Patwonji ki Haveli in Jaisalmer {Guest Post}

With pleasure, Team MocktailMommies welcome Shalini Baisiwala on board for today's guest post. Shalini is averstalie, dynamic and enterprising lady with many feathers in her hat! Today she gives us the pleasure of visiting best kept secret of Jaisalmer. Over to you Shalini...

-!-!-!-!-!-

Jaisalmer’s claim to fame is not only its most noted Golden fort but also the beautiful Patwonji Ki haveli which is not one but a series of 5 houses. The uniqueness of this homestead lies in the fact that it’s the first of its kind to be constructed in Jaisalmer.

It’s said that this Haveli was commissioned by one of the most wealthy brocade merchants of the city who also had homes built for his 5 sons within the same compound. Though it’s disputed that the wealth was garnered through opium trafficking and moneylending; no one can contest the sheer architectural beauty of these buildings – inside out!

Having heard such fame and claim of these Havelis, it was but obvious that we had to make a pit stop here. Expecting a grand driveway to the cluster of Havelis, I was shocked to note its pedestrian approach. Its situated in a narrow by lane of Jaisalmer and if you didn’t notice the architecture, you could have just gone past it with it knowing how famous it is.

The narrow lane is encroached upon by several pavement shops, selling handicrafts of every hue possible. Moreover one sees signs of government offices and come to realise that these jewels have been confiscated by sarkari babus as their mundane offices. How silly of the government to do that! I think ASI and a few other tourism related departments are housed here.

Ignoring the hideous signages, we climbed up the steps to enter a room that blew our minds away. Its jewel tones coupled with intricate mirror work on the walls and ceilings, literally stopped us in our tracks. As we stood gaping at the vivid hues, it struck us that the sandy desert monotone had been overshadowed by these interiors. Perhaps that was the intention of its creator – to escape the mundane tones and imbibe some life via colours and patterns in the décor.

The Havelis are interconnected and are a two storey affair. You have to marvel at the 60 interconnected balconies visible in the façade which I guess is a marvel in itself. When we climbed the upper floor we saw complete interiors of the rooms restored and barricaded to showcase yet preserve them from the tourists – I breathed a sigh of relief to note this.

Exquisite carvings on doors and pillars was a common sight here and it’s said that all of the archways and windows have dissimilar patterns, making each unique. I loved walking around the balcony of the open courtyard which allowed for a peek below and also in the next courtyard.

Have you visited these Havellis? Have you heard about them? What did you think about them from this article?

_____________________________________________________________

About Shalzmojo

An interior designer by profession, writing is a passion which coupled with travel love blossomed into this blog where I love to just “do my thing”! Be it recipes, food events, travel jaunts, fiction dreaming or even meditative musings; all of it’s taken up quite passionately on my blog. I am a serious wine guzzler and love to chase butterflies in my free time.

Read about BodyArt in Bikaner

This post is written for the December blog hop #mymojo with Shalzmojo

Linking up for #wordsante with Namysaysso for every post deserves some love 

| Facebook | Twitter | Instagram |