Jai Mahal in Rajasthan
Located in the heart of Jaipur, the Pink City, Jai Mahal Palace has been converted into a 5-star hotel. The Jai Mahal, infact, is the oldest heritage hotel in India, and its first guest was Nikita Khrushchev in the 1950s. The hotel, run by the Taj Group, offers guests an authentic experience of the past.
The Jai Mahal, interestingly, was not built by the reigning monarch of Jaipur. Instead, it was built by Hargobind Natani, who rose to the post of prime minister from the ranks of a lowly commander in the army. The land on which the palace is built was a gift to him from the grateful ruler of Jaipur after Natani helped beat back a huge alliance of enemy forces. Natani’s glory did not last long. After growing in power and status, he committed treason and died before he could be tried for it. The land, along with the palace, was taken over by the king.
In the early twentieth century, the palace became the official residence of the prime ministers of the princely Jaipur state. After 1947, when monarchies were abolished in the newly independent India, the palace stood empty for a few years. Then the royal descendants had the palace converted into a hotel.
The Jai Mahal, interestingly, was not built by the reigning monarch of Jaipur. Instead, it was built by Hargobind Natani, who rose to the post of prime minister from the ranks of a lowly commander in the army. The land on which the palace is built was a gift to him from the grateful ruler of Jaipur after Natani helped beat back a huge alliance of enemy forces. Natani’s glory did not last long. After growing in power and status, he committed treason and died before he could be tried for it. The land, along with the palace, was taken over by the king.
In the early twentieth century, the palace became the official residence of the prime ministers of the princely Jaipur state. After 1947, when monarchies were abolished in the newly independent India, the palace stood empty for a few years. Then the royal descendants had the palace converted into a hotel.
One of the major attractions within the Jai Mahal is the pool, which flows over steps cut into the ground. The water flows into a fountain. The idea for this pool was borrowed from Mughal architectural style. If you stay as a guest at the hotel, no matter which room you choose to stay in, you will have a grand view of the pool. The garden around the pool is lush and well maintained.
The bustle, laughter, and happy faces at the hotel seem to have lifted some of the taint of treason and death that had lingered in the palace when princely associates stayed here.
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