The year was 1290 . A crowd had gathered around a clearing, where broken down pillars marked the presence of an ancient temple, now long gone. A young boy, just 14 years old, leaned against one of those pillars, deep in thought. Then, he began speaking, and the crowd fell silent, listening to his every word. He spoke without any notes, translating the Bhagavat Gita, from Sanskrit, which only the pundits knew, to the language everyone in the village knew and spoke – a variety of Prakrit which developed into the Marathi language. Even as he spoke, one of the men in the audience realized how momentous this event was, and how important this composition would be. He began writing down the words the young boy spoke, and this composition was named by its author and composer, the Bhavartha Deepika – the enlightening meaning (of the Bhagavat Gita). Now, the ancient, holy text, was no longer restricted to the pundits, but accessible to all, understood easily by them, composed as it was, in their...
Part 1 and Part 2 of Amer Fort have been quite
descriptive... probably much longer than needed, but I have had these photos
for so long, I just had to use them!!!
From what I heard from a couple of
people, the fort was in quite a bad shape till the last decade or so. Of course,
not really in ruins as many other forts, but in a dilapidated condition
nevertheless. Going over what I saw of the fort, it does look like a lot of
work has been done, which is really commendable, considering the state of many
such other heritage precincts in our country. It does make us think just how
beautiful some of our other palaces, forts and temples would be, if we just
took the pains to recreate the magic of those bygone days, and kept them well
maintained.
Continuing with the series, we now pass on to the oldest
part of the fort – the palace of Raja Man Singh. Completed in 1599 AD, this
structure is said to have taken 25 years to build, and must have then stood
alone as the only palace in the fort complex.
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| The original Persian inscription installed on the palace's completion |
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| The translation of the inscription |
The structure is simple, as compared to the later parts of
the fort that we have already seen, but it is no less beautiful, considering
its age and the period it was built in.
In the central courtyard of the palace is the pillared
pavilion, or baradari, which was a
meeting place for the queens.
All around, and opening into the courtyard, are the queens’
palaces, decorated with frescoes and coloured tiles.
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| An original door which has survived the passage of centuries.. |
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| A peep into one of the rooms |
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| Another section of a room |
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| ventilation shaft atop a window |
These are the main portions of the fort, but there were lots
of other things about the fort which captured my attention.....
Such as these beautiful paintings... remnants of the
original paintings which covered the walls in its heyday....
These are natural colours, said to have been made by
crushing precious and semiprecious stones.... they have lasted the wear and
tear of centuries, and more would have survived with a bit more care..
Even more interesting was how beautifully decorated were
even the balconies all over... the lattice patterns are so detailed even in
places they might be overlooked... and no pattern seems to have been repeated!
We especially loved this gallery above the Diwan-e-Aam. The
views from here are wonderful.... of the surrounding hills, the lake at the
foothills, the gardens surrounding the fort, and the Jaigarh fort too...
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| View of Jaigarh fort |
We were told that this was a place where the king enjoyed
performances.... and sitting there, with the cool breeze making us forget that
it was peak summer, it was easy to imagine ourselves in the 17th
century, as you can see from this pic of Samhith and his aunt!
And then there were these ramps we saw all over the
palace.....
It was only towards the end that we were told what they were
for. Apparently, the queens then dressed in these heavy lehengas, which almost made it impossible for them to walk all over
the sprawling fort. The royal carpenters and mechanics therefore came up with
the idea of building a chair for the queen which could be pushed all over the
fort.... and hence these ramps with ruts, which helped steer the contraption. There
is just one of these ‘vehicles’ on display in the fort, but unfortunately, I did
not manage to get a decent photo.
Another interesting thing about the fort that I noticed was
how beautifully the structure utilised every bit of water. There are two lakes,
which provided water to the fort, and rainwater was used wisely, collected from
the terraces and diverted to the tank from which water was used to cool the
place in summers... even the water flowing down the hill was collected and channelled
into drains, which eventually led back to the lakes. Our ancestors had such a
wonderful grasp of basics and they managed to make the most of the available
resources. Wish we would learn from them!
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| Can you see the channels for the rainwater? |
There are a few more things to see in the fort... such as
the Tripoliya gate, which leads to three portions of the fort, and a secret
tunnel (now blocked) which leads to Jaigarh.
However, before I finish this
series on Amer, there is just one more thing to show you.... the gardens at the
foothills.... one is a simply laid out carpet of green, overlooking the town...
While the other is an intricately laid out geometric pattern
of beds, which once were filled with kesar (saffron) plants – called the Kesar
Kyari.
It is said that the king gave these two gardens to the two
main architects of the fort to design.... and leave their mark. While one chose
to make a simple garden which would bring peace to those who chose to relax there,
the other chose to design a garden which would bring pleasure – through saffron
– the most exotic among spices, in a manner which would never be forgotten. Peace
and pleasure! What a way to leave their signatures behind... It is this which
makes Amer so special – the palace was obviously designed for the King’s
pleasure, but it is also designed to make life peaceful and serene for all
those who lived here.
Today, the space outside the Kesar Kyari is used for a
different purpose – to take visitors back to the era when the Rajputs ruled
this area..... through the sound and light show.
I shall leave you with one last photograph... of
the fort lit up in the colours of the flag of Jaipur....
Entering the Amer fort, the first question we were asked was
if we wanted a quick tour or a leisurely one. On questioning the guides, we
were told that we could have a quick tour of the fort in about 45 minutes,
while a leisurely stroll through the place would take us at least 2 hours. It was
already evening, and we had spent the whole day walking around temples and
forts. We were also accompanied by friends who weren’t too keen on the tour, so
we decided to do the quick one. As it turned out, even that took us almost an
hour and a half, considering I stopped all the time to click photos!
Tips:
- This is one place that takes a lot of time to see and enjoy, so make sure you go there with time and energy to spare.
- The light and sound show is a bit expensive, but totally worth it, just to see the whole place lit up! Don’t miss it!
- Do not even think of exploring the fort without a guide or a guide book at the very least. The whole place is a maze of corridors and passages, and it is very easy to get lost or miss whole portions of the fort.
- Postcard enthusiasts, carry lots of money, or a credit card!! The fort shop has loads and loads of wonderful cards, not available elsewhere. They are priced a bit steep at Rs. 10 per card, but they are absolutely worth the price. I bought a whole lot of them, but obviously not enough, so if any of you are going there, please do get me some :D
Related Posts:
Bhool bhulaiya was shot here I guess, some scenes looked similar... some more Hindi movies were shot here. When I was visiting this fort a Brazilian movie was being shot here.
ReplyDeleteAnd these movie crews damage the buildings a lot.
Apparently this fort is not under govt...
I dont know about Bhool Bhulaiya, Indrani, but I do know that many films are shot here.. apparently, jodha akbar was shot here too, and they too damaged quite a few things. and yes, it is not under the central govt or asi, but the state govt and the royal family trust manage it.
DeleteI remember this fort from my visit! Its one of my favorite from the heritage city and I had totally enjoyed my visit there. But I could never get down to blogging about it. Now looking at your stunning post, I think it was only good as I could never have shown it in such a beautiful way :) Loved this series very much, thanks for refreshing my memories. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks Arti.. I started writing this long back, but couldnt decide what to include and what to leave out. eventually i realised i was getting nowhere, so decided to post the whole thing!! its got a bit too long, but cant help it :D but would love to read your experiences there too.. after all, each one of us notices different things in the same place!
DeleteYour photos are stunning Anu. And they themselves tell the story.
ReplyDeleteNever been to this place but the way you've explained in 3 these parts, I think I should go there ASAP.
And this girly talks told me much about movies as well. :)
Thanks so much, Nisha!!! you shd def go there.. you will love the place!!! as for the movie talk, all I know is thanks to Kanthi.... she is one major Hritik fan, and its all thanks to her that I even knew abt the movie being shot there.. and of course, no matter where you go, if movies are shot there, you are sure to hear about them from the guides!
DeleteI liked Samhith and her aunt's picture the most!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Mridula!!
DeleteYou have captured Amer fort brilliantly in all your three posts through your narration and photographs. A real inspiration to visit the place.
ReplyDeletehttp://rajniranjandas.blogspot.in
Thanks so much, Niranjan!!
DeleteHad been to Jaipur eons ago and had decided that i will go back to Rajasthan again and see the whole place. Hasnt materalised yet, but its always on my agenda.
ReplyDeleteHope your trip materializes soon!!
DeleteYour pictures present Amer in an extremely different way, the more beautiful way. Your posts are amazing, and do the all possible work to attract people. The pictures you have clicked alone unveil the beauty of the fort. The fort in itself is famous and holds such mysterious history inside it. Jaipur has some great forts and palaces which have a great story behind it and has some excellent architectural work.
ReplyDeleteI am from the Kachwaha clan and all I know is that the government of Rajasthan is betraying the clan by not giving the fort to us. We are its rightful owners and it is the possession of our great grandfathers which will are also against this decision. My surname is Bhatti a rajput from Punjab, India and am a descendant of Raja Man Singh.
Delete