I never thought of visiting Bundi ever, forget about planning a vacation. But on any given day I would pick a visit to a place over no visit to any place so when my better half so excitedly suggested for Bundi/Kota, I was game. Rajasthan in winters is splendid and we badly wanted to get out of Delhi, with the smog keeping the Sun out and making everything gloomy and dull, this was an opportunity not to be lost. We had been to other usual suspects of Rajasthan viz. Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Jaipur, Udaipur, Shekhawati etc. So taking a thorough glance at the map with places within the radius of 700 km from home, and that are warmer than Delhi, she pointed at this sector we had never travelled to. Bundi is close to 500 KM from Delhi, so we decided to cushion the long drive, with a break at Jaipur. Even though this seemed like a hidden agenda to harness Bapu Bazaar and Jauhari Bazaar and what not, I played on. The plan was to spend one night at Jaipur and then rest of the two nights at Bundi. We ended up taking three nights at Bundi with a long drive back home.
Jaipur is like next town to both of us. The drill is to start by 5 or 5.30 AM, cross Manesar before the world wakes up and be in the vicinity of Pink city before noon. With a short break for tea and paratha, we reached Jaipur, well in time, with a happy, well-slept and excited offspring in the backseat. We had booked ourselves at Arya Niwas, a good no-nonsense place to stay. It has a decent lawn in front where one can sit and enjoy the Sun. The rooms are small and functional, the quilts were warm and soft, and the sheets were crisp. Staff is polite, cordial and keeps to themselves. There is no Bar, no room service and they only serve vegetarian food. It is a hit among the westerners so you would find a lot of them. I would recommend the place for its straightforwardness. Apart from the shopping bouts at Bapu Bazaar and likes, we visited ‘Hawa Mahal’ and roamed around in the local markets.
One for the road
In the evening the plan was to experience the ‘Sound and Light’ show at ‘Jantar Mantar’. The show started late because someone of high importance decided to join us at the nth hour and then when it started, it could not hold much. This one is a mix of ‘Projection’ and ‘Sound and Light’. In a classic ‘S n L’ show, different monuments are used as background and props and with the help of Sound and Light, the narration happens. Off late, we see a lot more use of ‘Projection’ where it is similar to watching a movie on a big screen. It was okay but may be skipped for its non-convincing script. ‘Ishq-e-Dilli’, that is currently ongoing at Purana Qila in Delhi, is a great example of a projection-based show, well synced with the play of lights, the sound effects and the script (strongly recommended to read Auro’s story on it as well as to experience it in person).
From Hawa Mahal – Jantar Mantar
After a busy and enriching day from NH-8 to the streets of Jaipur, we started the next day from Jaipur at about 10 AM. Sanganer, the town famous for hand block-printing falls right on the way on Tonk Road that we were to take. With my wife and daughter’s keen interest in crafts, we decided to pin this small village. Now the question was what to do once you reach the village. The gentleman at the travel desk at Arya Niwas (again, very well versed and helpful) suggested a few names and encouraged us to just go.
Hence, our first stop was at at ‘Salim Paper’ at Sanganer. From what we had learnt, this would be a cottage industry like place where one could see paper making and block printing. So we reached after going circles in the village, and ultimately realising that the place was right at the beginning. If you tell them that you are from ‘Arya Niwas’, they take you through a guided tour of ‘Paper Making’. This was our first visit to a ‘Paper Making’ factory and it was an extremely educative experience. The place was large, expansive and had sections where different jobs took place. The lady took us through the entire process with a lot of patience. The first step is to make the pulp by mashing waste cloth-cuttings that they procure from all the factories around. So essentially the raw material was waste organics being recycled and that was heartening to know. The cloth is shredded to very tiny pieces that are kept submerged in water for a few days. After that the whole cloth-water solution is rolled over and over again to form a thick pulp. This pulp is then further rolled to form a smoother paste. Color and condiments like rose/marigold petals, leaves are added now. Then the paste is spread on metal sheets and left to dry in the sun. Each sheet individually! Hence the paper is born. The dried paper sheet is taken off the metal based and pressed through machines. And thereafter, different actions are taken to make use of this paper. So we saw techniques of cutting, printing, pasting and finishing.
To give the viewers an experience to take home, and of course as a model for this tour fee, they also have a small shop/display counter. The only way we could have reciprocated the gesture was to buy some stuff so we bought quite a lot. Most of that was exciting and relatable as we were purchasing exactly what we saw being made right then. All of it was for European and American markets and were indeed of supreme quality. So we made a good collection of fancy paper bags, craft kits, various kinds of papers etc. that my daughter is waiting to rob off her mother for her school projects.
Blue Pottery Pots
Block Printing – Sanganer
But this perhaps was not the ‘essential hand block printing’ that we came to see. So we asked the lady (Ms. Chhavi) to guide us to a place where we could watch that happening. She recommended this place called “Sakshi”.
Sakshi was this store, with a factory close by where both the block printing and blue-pottery happened.
If you have ever tried your hands at pottery then you would know that it is a laborious process. I have never done it myself but I have lived closely with someone who has. I guess the phrase, getting your hands wet, probably comes from here. Long back, Sahil Ghumakkar Sethi wrote a small log on his visit to Khurja, a small town very close to Delhi. Khurja is a hot centre, literally, of pottery and an interesting visit. So as we learned, at Sanganer and other places that produce blue pottery, it is the stone powder which is used after grinding the stones and kneading it before finally creating the artefacts. This was new to us. We were lucky to peep into the kiln and learnt that because of the stone, the breakage rate is very high. And all the pieces that break are completely a waste (unlike clay which can be wetted and treated and reused). There were a few artisans who were busy with the various stages of the entire process.
The famous blue-pottery of Rajasthan is a borrowed art from Persia where crushed stone is moulded / wheeled to form a shape. It is then hand painted and glazed (albeit with high quantities of lead) in very high temperatures to bring out the final product. Lead is essential for this particular style since it enhances the blues and the greens that are painted. It is not recommended to use blue-pottery stuff in microwaves and for serving hot food since the glaze leaches out and is carcinogenic. They may be used for other things like show-pieces, vases and even for serving dry bites.
At the factory, we also were taken to the place where an old gentleman was busy making a bed-sheet. As we arrived. He gave us a quick lecture on how the colors are made, chosen, and printed on paper or cloth. He then displayed printing a series of blocks for a single image. Post that, he even gave us small pieces of cloth that we could chose and design and print on! It was quite interesting.
Then of course, we were taken back to Sakshi, the emporium. The shop was expensive! They had the ‘Craftmark’ accreditation and were supplying to Fabindias and Kilols of the world. It was great quality range, but at the same price as what you get at the retails stores they supply to.
We were way now beyond noon now and back on NH-12 that connects Jaipur to Kota. Bundi is about 45 KM short of Kota. Almost all of this stretch is a 4 lane highway (mostly one side under construction), with little to no traffic. I was driving here for the first time, we had never been to this part of Rajasthan so we decided to stick to the main highway and might have ended up taken a longer route but I would recommend this. If was an afternoon drive but you won’t miss the vibrant colours of Rajasthan. There is a small market after Chaksu with a couple of decent-looking restaurant. For the essential needs of food and hunger, I would advise to attend to it in Jaipur itself or then go all the way to Kota.
View Delhi – Jaipur – Bundi in a larger map
It was dark by the time we reached Bundi. As you get close , on one side you have a hillock, almost trying to hide the town and you slide down towards your left as if you are trying to disappear in an old world. And then suddenly emerges this glowing, huge monument which we discovered later was the King’s palace which so well lit and well-placed. In no time my Honda was in a narrow alley, bustling with action. This was in sharp contrast to blank and barren highway where we were only a few moments back. We called up our Hotel folks for directions and before they could tell us to wait outside the main artery of old town, we were already next to our Hotel/Haveli. ‘Dev Niwas’, our stay for next 3 days, was in a side-alley-let not accessible by a car.
It was not cold even at/around 8 in the evening though there was a little nip, reminding us of the time of the year that was. We were confident that we would get enough Sun during the day so that was not worrying us but we did want to have a clean, spacious but cosy room. And, the room was indeed pretty good. We had opted for a regular room and have requested the biggest room in our category, since often in all these havelis and palace-converted hotels the rooms are of different dimensions.
I would try to write a small note or a hotel review on “Dev Niwas’ but lets first some facts about Bundi.
Bundi has been a small kingdom in the ‘Hadoti’ region of Rajasthan. Hadoti (हाड़ोती) comes from the clans of “Hada” (हाड़ा). The kingdoms in this region were on offshoot of the chieftain senapaties (both Hadas and Meenas) from Mewar who fought with Prithviraj Chauhan and post the war settled in Hadoti region where they built and erected their small kingdoms. Bundi got its name from a Meena chieftan whose name was Bunda. Not long back, Giriraj wrote a couple of stories on this area.
Bundi is a very laid-back town with a beautiful essence of the the old-world charm through and through the walled city. We later discovered that there is also a new city next to, complete with builder floors and the works. There are many, many things to see and do in Bundi. And even though it is still not being toured to, by the regular Indian tourists, it has been around for very long on the travel circuit. Bundi has been visited and mused by the likes of Sir Rudyand Kipling, Satyajit Ray and Rabindranath Tagore.
Bundi is the most famous for its miniature paintings. Why, the whole city, set along a hillocks looks like a miniature painting in itself! The Bundi style of miniature painting is very distinct from the others, for its emphasis on the eyes, expressions and curvatures. It also boasts of beautiful monuments with intricate carvings on the local sandstone presented in the Rajputna architectural style. Being close to Kota, it is very revered for the sandstone available in the area. And for agriculture, very high quality of basmati rice is grown here and exported world over.
Dev Niwas Std Room
After getting ourselves the overdue and customary tea and clicking some pics of the room, we jogged to the terrace of the hotel. Fox Traveller covered Bundi sometime back and you can watch the full episode here. This program was led by a close friend, Richa, so sorry for shameless publicity but trust me, you would enjoy it. Richa had told us that that we must not miss the magnificent view of the fort from the hotel terrace so with the zeal of a young bride, we moved to see our share of Karvachauth moon and boy what a view it was.
The Glowing Palace at Bundi
Palace from the restaurant
Devniwas is situated in the old, heritage part of Bundi, amid the bubbling streets and in night when there is very little ambient light, the illuminated fort is a sight to watch. As the night progress and the cold sneaks in, this glowing structure almost gives you the warmth and the mental-escape from the drudgery and monotony of every day life.
We were one of the very few guests on that night so the restaurant was mostly to us. It was getting late hence we postponed our plan to do the bazaar walk for the next day. While Smita and Pihu enjoyed the local delicacies, I was pulled into a late break hack attack on our web hosting account which took most of my night to fix and after doing everything which I could, I sneaked into the warm and soft quilts of the December night, hoping that all would go well tomorrow.
Absolutely brilliant post.
The small detour to visit Hand-made papers & block printing, deserves special thanks & appreciation. Not everyone visits such places just to see. It must have a great learning experience for Pihu, as well as both of you.
The only industry we have in my village (except farming) is a hand-made paper mill. So, I know the entire process of paper making and it is exactly what you saw and then mentioned it beautifully. The quality of papers are very fine and we do buy notebooks, folders from there whenever we visit home, as it is adjacent to our home only.
Regarding Bundi, we had a separate chapter in our history book on Chittorgarh & Bundi. Though, don’t remember all now…(getting old, you know!), but this post just reminds me those days.
Photos are excellent, the night shots of the palace, in particular. Look forward to your hotel review, along with the next part.
So, you can’t escape from Public demand or from your internal customers. Tx for meeting our demand. Well done.
So far… so good! :) Good write up! Awaiting more.
Nandan,
Your travel story after a long time …………..Very well written post along with beautiful pictures. Never heard about Bundi as a tourist spot. Waiting for next one.
Thanks.
so the king is back with a bang. writer Nandan is batter. keep it up.
@ Amitava – Yes and trust me, writing gives me much more satisfaction and happiness then doing all the editorial chores, he he. For us, it was the first time to visit the Paper factory. I guess photos are OK, more so since I down-sampled them for faster loading. Thanks Amitava for the effusive praise.
@ Smita – Indeed. So far so good.
@ Mukesh – Long time. Hope things are well at your end. It is becoming a tourist spot. As of now it is attracting a lot of folks who are looking for sun, no-rush day and less of crowd. There are a few cafes, similar to what you would find in Pushkar (and Gokarna, Mcleod, Kasaul etc).
@ Parveen – Thank you.
Nandan Ji
Absolute brilliant piece with even the minutest detail on board. You are absolutely right that Bundi had been a centre for miniature painting along with Kangra style and Pahadi style of miniatures. Your piece on Blue Pottery is just marvelous. Keep it up Captain
Welcome back Nandan, the ghumakkar !! It was a great beginning of a travelogue of an unknown place, at least the one which is not too famous with regular tourists.
I shed off some of my guilt of killing trees, by using papers… now at least I can assure myself that I am using the paper made from waste paper/clothes. Thanks for going into the details of both paper and pottery making.
The slogans behind the truck are hillarious and it is my time pass on long journey to read behind the trucks and they have increased my GK a lot, besides bringing a smile on my face. The best I read was on a Maruti800- When I grow up I will be MB”
It is a FOG perhaps and a few more photos would have made it more attractive (or the editors did not allow you many fotos ?)
Waiting for next post to have an inner view of Bundi.
One more thing… how come your scorpio turned to Honda in Boondi ?
This is what I call – the good stuff.
Wow Nandan ji, what a post. I really liked paper making , pottery and block painting details.Thanks for sharing the details.
Your visit reminded me of my school time. We had spent two years at a place called Lakheri near to Bundi.There is an ACC cement plant at this place. We had visited Bundi that time. At that time it was only very few tourist or more of local people who used to visit this place. There is also one temple (on the hill) in between Bundi and Lakheri,place is known as Indargadh. I really remember one thing about Indargadh, local call that sweet as “Indargadh ke pedhe”. This sweet is somewhat similar to Black Jaam or Rasbhari (generally available in Malwa region). It used to taste so good that I still cherish its taste.
Again thanks for refreshing memories and waiting for continuation…
Thanks Nandan for taking us to Bundi through Jaipur…My journey on this route towards Kota via Bundi was cut short by an accident last September near Deoli…now this series will work as an educational guide for me and the fellow ghumakkars with every little required details into this less explored land…waiting for the next episode!
@ Rakesh – Many thanks Professor.
@ SS – Yes. It is a FOG. Even I always thought that it is wood but guess you can make pulp from cloth as well. Since it was Rajasthan, we decided to give a break to my trusted warhorse and try my wife’s sophisticated Honda. :-) and it did very well, all through.
@ PW – Thank you.
@ Abhee – Thanks for the new info. I wasn’t aware.
@ Vipin – I know. Sandeep told me. Insha Allah, you would make this journey soon enough. Thank you.
Hi Nandan,
Very interesting post adding one more place to the list. The Sanganer detour sounds interesting. As always, great write-up but we could do with few more pics.
What can one say about this brilliant piece of writing. The detailing of paper making, block printing and blue pottery is simply amazing. The pictures of the Bundi fort are scintillating.
Shall await the next part of the story.
Great to see a travelogue from you, Nandan. The century mark is tantalisingly close and we are eagerly waiting to see you reach that momentous landmark. It was simply marvellous and made me realise how much we are missing Nandan the writer.
Enjoyed the visits to the paper, blue pottery and block printing factories. Regarding paper, I found the process very environmentally friendly unlike modern processes which use a lot of chemicals and energy. Sun drying of paper is great but the costs actually go up because the economies of scale are lost.
I would like to add that paper was traditionally made using cotton/hemp till about 150 years ago when paper making from wood pulp was invented. Paper made from cotton fibre lasts for centuries and is much stronger than paper made from wood pulp which crumbles in a few decades. However, rag paper is several times more expensive that wood paper (the factor is somewhere between 25 x to 50 x). I am sure that you must have paid a lot for the papers you bought there.
I found the details of the blue pottery making were fascinating but I wish to point out that the blue colour comes from cobalt and not lead (lead based dyes are reddish/orange). All pottery contains lead which is used in the glazing process. The only precaution to be taken is to avoid cooking/heating in ceramic utensils which are coloured on the inside surface. If eating off them was risky, the USFDA would have banned such utensils. The workers who work in these units are at a far greater risk than consumers like us.
The heritage hotel at Bundi looks like nice place to stay. Loved your comment about behaving like a bride on a karva chauth night and the evocative description of a glowing palace on a dark night. Looking forward to experiencing the sights and sounds of Bundi during the day.
BTW, is it a CRV?
@ Tarun – Yes it is indeed. Point take about the pics. It has been a miss, at least for the first leg. Since Jaipur was so familiar, we sort of didn’t realise that some clicks would be good for posterity. I did put a shot of Hawa Mahal and Jantar Mantar though.
The 2nd one would have more. Be there. :-)
@ Ram – Thank you for your effusive praise. You have been out of action for a while. With the weather getting better, I guess it is time to revive the ‘Mystic Alleys’ series. Please do consider as your time permits.
@ DL – It is a heartful comment. :-). I enjoy writing much more but the routine errands needs some attention and then so on and so forth. More excuses, nothing else. he he. I have summarized the first two days of travel in this log and hoping to present Bundi soon enough. I am away for a travel tonight (7 samandar paar, over the Gulf via EK :-)) but would try my best.
I didn’t know about the cobalt thing. My knowledge on this subject is pretty elementary so many thanks, as expected from you, for correcting this. I guess the beauty of writing here and is more to get these comments. If you read other comments, most of them are adding to the post in their own way. Very humbling.
Its a homely ‘City’.
Enjoyed reading this Nandan and I look forward to further chapters about Bundi. I have heard a lot about it from foreign visitors.
I love blue pottery. I am always on the look out for such tiles at the various handicraft exhibitions here in Mumbai. Earlier the RJ traders used to bring tiles to these fairs but no longer unfortunately. Guess I will have to do a special trip to RJ to buy them myself!
Hi Nandan,
Great informative post about cloth making and pottery.
Waiting for the trip to the palace fort. Oh yes nothing like a hack attack to keep you up all night.
@ Gita – Thank you. If you ever come this side again, try to make a short trip to Khurja. Sahil Sethi wrote a small note on it , long time back. It is a paradise for pottery lovers.
https://www.ghumakkar.com/2010/06/10/khurja-the-ceramics-city/
@ Nirdesh – Thank you. So you did catch it, the first one to acknowledge. Actually after doing whatever I can and not sure on what all of it would make sense and getting worried about totally unrelated things like my bank account pwd, and falling back on classical panic-dealing-instruments (take a walk, breathe well, count till 100) , I thought that I did my share and lets see whats in store tomorrow. Next morning, I checked my emails, looked at the health monitors and all seemed well.
Thanks Nandan, I just had a look at Sahil’s post. Sounds like an interesting place, maybe I might go there one day for my much coveted tiles.
Looking forward to Bundi now that the server problems are fixed. Incidentally, I find right now that the site is very slow, not sure if its a problem at my end but it is noticeably slower than before the site crashed.
Dear Nandan,
Believe me, it is not good on your part to stay away from writing travelogues. From your comments and also from what you have written about you in your intro, you are basically a ghumakkar and have travelled far and wide. Why keep us deprived of your beautiful stories like this one on Bundi?
While travelling between GZB and Aligarh, I have stopped for some time in Khurja to buy some crockery. Have also heard about the pollution and resultant health problems this pottery making causes to the practitioners of this art. However, for visiting a paper factory, I don’t have to go to Rajashan for, Saharanpur has got enough paper mills – as big as Star Paper Mill and some small hand made paper types too. In fact, here the smaller units are busy making board instead of paper.
However, it is mighty nice idea to visit such a place even if for a few hours. This must be the secret of how our dear Nandan is able to serve as walking encyclopedia to other ghumakkars.
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nothing more to show us? I loved Bundi and had Taragarh all to myself one February morning.
@Sushant – Sure. That is what I am aspiring for , but the chores need to be handled so got to find that sweet spot.
A visit to SRE is due, with a short trip of a paper factory and tea at your place.
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@ Injamaven – Not in this instalment. It was already getting pretty heavy. I guess Taragarh is still a very in-frequented place.
Before reading the just published second part of your Bundi travelogue, I am glad I decided to go through your first post on this series. The detailing on the Paper making(despite the absence of pictures) and the Pottery and block-printing were great info. for travellers to this region. The pictures of the Blue Pottery artefacts was fabulous. View of the goregously lit Bundi fort from the Hotel rooftop was spectacular. Any meal will taste good with such a view. Wonderful to get tales from the less-travelled towns of this great state. Superb post, Nandan ji.