Jodhpur Houses

Jodhpur Houses Appreciating and archiving the fabulous yet fast vanishing beauty of Jodhpurs old house & structures

~ Hero stones (भोमिया जी शिला) seen in the village of Umaidnagar - Osian, in Marwar. With the help of Vivek Munjy, the d...
25/08/2026

~ Hero stones (भोमिया जी शिला) seen in the village of Umaidnagar - Osian, in Marwar. With the help of Vivek Munjy, the date of the inscription could be deciphered, which is Samvat 1631, 1632 and 1632 respectively. The other writing on each stone is hard to understand, and is damaged. The shila stands next to the village nādi (pond). There was no visible chhatri or platform around it. Thanks to Harshraj Singh for taking me there ~
These images are the copyright of Jaipur Houses. The reproduction or unauthorized use of any image without the express written consent of the copyright owner is strictly prohibited.

• Jodhpur is truly the “Domain of Deco” in the state of Rajasthan. From the holy grail of desert deco, Umaid Bhawan to t...
17/05/2026

• Jodhpur is truly the “Domain of Deco” in the state of Rajasthan. From the holy grail of desert deco, Umaid Bhawan to the railway station, museum, hospital, university, hunting palace, and the numerous houses and mansions that pay homage to the raging style. This particular picture is from the Umaid Udhyan Park - a glimpse of yet another deco house - the central tower like column, with geometric shapes in the vertical grill, as well as horizontal bands on the facade. Sadly, thats all I could see, and I didn’t get a chance to see it more closely. Hopefully next time! •

• Deco inspired Madan Niwas, since 1986 •
15/05/2026

• Deco inspired Madan Niwas, since 1986 •

~ Umaid Bhawan | Chittar Mahal ~ One of the most iconic palaces in the world, Umaid Bhawan stands an an exemplary exampl...
20/01/2026

~ Umaid Bhawan | Chittar Mahal ~

One of the most iconic palaces in the world, Umaid Bhawan stands an an exemplary example of Rajput architecture - blending Art Deco and Indo Saracenic architecture and design with local sensibilities, creating a monument for a millennia. I was fortunate to get a tour of the place by Manveer, my friend and an employee of the hotel with expertise in its history.
Umaid Bhawan is said to be the first art deco building in the country, with the likes of Manik Baug and the Morbi Palace. For someone interested in the raging deco style, this palace is a dream - as it perfectly blends the local culture and tradition of the Rathore clan with that of deco - horses, eagles, helmets, peacocks, and more! The palace also pays homage to its first owner, the Maharaja Umaid Singh of Jodhpur, and his obsession with flying - “the latest of our recreations” as he used to say - with flying planes carved into the railings and parapets, as well as those of boar heads capture while pig sticking.
The palace, like many built before, is divided into two sections - the Janana and the Mardana, with separate entrances. The former is connected to the swimming pool, and other public rooms via galleries - so women could watch ceremonies and durbar unobserved. The central cupola is said to be a hundred and five feet high - with the palace having a hundred and forty seven rooms - truly a magnificent structure of its time - with noble beginnings - constructed to provide relief work during the famine.
So many deco elements to observe here - and once can easily get lost in time studying this fabulous palace. Some arrogantly called it ‘Fascist’ architecture - taking into account the scale and opulence of the palace - but according to me, this is false - directly applying their guilt of the Holocaust and Hitlers’ N**i ideology to an Indian context - which is unfair and incorrect. We shall discuss this in length in the future. And without doubt my favourite part are the ‘deco murals’ by Polish artist Stephan Norblin. Thinking about it makes me drool and dream, and so I shall decided an entire post to this, very soon! CONTINUED IN COMMENTS.

~ Mahamandir - a fortified temple town ~ While most know the gorgeous temple at its centre, Mahamandir is actually a tem...
14/01/2026

~ Mahamandir - a fortified temple town ~

While most know the gorgeous temple at its centre, Mahamandir is actually a temple town - built inside a fortification - solid walls and gates to provide protection to the inhabitants - and other numerous heritage sites such as old mahals, havelis, wells and a step-well that dot its landscape. It was constructed in the early 19 century (1804/1805 ce) by Maharaja Man Singh of Jodhpur, for his guru, Aayas Devnathji, for a total of 10 lakh rupees (100,000).
The beautiful temple itself was built in the name of Jalandarnathji, as a monastic space for the Shaiva - Nath Yogi tradition and its followers as Maharaja Man Singh himself was deeply influenced by the yogis and yogic thought. The murals of the inner sanctum are testimony to that, as there are depictions of various yogic asanas on the walls. Unfortunately, it was locked when I visited and so there are no pictures of it for this post. The outer open hallway is built on a raised platform, and with its 84 pillars and arches is incredible art/architecture, with delicate floral frescos painted on them, as well depictions of various gurus and rajas on the outer walls of the sanctum. The temple is made in the local red sandstone, and in the “Chaturbhuj” layout with gates on all four sides of the square plot, with large and intricately carved chhatris on its corners. There is a government school that runs there, and couldn’t explore the complex more since the children would get disturbed.
We left the temple knowing we would come back as there was much to see in Mahamandir. More murals in the temples, more wells and tanks, and a “mahal” that was built specially for the “spirits” of past guru to reside in. Stay tuned!
These images are the copyright of the Jodhpur Houses. The reproduction or unauthorized use of any image/clip without the express written consent of the copyright owner is strictly prohibited.

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