Nearly 300 photographs were taken in the 4 days that I spent in Rajasthan. The count could very easily have doubled had it not been for two places we visited where photography was strictly forbidden, and very understandably too.
The first of these places was the Delwara Temples in Mt. Abu. Now, Mt. Abu by itself is like any other hill-station that dot the mountain ranges in different parts of India. There’s the obligatory lake for the obligatory boating, the ‘points’ from where one can gawk at the scenery and take selfies, horse/camel rides and sites where hordes of tourists can congregate to shop, litter and pollute.
But at the Delwara Jain Temples, no cameras, mobiles, footwear or even bags are allowed within the premises. And on entering them, I quickly understood why. Built entirely from white marble between the 11th and 13th centuries, these temples are dedicated to the Jain ‘tirthankaras’ They are set among the densely wooded hills of Mt. Abu and look quite unremarkable from the outside. But the interiors are a marvel of exquisite carving and workmanship. Indeed, it would be a crime to allow selfie-clicking morons into this sanctum to desecrate it with idiotic photographs.
These pics are taken from the net, so I can’t claim any credit for them although I am envious as hell of the lucky persons who got permission to photograph these intricately carved sculptures.
The next place we visited where photography was strictly forbidden was the Crystal Gallery within the premises of the City Palace, Udaipur. To enter the Crystal Gallery, one has to pay a fat entrance fee and pass through a large, luxurious hall where hang the portraits of some of the past and present Maharanas. An audio guide helps you along your way, imparting snippets of information about how the crystal collection came into existence. Apparently, the crystals were ordered by Maharana Sajjan Singh in 1877 from a company in Birmingham. Unfortunately, he passed away before the crystals could arrive and they sat around in their boxes for the next 110 years. The ruler who followed him was known for leading a simple and austere life and was not interested in eating off crystals or sleeping on a crystal bed.
The collection of crystals is nothing less than stunning. There’s a bed(the only one of its kind in the world), a sofa set, a dining table and hundreds of other household items including an elaborate dinner set. It’s a good thing none of it was ever used, because to wash and clean that collection would be a Royal Pain for some menials.
It’s also a good thing that photography is prohibited or else there would be cheap duplicates of all that crystal on sale in the souvenir shops. Most likely Made in China. And the spirit of Maharana Sajjan Singh would not have liked that!
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