City Palace

I just could not get enough of this palace. I highly recommend to anyone who is visiting Udaipur for work or leisure. 

The City Palace next to Lake Pichola, is the largest palace complex in Rajasthan and one of the most outstanding features is that it has uniformity in design. And this is in spite of the fact that the complex was built by not just one person. Some more fact about the place, from the internet.

City Palace, Udaipur, is a palace complex in Udaipur. It was built by the Maharana Udai Singh as the capital of the Sisodia Rajput clan in 1559, after he moved from Chittor. It is located on the east bank of the Lake Pichola and has several palaces built within its complex. Udaipur was the historic capital of the former kingdom of Mewar in the Rajputana Agency and its last capital.

The City Palace in Udaipur was built in a flamboyant style and is considered the largest of its type in Rajasthan, a fusion of the Rajasthani and Mughal architectural styles, and was built on a hill top that gives a panoramic view of the city and its surrounding, including several historic monuments such as the Lake Palace in Lake Pichola, the Jag Mandir on another island in the lake, the Jagdish Temple close to the palace, the Monsoon Palace on top of an overlooking hillock nearby and the Neemach Mata temple.

City Palace comprises 11 wonderful palaces, which were built by different rulers still they resemble each other. With the sheer glimpse of unique paintings, antique furniture and exquisite glass mirror & ornamental tiles work of these palaces, you will get amazed. Manak Mahal (Ruby Palace) has figures of crystal and porcelain. However, Bhim Vilas flaunts a fabulous collection of miniature paintings depicting the real life stories of Radha-Krishna.

Timings: 10am to 6pm. Last entry 4:30 pm. Open all days.

Interiors of the palace

From Lake Pichola

View of the city from one of the windows

The backyard of Lake Pichola overlooking the Palace

Cut-outs of the Maharajas

Udaipur city from the palace

Lake Pichola over looking the Jagat Niwas

Some Visitors at the palace

Intricate mirror work

Beautiful Motifs

Art in Udaipur

I won't hesitate at all to state that the art scene in Udaipur is at par with those in Shantiniketan and Baroda and in fact, I would go further and say that it's even more charming and fascinating, posing a serious competition to the bigwigs. For those who do not believe a word of that personal observation (after my three visits), I'd recommend a trip to this enchanting city of lakes, palaces, havelis, gardens, hills and of course, art. While climbing up and down it's hilly terrain, one can't get enough of the quaint shops, lining narrow streets on either sides, with a serious variety of art on display. Mughal miniature, of course, tops the list, but not far behind are other forms like wall mural painting, cut-work with transparent & colored glass, puppet-making, wood carving, clay sculpting and metal embossing. Fashion wise too (since I believe art is fashion is art), the city doesn't cease to delight you with colorful embroidered jootis & mojadees, silver jewelry, voluminous mirror-worked ghaghras with matching cholis, patchwork bedsheets & cushions and seaters with con shell work. There is art in every nook and corner!

Superficially, it appears that artists in Udaipur are living on the edge, finding it difficult to make ends meet, but the reality is quite the opposite. An unassuming, rather-modest artist would have recently completed a commissioned project of 25 artworks in miniature style for some boutique hotel in Paris; his other counterpart would have delivered a family portrait for a Spanish tourist; another would have travelled back from Dubai after finishing a wall mural for a client. Do not, by any means, underestimate the power of art or the reach and impact of an artist.

An American artist Waswo X Waswo, who moved to Udaipur in 2002 to discover and re-introduce the dying art of hand-coloring black and white photographs, is a living example of an art conservationist. Artist Rajesh Soni owns Gallery One where he teaches miniature art to visiting foreigners by day and does hand-coloring by night. Shahid Parvez, another brilliant artist, has his own workplace on a busy street where passersby can see him in action and are welcome to hop in, browse and buy his art. His gallery, Pristine, located in the heart of Bhatiyani Chohata (a bustling street behind the City Palace), exhibits works by his sister and wife as well. Bhupesh Kavadia's contemporary art gallery Bougainvillaea, perched on the edge of the magnificent Fatehsagar lake and catering mainly to artists from Rajasthan, is another example of an art lover who wants to make a difference in the art scene in Udaipur.

I was lucky enough to find miniature artist Lala, who in his cramped but artistic studio meets residence just off the City Palace, helped me in getting a hands-on experience of the magical world of miniature art. Although I could dedicate only two days to learning from him, Lala was very patient and spent his valued time on explaining and showing me the intricacies of the-art form. We decided to do the regular Mughal-type of art to learn the details. I truly owe him a lot.

Soon after, I did a series of ten small works of nude men in my style but with the miniature technique.

Thank you Lala Sir!

Naked Sadhu

I was always fascinated by these naked sadhus of Kumbhmela. Their look and style is something I was in awe of. Have done some paintings inspired by them, but this photoshoot is something am really proud of. So here is my NAKED SADHU series.


A bit about the sadhu's and kumbhmela in the end for your reference.

In Hinduism, sādhu (skt साधु sādhu, "good; good man, holy man") denotes an ascetic, wandering monk. Although the vast majority of sādhus are yogīs, not all yogīs are sādhus. The sādhu is solely dedicated to achieving mokṣa (liberation), the fourth and final aśrama (stage of life), through meditation and contemplation of brahman. Sādhus often wear saffron-colored clothing, symbolizing their sanyāsa (renunciation).

Kumbh Mela, a mass-gathering of sadhus from all parts of India, takes place every three years at one of four points along sacred rivers in India, including the holy River Ganges. In 2007 it was held in Nasik, Maharashtra. Peter Owen-Jones filmed one episode of "Extreme Pilgrim" there during this event. It took place again in Haridwar in 2010. Sadhus of all sects join in this reunion. Millions of non-sadhu pilgrims also attend the festivals, and the Kumbh Mela is the largest gathering of human beings for a single religious purpose on the planet; the most recent Kumbh Mela started on 14 January 2013, at Allahabad. At the festival, sadhus are the "biggest crowd pullers", with many of them "completely naked with ash-smeared bodies, sprint into the chilly waters for a dip at the crack of dawn".

The lives of sadhus in contemporary India vary tremendously. Sadhus live in ashrams and temples in the midst of major urban centers, in huts on the edges of villages, in caves in the remote mountains. Others live lives of perpetual pilgrimage, moving without ceasing from one town, one holy place, to another. Some gurus live with one or two disciples; some ascetics are solitary, while others live in large, communal institutions. For some sadhus the brotherhood or sisterhood of ascetics is very important.