http://travelindiathroughmyeyes.com/shekhawati-rajasthan-heritage-trip-to-the-land-of-my-ancestors/
Introduction
Shekhawati region part of the Thar desert in Rajasthan comprises of the three districts of Sikar, Churu & Jhunjhunu. The region has a rich & interesting history attached to it.
In recent years the region is getting increasing number of tourists including foreigners. They come to explore the opulent havelis of the wealthy merchants & businessmen of Shekhawati. These majestic havelis are from the period ranging from late 18th century to first quarter of 20th century. The beautiful frescoes in the havelis give the visitors a feel of being in an open-air art gallery. They mesmerize the visitors and they sing paeans about them.
The descendants of these wealthy businessmen migrated to different cities in India & across the world for better opportunities. As a result, the havelis that were teeming with people once, have now remained deserted for several decades. Ravages of nature and years of neglect have taken their toll on the haveli. Fortunately, the renewed interest in these havelis have motivated some families to maintain their ancestral property. Some of them have now turned into heritage hotels giving the tourists an opportunity to experience the feel of the bygone era.
History of Shekhawati
In the 13th & 14th centuries, a large portion of Shekhawati was under Muslim rule. Kyamkhani or Qaimkhani dynasty ruled the region comprising of Jhunjhunu, Fatehpur & Singhana. Around 1476 CE, Maha Rao Shekhaji (1433-1488), a Kacchawa Rajput from Amer dynasty declared independence from Amer. He was the descendant of Baloji who was the third son of Maharaja Udai Karan of Amer (r:1366-1388). Rao Shekhaji refused to pay tribute to Amer rulers and established his principality in Amarsar near Shahpura. The region acquired the name Shekhawati from his name. It literally means “garden of Shekha”.
After the decline of Mughal empire post Aurangzeb, the Shekha clan brought more regions of Shekhawati under their control. Jhunjhunu became the capital after 1730. For better administration and to satisfy maximum members of the clan, they divided the region into sub-principalities. They were called Thikanas and the person in charge was called Thikanedar. Some of these important Thikanas were Dhundhlod, Nawalgarh, Mandawa, Churu, Khetri, Sikar, and Khandela. Forts with palaces within them were built in all the Thikanas. There are nearly 50 forts in Shekhawati region. They were neither as huge nor as magnificent as the other forts of Rajasthan but they were functional forts. The Thikanedars maintained their alliance with Jaipur. All these states maintained their presence in Jaipur city. So, they built their mansions in Jaipur like Dundhlod house, Khandela House, Sikar House to name a few.
What brought Marwari merchants & traders to Shekhawati
Shekhawati region fell on the important camel caravan trade route. It connected Delhi & Agra with Surat & other ports in Gujarat. There was connection also with Jaisalmer & Sind regions, other prominent trading centres. Bikaner & Jaipur States used to collect high taxes from the traders to shore up their revenues. Shekhawati Thikanedars invited the merchants & traders to come & settle down in Shekhawati towns. As an incentive they offered to levy much lower taxes. Hordes of Marwari business people came from neighbouring regions and settled in Shekhawati. The location on the Silk route & the lower taxes proved to be the clinchers. As a result, the trade flourished for a few years. The merchants also became financiers to the State to tide over shortfalls in revenue. In return, the Rajput rulers protected the merchants from dacoits. A majority of the traders were from Marwari Maheshwari & Agarwal communities.
The entrepreneurship of the Marwari traders
The traders started building modest mansions as their dwellings. But then with the rise of British Colonial rule, the importance of Calcutta, Bombay & Madras as ports increased. This gathered pace after 1830. Consequently,the trade opportunities in Shekhawati & other regions of Rajasthan started dwindling. But the Marwaris used this to their advantage. Their enterprising nature came to their rescue. The joint family system was prevalent then. So, if a family had five or six brothers, two or three brothers ventured out for trade primarily to Kolkata. Some went to Mumbai & Chennai too. And the remaining brothers would stay back to take care of the entire family. The main trade then was in cotton, jute, silk, opium, textiles, tea etc. The trade was flourishing and the Marwari businessmen earned handsomely.
Book on Marwari entrepreneurship
D K Taknet has written a book ‘Industrial Entrepreneurship of Shekhawati Marwaris’. He writes that Marwaris were born and bred in an area where nature taxes the very soul and spirit of a human being. And, where the struggle for existence is a continuous battle, the Marwaris of Shekhawati braved heavy odds. Consequently, they set out to distant places to earn a livelihood. He chronicles the tactics Marwari businessmen used, the acumen they developed and the skill that they brought into focus. As a result, they became a force to reckon with on the business & industrial map of India.
Many businessmen from this region became famous industrialists. The long list includes Birlas, Piramals, Bangurs, Goenkas, Ruias, Dalmias, Mittals, Parasrampuria, Khaitans, Lohias, Taparias, Poddars and many more.
Majestic havelis mushroomed in Shekhawati region
“Give the ones you love wings to fly, roots to come back and reasons to stay.” Dalai Lama
This wonderful quote by Dalai Lama so aptly applies to the narrative of the Marwari businessmen. They went to far off lands, acquired wealth and then decided to build majestic havelis for their families. These havelis were built in their native villages/ towns in Shekhawati. They definitely have given opportunity to the future generations to come back to their roots i.e. their native places. When more wealth was acquired, it was spent on charity too. They also built schools, hospitals, temples, dharamshalas, wells etc. in their native places. The more wealth they acquired, the grander & more opulent were the havelis they built. What was special about these havelis was the ornate & vibrant frescoes that were painted on the walls & ceilings of these havelis. A majority of these havelis got built from the end of 18th century till the beginning of the 20th century.
After India’s independence a majority of the occupants migrated to the metros and other cities in India and the havelis remained deserted. Some of the havelis were sold off, demolished and modern structures came up in their place. Some families used to gather at these havelis for family get-togethers, marriages or religious functions. But the succeeding generations even cut off that connection and many havelis remained in a state of neglect. Towards the end of 20th century some European tourists started taking interest in these havelis and started visiting them to admire the frescoes. This brought a fresh lease of life to these havelis. Once the Europeans specially the French started writing in glowing terms about them, Indian tourists also started looking at them with renewed interest.
Where to find these havelis
There is not a single town in Shekhawati where these majestic havelis are not found. Some prominent places are: Mandawa, Fatehpur, Churu, Jhunjhunu, Nawalgarh, Mukundgarh, Ramgarh, Laxmangarh (Lacchmangarh), Sikar, Dundlod, Mahansar. I would like to add my native town Losal also to the list. I have visited only Losal & Laxmangarh. The havelis there fascinated me so much that I decided to make an exclusive three days trip to Shekhawati region to explore the other places. But since early 2020, the pandemic has put all these plans on hold!! Eagerly looking forward to better times.
Heritage tourism
Heritage tourism is defined as “travelling to experience the places, artifacts and activities that authentically represent the stories of people of the past.” There can be no better way to experience self-discovery than through heritage travel. This is specially true about a journey to a place that defines one’s cultural identity. One life-changing way to approach heritage travel is to visit a ancestral homeland or place tied directly to one’s own roots and history.
The following quote sums it up so aptly.
“A people without the knowledge of their past history, origin, and culture is like a tree without roots.”– Marcus Garvey
A trip to my ancestral town in Shekhawati, Rajasthan
Fortunately, I know that my forefathers came from a small town Losal in Sikar district of Shekhawati region of Rajasthan. My great grandfather had built a large haveli in Losal in 1907 which though unoccupied and closed now still stands majestic. I even know the name of my great, great, great grandfather. As a result, today in our Kabra family the youngest generation can trace back their origin to seven generations before them.
My first visit to my native town Losal happened many decades ago as a teenager. Thereafter, despite my ardent desire and a few trips to Rajasthan, I could visit Losal only 3 years ago.
Losal is a town in Sikar district. Sikar is at a distance of 114 kms from Jaipur and Losal is 35 kms from Sikar. In recent years Losal has developed as an educational hub with many schools & colleges. In addition, what is heartening to note is that there are many schools & colleges catering exclusively to girl students. Losal has a population of around 40,000. And there is a floating population of 10,000 students. These are students from neighbouring villages & towns who come to Losal everyday to study in the educational institutions here.
Our family
My great grandfather Shri Haribuxji Kabra was born in 1869 in Losal. He was the eldest son of Seth Surajmalji Kabra. He had three younger brothers & two sisters. Being the eldest son, the mantle fell on him to go to Calcutta for business.
He left Losal at an young age and joined the firm of Chamarias. Chamarias were one of the well established Marwari business families of Calcutta. He was proficient in accounts and as result they soon appointed him as their chief munim. In today’s parlance chief munim would be the CEO. During British period, trade in jute & opium was flourishing with China. As a result of his acumen, Chamarias sent him as their emissary to China for trade. He was among the first batch of Marwaris to go to a foreign land for business. He was a shrewd negotiator and through an interpreter managed to strike a good deal with Chinese traders. Chamarias were delighted and soon made him a junior partner in their business.
Later his two younger brothers also joined him in Kolkata. Only one brother stayed back in Losal to take care of a very large family.
Our family haveli
Within few years my great grandfather had built up a good corpus. As was the practice those days, he decided to build a large haveli in Losal. This ensured that the four brothers with their families could stay together comfortably under the same roof. Even though there were havelis belonging to Khaitan & Saboo families too, ours was the largest. People started calling it as Badi Haveli.
Architecture of the haveli
The three storey haveli came up in 1907. It is square in shape, built on a raised plinth and has the typical Shekhawati style of architecture. It has five courtyards, more than 50 rooms and 100 windows. There is an outer chowk (courtyard) with baithaks (today’s drawing rooms) for men folk and for meeting with outsiders. All the rooms opened into a large chowk where the women folk would gather. All functions & gatherings took place here. Arched verandas run all around the rooms There were four kitchens for each brother & his family. But at the time of family gatherings & marriages only one large kitchen would function.
The haveli exhibits distinctive features in terms of its planning, design & ornamentation that are unique to its times. It is interesting to find a beautiful amalgamation of European architectural elements & Rajasthani style of architecture. In keeping with the Shekhawati tradition of frescoes, artists have created beautiful paintings on its walls.
The eastern facade of the haveli is the most beautiful. It has the arched entrance gateway through which one enters into the inner courtyard. The facade has beautiful frescoes and mirror work. In addition, there is beautiful image of Ganesh above the main doorway. And above that the painting depicts Ram Durbar. What is unique about this Ram durbar is that it also depicts baby Luv & Kush in the lap of Sita. Large elephant images flank both sides of the entrance. They are symbol of prosperity & high social status.
The mesmerizing frescoes
The most distinctive feature of the haveli is the ornamentation in the form intricately painted frescoes. Both the exterior & interior walls of the havelis, ceilings, brackets & chajjas are profusely painted. They depict ornamental motifs, religious themes, as well as contemporary life of those times. In addition there are flower motifs, portraits of royalty and even portraits of British king & queen.
Buon fresco style is used on the outer walls while Buon secco techique is used in painting the interiors. Buon fresco style involves painting on fresh wet plaster while Buon secco style of painting is on dry plasters. The Buon secco style has more intricate details and shading. Natural dye colours were used in the painting.
In addition there is ample use of mirror work & stained glasses. Mirrors cut in different shapes & embedded on western facade sparkle as the sun rays fall on them. There is use of Blue, red, green & yellow Belgium glasses in the jaalis in the bedrooms to filter in coloured light.
Even after 114 years, the frescoes look freshly painted. They have a spectacular & stunning effect and leave the onlooker gaping in amazement!
The haveli today
My great grandfather and his three brothers had 17 sons & 12 daughters between them. My grandfather & father were born in this haveli. Though my father spent only his initial childhood years here. There was a time when three generations of our family used to live here. These 17 brothers had 61 children. So at one point of time there were more than 100 people living under one roof.
My great grand mother was the last occupant of the haveli and the haveli has been lying vacant since 1985. A family get together was held in 1998. Ever since then some family or the other has been visiting the haveli occasionally.
Today no Kabra family member is owner of the haveli. A family Trust has been formed and every family member has relinquished his rights in favour of the Trust. A corpus was created and the Trust takes care of the maintenance of the haveli. One of my uncles Dr. Shrigopal Kabra lives in Jaipur. He is 85 years old and he is passionate about the haveli. Due to his efforts, the large extended family despite no family get-together in recent years has stayed in touch with each other. The undercurrent of filial bonding & affection has continued. Dr. Shrigopal Kabra is a multi-faceted personality. In addition to being a doctor in medicine and a professor, he is a prolific writer. He has not only written several books in Hindi & English on his professional subject but also on Losal, haveli and the life there.
Book on our Haveli
The son of my first cousin (eldest uncle’s daughter), Dr. Siddharth Lakhotia is a cardio surgeon and a professor at Institute of Medial Sciences, B.H.U., Varanasi. He is a travel enthusiast and an ace photographer. In recent years, under the guidance of Dr. Shrigopal Kabra he has started the efforts to revive the interest of the family members in the haveli and restore it to its old glory. He has beautifully captured the frescoes of the haveli in pics and a profusely illustrated book ‘Frescoes of life – Kabra Badi Haveli, Losal’ was published in 2019.
Our visit & experience
I & my wife spent about three hours in the haveli built by my great grandfather. We went about admiring the grandeur of the empty haveli. The frescoes looked as if they had been painted only yesterday. We were left wondering about how colourful & full of life the haveli would have been many decades ago. The bond & affection that developed between brothers & sisters are not there today in the nuclear families. In that era there was no concept of cousins and there was no difference between siblings & cousins. It is beyond today’s generation to even imagine that 100 members of one family lived under a single roof! My great grandfather was definitely an enterprising man. It is a pity that the future generations except for few rare individual exceptions, didn’t exhibit the same enterprising spirit. Otherwise, our Kabra family also would have been a big business empire today!
A distant cousin of ours Subhash Kabra from my great great grandfather’s brother’s family maintained connection with Losal. Even though settled in Jaipur their family is running a school & college for girls under a charitable trust set up by them. About 1000 girl students are enrolled in these institutions. for regular studies. Additionally, classes in computer, tailoring & designing, beauty care & make up, cookery etc. are conducted for them. We spent about an hour in the school. They took us around the various classes. The school authorities were gracious enough to arrange lunch for us.
Here are the pics that I had clicked during my visit. Enjoy the virtual tour.
The other havelis of Losal
There are a number of havelis in Losal and some of them are around our haveli. A majority of them were not open. I clicked their pics from the terrace of our haveli.
One of the havelis belonging to Saboo family was open and the caretaker & his wife allowed me inside. I found the haveli well maintained as the family members visit it regularly. I clicked a pic of our haveli from their terrace.
The caretaker’s wife was kind enough to make tea and brought it in a kettle to our haveli for me & my wife.
Laxmangarh (Lacchmangarh)
An Impromptu decision took us to the historical town of Laxmangarh. 24 kms from Sikar on NH 52 lies the dusty town of Laxmangarh with a population of about 1 lakh. While returning towards Sikar after darshan at Salasar Balaji, I saw the mile post of Laxmangarh and took an impromptu decision of visiting it and after spending an hour and half at the town we felt that it was worth it !!
Laxmagarh Fort
Rao Raja Laxman Singhji of Sikar built the Laxmangarh Fort, the most prominent building of Laxmangarh in early 19th century. And thereafter established the town of Laxmangarh. The fortress towers above the town. It looks imposing as the the construction was over several uneven rocks & boulders. The fort faced attacks several times but they were all thwarted.
In the year 1960 Jhunjhunwala family purchased the fort from the royal family and converted it into a 13 bedroom modern haveli with all amenities but retaining the aesthetics of an old haveli. As it is now a private property, they allow entry only up to the Hanuman temple known as Balaji temple. The temple is just outside the main gate of the fortress haveli. This temple is very popular among the locals and the newly weds as a part of the marriage ritual come & seek blessings of Balaji. On our special request the caretakers allowed us entry up to the outer courtyard only. He prohibited us from taking any pic of the haveli. One gets a glimpse of the magnificent haveli and bird’s eye view of the town from the top of the fort.
Four Chowk haveli of Ganeriwalas
The largest haveli in Laxmangarh is that of Ganeriwala family with 4 chowks and is distinctly visible from the fort. It was my next stop. The haveli even though in need of restoration still retains its grandeur. There are beautiful frescoes and paintings on the pillars and archways of the haveli. One of the rooms had wall to wall paintings and also on the ceiling. Most of them had religious themes.
There is a beautiful temple in the main chowk of the town. It is the temple of Radha Muralimanohar. The year of construction is 1845. The sanctum has beautiful images of Radha & Krishna. The other shrines in the temple complex are of Shiva & Hanuman. The temple has beautiful sculptures & frescoes.
The other famous havelis in Laxmangarh belong to Chokhanis, Kedias, Bansidhar Rathi, Sanganeria & Shyonarayan Kyal . After visiting the temple, I saw a couple of other havelis from outside. None of them was open and stood forlorn. One of them had paintings imitating Raja Ravi Verma style. Raja Ravi Verma himself couldn’t have painted them so they were replicas !!!
Thereafter we sat near the stall of a vegetable seller in the market area and enjoyed a plateful of freshly cut salad consisting of tomatoes, cucumbers, radish & carrots !!!
Unlike other cities of Rajasthan with narrow alleys & winding lanes, Laxmangarh seemed like a planned & well laid out city !!!
Pictorial trip of Laxmangarh
Lohargal
Lohargal turned out to be a surprise package. Before this trip, I had not even heard the name of this place.
There are many amazing religious places in India associated with mythology & legends. One such place is Lohargal in Jhunjhunu district.
Surya mandir at Lohargal
The ancient Surya temple at Lohargal is located in a very picturesque setting in a small village on the foothills of Aravalli range. This temple is It is on the Sikar Jhunjhunu road about 33 kms from Sikar. Locals believe that a King by the name Suryabhan built this temple. His handicapped daughter was cured after she took bath in the holy kund of Lohargal.
The holy tank is right in front of the temple which gets fresh water from underground springs. Hundreds of devotees take bath in the tank during the day but next morning the water is again fresh & clean!!
Lohargal finds a mention in the Puranas. It has association with many legends.
Legend of the Pandavas
After the Kurushetra war, the Pandavas were having a remorseful feeling as they had killed their brethren. Krishna advised them to go on a pilgrimage across the country and take bath in the holy tanks. They would get free from their sins at the place where their armaments would dissolve in the water. After wandering across many places they reached Lohargal. They took a dip in the tank here and to their surprise their arms made from iron dissolved. Hence the place got the name loha (iron) + gal (dissolve).
Legend associated with Maheshwaris
There is another interesting legend associate with the origin of Maheshwari community. Our family belongs to the same community.
As per legend Maheshwaris were originally Rajputs. Sujansen, the prince of Khandela along with his 71 companions went hunting. While roaming in the forest they reached Lohargal. Yogis & sadhus were doing penance & religious rituals. The prince & his companions disturbed the holy men and ill treated them. In a fit of rage, the sadhus cursed them. All 72 of them turned into stone statues.
Their wives came to the sadhus and begged them for forgiveness. The sadhus relented and asked them to pray to Lord Shiva. As a result, all of them did deep penance to invoke Shiva. Lord Shiva was pleased and brought them back to life. He advised them to take a dip in the holy Surya Kund. Their weapons melted in the water of the tank. Lord Shiva advised them to leave Rajput dharma and convert as businessmen. These men started worshipping Lord Mahesh and from that date their community became Maheshwari community.
Other temples in Lohargal
In addition to the temple of Sun god, there are several other temples. Prominent among them is an ancient Shiva temple near the tank. People believe that Pandavas built it. There is also a temple dedicated to Pandavas which has the idols of five Panadavas, & Draupadi with Krishna.
There is an ancient temple of Panchmukhi Hanuman.
We reached this place when the sun was about to set and the place appeared deserted. Majority of the devotees come from nearby villages and they leave before dark. The backdrop of the Aravalli mountains in the evening created a beautiful atmosphere.
There are several treks in the surrounding mountains that lead to temples/ caves where Sadhus/ Babas still reside.
As is the case with majority of Hindu religious places, cleanliness is a big issue at this place also. There was litter all around. We raised this issue with the head Pujari. According to him the streets & temple premises were cleaned every morning. But as thousands of devotees visit during the day, in the evening the place looks dirty !!!
Pickle shops in Lohargal
There was another interesting thing that we observed in Lohargal. In the lane leading to the tank there were many shops selling nothing but pickles of all varieties!!! Lohargal is in a valley and there are many mango orchards that have more than 6000 mango trees. This led to mushrooming of mango pickle cottage industry here. As it gained fame, they started making all kind of pickles.
Pictorial trip of Lohargal
Where to stay / best season /accessibility
The best way to experience Shekhawati is to stay in one of the havelis converted into a hotel/resort. One such luxurious haveli is the Piramal haveli in Bagar in Jhunjhunu district. It is a now a beautiful hotel managed by the Neemrana group of hotels.
It is advisable to visit Shekhawati during the cooler winter months or even monsoon. The best season is from November to mid March.
Shekhawati is easily accessible from Jaipur and a minimum of two to three days are required to explore the region. It is advisable to have own transport to move around the various places.
Do partake of delicious Shekhawati cuisine.
Rajasthani language
Rajasthani is written in Devanagari script. Every region in Rajasthan has its own dialect which differs a bit from each other. The common dialects spoken in Rajasthan are Marwadi, Bikaneri, Shekhawati, Dhundhari, Mewari, Hadauti, Gujari & Lambadi. Dialects like Malwi & Nimadi which have originated from Rajasthan are spoken in some regions of Madhya Pradesh.
Regular updates
I have clicked all the pics (except as mentioned)
In case you have enjoyed going through this travelogue then please comment below and share the link with your friends. If you have missed reading my earlier blogs then you can go to the site www.travelindiathroughmyeyes.com and click on the heading of the respective blogs.
You can reach me at rameshkabra1956@gmail.com for any feedback or queries related to this post.
Please follow my Instagram Accounts @rameshkabraexplorer and @artheritageofindia_rameshkabra
I am also on Twitter as rameshkabratraveller @rameshkabra12
I am Life Member of INTACH Nasik Chapter.
Disclaimer:
I have made sincere efforts to provide you the correct information about all the places that have been culled out from various sources. I do not take any responsibility for any errors that might have crept in the narration. There is no intention to hurt the faith or religious sentiments of any person or community
.jpg)
No comments:
Post a Comment
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.