RAJASTHAN – Bundi, Khota and Tonk

Bundi

• Famous for its ornate palaces and forts, the old city has narrow winding lanes, gateways and bazaars and over 200 temples.
• Many houses are painted Brahmin blue, which is said to ward off mosquitoes.
• Rudyard Kipling called the decaying 17th century Garh Palace “the work of goblins rather than men”. It includes beautiful turquoise and gold wall and ceiling murals in the Chitra Sala (Picture Gallery), displaying the famous Bundi style paintings.
• There are about 50 stepwells and Raniji ki Baori is the largest. It is 46 m deep and was built in 1699.

Khota

• This is the 3rd largest city in Rajasthan, after Jaipur and Jodhpur. It is built on the banks of the Chambai River and became a princely state in the 17th century.
• The city fort palace and museum is the ancestral home of the Raos and Maharaos of Khota. It is the heart of ceremonial life for the current Maharao. The famous Khota miniature painting style adorns the palace walls.
• The museum collection includes thrones, palaquins, elephant howdahs and armory.

Tonk

• The mosque is an example of Mughal grand architecture, built from 1246 -1298 during Moslem rule of India.
• The Arabic Persian Research Institute was established in 1978 to preserve arabic and persian manuscripts from Rajasthan. There are examples of gilded manuscripts on display and also one of the largest hand painted korans in the world.