, Gangapole.

SANGANER, 16km south of Jaipur, is the busiest centre for handmade textiles in the region, and the best place to watch traditional block printers in action. There are a couple of large factories here, but most of the printing is done in family homes as a cottage industry. This is also a great place to shop for traditional textiles; prices are much lower than in Jaipur.

Sanganeri craftsmen and women also decorate pottery in Rajasthan’s distinctive style; graceful floral designs in white or deep sea-green are painted over a traditional inky-blue glaze. Within the town itself, there are ruined palaces and a handful of elegant Jain temples, most notably the Shri Digamber temple near the Tirpolia Gate. Minibuses and tempos (Rs6) leave for Sanganer from Chand Pole, or you can rake city bus #113 from Ajmeri Gate.

The mighty Amber Fort (Jaigarh), built in 1600, stands high on the hill behind Amber (daily 9am-4.30pm; Rs50, Rs25 extra for camera, Rs100 extra for video). As the Kuchwahas were on friendly terms with the Moghuls, the fort saw few battles, and its immense cannon - the largest in Asia, which needed one hundred kilos of gunpowder for one shot and could send a ball 35km - was never fired in anger. The small museum collection displaying artillery; old maps, medals, stamps and photographs, plus the odd fifteenth-century spitoon, is unspectacular, but has an interesting hand-drawn floor plan of the palaces at Amber. The fort is also renowned as die most likely hiding place of the Kuchwahas” famous lost treasure. A huge hoard of gemstones and jewellery disappeared after Independence, probably to prevent its confiscation by the government. Income tax officials scoured the building with metal detectors in 1977 but found nothing.

Most people walk to Amber Fort from the village, but it’s quite a long climb; the alternative is to descend to the valley and follow by vehicle the much longer road that leads to both Jaigarh and Nawalgarh.

Entering the palace complex (daily 9am-4.30pm; RslOO, Rs50 extra for camera, RslOO extra for video) from the east through Suraj Pole (Sun Gate), you step into the main courtyard, Jaleb Chowk, where there’s another opportunity to ride an elephant (Rs80 for a turn around the courtyard). In its southwest corner, the Shri Sila Devi temple is the Kuchwaha shrine to the goddess of war, Sila, an aspect of Kali; the image inside was brought to Amber from Bengal in 1604. Next to this, at the head of a flight of steps, Singh Pole (Lion Gate) provides access to the palaces.

The lofty Hall of Public Audience, Diwan-i-Am, used by Raja Jai Singh I and his successors from 1639, stands in the entrance courtyard, while opposite, in the south wall of the yard, the exquisitely painted Ganesh Pole leads through narrow passages into the charming royal apartments. Here, protruding from the east wall, the dazzling Sheesh Mahal houses what were the private chambers of the maharaja and his queen. Shards of mirror and coloured glass form an intricate mosaic that entirely covers the inner and outer walls and ceilings of the rooms. From a distance they seem to be covered in jewels, tinted with pastel shafts of sunlight that seep through the Arabic-style stained-glass windows. Above the Sheesh Mahal, the small chamber of the brilliant Jas Mandir radiates with the light and colour of similar mosaics. Guarded from the glare of the sun in the east by delicate marble screens, it served as a cool refuge in summer.

A fountained garden separates the mirrored palace from the “pleasure palace” opposite, Sukh Mahal, where marble rooms are cooled by water cascading through fine perforations in the centre of the wall - an early and very efficient system of air-conditioning. The doors are inlaid with ivory and sandalwood.

The oldest part of the complex, the Palace of Man Singh Ir lies south of the main quadrangle. The pillared biradiri in the centre of the courtyard was once a meeting area for the mahararns, shrouded from men’s eyes by flowing curtains. Narrow passages and stairwells connect small rooms and open balconies on all sides.

Walking down the hill behind the palace complex - via the elephant stable in the western corner of Jaleb Chowk - brings you to the temples and ruined mansions of Amber village.

On the crest of a rocky hill behind Maota Lake, 11km north of Jaipur, the Rajput stronghold of AMBER was the capital of the Kuchwaha Rajputs from 1037 until 1728. Fortified by natural hills, high ramparts and a succession of gates along a cobbled road, Amber’s magnificent palaces are distinctly Rajput, but it’s clear that Moghul ideas crept in to influence the design. The practice of covering walls with mosaics of mirrors is purely Moghul, first introduced to India at Agra and Fatehpur Sikn.

It’s worth visiting Amber independently, as there’s so much to see; tour groups rarely get enough time to view the entire compound, let alone to scramble into the village behind it, dotted with fascinating temples and ruins. To avoid the big bus parties, get here early in the day. Regular public buses to Amber (#113) leave from outside Jaipur’s Hawa Mahal, stopping on the main road below the palaces, where there’s a tourist office. From there you can either enjoy a pleasant twenty-minute uphill walk, take a jeep for Rs75 (up to four people), or waddle like the royals of yesteryear on an elephant for Rs300 (again, four people). For a cheaper, longer elephant ride, wait around the entrance to the palace complex on the main road at end of the afternoon, when the mahoots head home to the “elephant sleeping place” near the Jal Mahal palace. You can hitch a ride with them, arriving at the lakeside shortly before sunset.

Forts, palaces, temples and ruins from a thousand years of Kuchwaha history adorn the hills and valleys near Jaipur. The superb palaces of Amber provide the most obvious destination for a day-trip, but you can also visit Amber Fort - or Jaigarh - which crowns the hills to the north of the city, or travel south to search out the traditional potters, block printers and dyers of Sanganer.

Organized tours visit Amber and Jaigarh in a day; Amber is accessible by public transport, and minibuses run to Sanganer.

Airlines Indian Airlines, Nehru Place, Tonk Road, the southward continuation of Sawai Ram Singh Road. Jet’s agents are Travel-Care, E-4, Ground Floor, Jaipur Tower, Ml Road. For ANA, Continental, Royal Brunei, Royal Nepal. Sri Lankan and Thai go to STIC Travels, 4th Floor Ganpati Plaza, Ml Road. El Al, Korean and Malaysia operate through a shared office at 304 Ganpati Plaza, Ml Road. In the same building, you’ll also find the Air India office, Just down the road, British Airlines are at G-2 Usha Plaza, Ml Road. With the exception of Lufthansa, who are at Sharangi Mansion, New Gate, the remaining airlines are all based in the Jaipur Tower, on Ml Road: Austrian Airlines; Air France; Gulf Air; Kuwait Airlines; KLM: PIA ; Royal Jordanian 9 0141/375430; Syrian Arab Airines; and Thai Airways.

Beauty parlours Jaipur is renowned for its herbal beauty parlours, where you can pamper yourself with a healing body massage or marrow-and-turmeric pack facial. The most famous is the Shahnaz Hussain Institute, at S-55 Ashok Marg in G Scheme, which has separate clinics for men and women; if it’s fully booked, try the less expensive Kaya Kalp, at 55 Chander Bhawan, behind the Rajput Sabha Bhawan, near St Xavier’s school. Ashok Marg (also with separate clinics).

Bookstores The boutique in HotelArya Niwas stocks a good selection of titles in English, most of them about, or set in, India. Books Corner, on Ml Road just past Nim’s has up-to-date magazines, newspapers and books in all major European languages, while Evergreen Guest House also has a secondhand stall.

Cinemas if you go to the cinema only once while you’re in India, it should be at the Raj Mandir on Bhagwan Das Road just off Ml Road, which boasts India’s most kitsch, over-the-top decor and hefty sound system. Most movies have four daily showings, and there’s always a long queue, so get your tickets an hour or so before the show starts.

Dance Several of the big five-stars, including the Rambagh Palace and Sheraton Rajputana Palace. host nightly culture shows, featuring folk dance, music and traditional puppetry. These can be a lot of fun, especially if they’re held outdoors. Expect to pay around Rs150. Another music and dance venue is Choowki Dhani, 22km south of the city.

Hospitals The largest in Jaipur is Santokba Durlabhji Memorial Hospital (SDMH), Bhawani Singh Marg.

Internet Access costs Rs30-50 per hour. The majority of hotels listed above are online. Otherwise: try one of the many internet offices around town: one of the best is Communicator on the ground floor of the Jaipur Towers, opposite All India Radio, Ml Road, who charge less than average for offline work.

Music Jaipur’s not a particularly good place to buy musical instruments (those made here are of medium or inferior quality), but plenty of travellers take sitar lessons while they’re in tfie city. A recommended teacher is Mr Ghasi Lai Sharma, who can be contacted through the Sharma Music Centre, on Nawalgarh Road.

Photography Fuji outlet on Kishan Pole Bazaar, near Ajmeri Gate; Konica on Ml Road almost opposite Niro’s; Kodak by Sweet Dream hotel, and various others.

Police stations the main police post is or Station Road opposite the railway station. Post For poste restante, go to the GPO on Ml Road (Mon-Sat 9am-6pm). Parcels and registered mail are kept at the sorting office behind the main desks; packages are cotton-wrapped and sewn at the concession by the main entrance.

Swimming pools Evergreen Guest House charge nonresidents Rs75 for use of their pool, but you
may prefer to pay more (Rs150-175) at posher establishments such as the Jai Mahal, Jaipur Ashok or Raj Mahal, where lawns, deck chairs and refreshments are available.

Tailors One of the best tailors in town, patronized by no less than the maliaraja himself, is Jodhpur Tailors, behind Meela Hotel, near Ganpati Plaza (Ml Road). This is a good place to get suits made, as well as traditional Indian shirts and pukka Jodhpur riding breeches, and they’re not at all expensive.

Travel agents GSA Janta Travels, Ml Road. Site World Travels, Station Road, an agent for Indian Airlines and also Western Union, deals with international and domestic flights very efficiently.

Yoga Jaipur has several reputable yoga schools, among them; the Rajasthan Yoga Centre, 2km north of Bani Park in Shastri Hagar; the Yoga and Naturopathy Centre, opposite Rajasthan University, C Scheme, in the southwest of the city; and Samarpan, #1 Road, VKI Area, which is run by a disillusioned allopathic doctor. If you need somewhere to convalesce after a chronic illness (such as hepatitis), a place well worth checking out is the Navneet Natrupathy Centre, 30km south along the Agra road, in the village of Bassi.

Jaipur has an excellent choice of quality restaurants, both veg and non-veg. although options are more limited at the bottom of the range. If you’re on a tight budget and staying at a small or family-run guesthouse, eat in where the food is likely to be fresher and more tailored for tourists’ sensitive taste buds. Whatever your budget, though, find time for a lassi at the legendary Lassiwaib pavement cafe on MI Road.

Annapurna, down the lane behind RajMandircinema on Bhagwan Das Road (look for the red sign in Gujarati). Keep-it-coming, tasty Gujarati veg thalis at low prices (Rs50). The best cheap meal in Jaipur, although the dining room’s a bit gloomy. Open noon-3pm & 7-10pm.

Anokha Gaon, 14 Vishwakarm Road, opposite Jodla Power House, 12km north of town along Sikar Road. Unquestionably the best and most authentic Rajasthani restaurant in town. The approach (through an industrial estate) is unpromising and the furniture rudimentary (you sit in rows on the floor and eat with your hands off leaf plates set on low plank tables) but the food, prepared on wood fires and old clay ovens, is out of this world. Rs9O for the full works, including four kinds of rotis and wonderful keer (saffron-flavoured rice pudding). For kids, there’s a desultory puppet show and camel rides.

Chanakya, Ml Road. Top-notch pure veg restaurant specializes in carefully prepared Rajasthani thalis (though you can also order dishes and breads separately). For a quick snack, try their superb stuffed parathas. Open noon-11pm.

Chilra Cafe, Arya Niwas Hotel, Sansar Chandra Road. Busy self-service restaurant that does good-value veg thalis (Rs70), and a range of delicious side dishes (with display samples so you know what you’re getting). Also cold drinks, tea and coffee, and delicious mango /ass/, on the lawn.

Copper Chimney, Ml Road. Swish glass-fronted restaurant on the main drag, renowned for its top-notch Mughlai cuisine (including a matchless rogan josti). They also offer a better-than-average choice of Western dishes, and all the north Indian standards. Count on Rs250 per head.

Chowkr Dhani, 22km south of Jaipur on the Tonk Road. Well-heeled Jaipuris flock in droves to this famous out-of-town restaurant. The Rs150 entrance fee covers a slap-up traditional thali and cabaret (folk dance, acrobats, musicians and puppetry). Well worth the long drive for the atmosphere, but the food’s not as good as Anokha Gaoris. Taxis charge around Fts400 for the round trip (Rs250 for auto-rickshaw). Open Mon-Sat 6.30-11pm& Sun from 2.30pm.

Four Seasons, D-43A Subhash Marg, C-Scheme. The most popular vegetarian restaurant in town, tucked away in a residential area that’s well off the tour group trail. Its south Indian dosas and uttapams are as good as you’ll eat anywhere, and they serve a full selection of top north Indian specialities, snacks, ice creams and shakes. Most dishes cost around Rs80. Expect a short wait for a table.

Indian Coffee House, Ml Road, 100m west of Ajmeri Gate. The usual fine coffee (try their “special"), south Indian snacks, and decent breakfast options (including unusually good plain toast), dished up by waiters in cotton cummerbunds. Open 7.30am-9pm.

Lassiwalla, opposite Niro’s, Ml Road. A gastronomic institution in Jaipur (during the summer, you have to queue for thirty minutes to be served), famous for its sublime lassis, still served in old-style, hygienic terracotta mugs. Be sure to order one without ice.

LMB, Johari Bazaar. Scrupulously pure-veg, high-caste cooking ("No onions, No garlic"), served in a large, cool dining hall whose classic early Peter Sellers movie-set decor was, tragically, under threat of renovation when we last looked. This has long been regarded as the best restaurant in town, but the food is no longer what it was drenched in sickly deshi ghee and too spicy for most tastes. However, their famous paneerghewar (honeycomb cake soaked in treacle) and potato-and-cashew nut tikkis dished up piping hot (in spicy mango sauce) at the sweet counter outside are a must. Open 11.30am-3.30pm & 7-11 pm. snacks only 4-7pm.

Mediterraneo, Hotel Vijeet Palace, Sansar Chandra Road. Lively Italian terrace restaurant with views of the fort. Their pizzas (Rs120-200) are wood-fired, their pasta dishes fresh every day and the coffee excellent. Beer is served in Prohibition-style teapots pending a liquor licence.

Natraj, Ml Road. The Chanakya’s, main competitor, famed for its pauses dishes and superb sweets (try their melt-in-the-mouth rasmala, flavoured with cardamom and saffron).

Niro’s, Ml Road. Along with Copper Chimney, this place gets the local vote for best non-veg food in Jaipur, although they offer a full multi-cuisine and veg menu, too. No alcohol. Open 10am-11.30pm.

Pizza Hut. 109 Ganpati Plaza, Ml Road ©0141/388627. Doubtless not what you came to Jaipur for, but the food and decor’s just the same as back home, the prices low by comparison (Rs100-200), and they’ll deliver free to your hotel room or guesthouse.