“This haveli is at least a hundred years old, so are the frescos in your room,” the bellman tells me proudly as he opens the low-hung wooden door that requires you to bow to enter. After five hours on the road from Delhi, I am eager to rest before heading out to explore Churu, one of several towns where you can experience the faded grandeur of Shekhawati. Often described as the world’s largest open-air art gallery, this region in northern Rajasthan is known for its dense concentration of 18th–20th Century merchant havelis hand-painted with intricate frescoes.
What I do not yet realise is that my exploration has already begun, right here inside my room at Malji Ka Kamra, one of several havelis now restored as heritage hotels. It blends Italianate details with Rajput architecture, featuring Corinthian columns, arched balconies and stained glass. My cavernous room is overwhelming for eyes untrained to such scale and maximalism. Frescos cover every inch of wall and ceiling — some vivid, others fading and peeling like fragile relics. They depict portraits of former owners, floral motifs, scenes of daily life, angels with wings, and faraway places shaped by travel.
The Jagdish Ji Maharaj Temple in Ramgarh Shekhawati features century-old cenotaphs | Photo Credit: Satarupa Paul
Shekhawati’s story begins in the 15th century, when the Rajput chieftain Rao Shekha established control over this semi-arid region. Its location along caravan routes linking Agra and Delhi to western India soon turned it into a thriving trading corridor, with commerce in cotton, silk, spices, and opium flowing steadily. Marwari and Jain traders prospered here, and by the 18th and 19th centuries, their wealth found architectural expression with grand havelis commissioned across three districts. Today, these havelis stand as enduring records of a mercantile culture that once flourished here.
Mandawa is undoubtedly Shekhawati’s most recognisable destination, featuring memorably in films like Bajrangi Bhaijaan, PK, Jab We Met and others. The small town reveals itself best on foot, as I discover on my heritage walk with the young and deeply informed Mudita Saxena, Shekhawati’s first female tourist guide authorised by the Ministry of Tourism. The walk anchors itself around Mandawa Castle, its medieval Rajputana architecture dominating the skyline. Around Mandawa Castle, its medieval Rajputana architecture dominating the skyline, are the finest havelis — the Goenka Double Haveli, Murmuria Haveli, Chowkhani Double Haveli, to name a few — each layered with vibrant frescoes. A pause at the Murmuria Tank, an old stepwell once central to town life, offers a quiet contrast. A short drive away, Vivaana Culture Hotel feels like a natural extension of the walk — an imposing 19th-century double haveli where frescoes, courtyards, and craft traditions are not preserved behind glass, but lived with daily.
Half an hour down the road, Nawalgarh feels less visited and more lived in. I spend the better part of my time at Vivaana Museum Hotel, housed in a 150-year-old Jaipuria haveli restored under conservationist Atul Khanna’s vision. The space is a fine example of adaptive reuse, where original architectural details remain the focus. The ground floor doubles as a compact museum, offering insights into Shekhawati’s folklore and domestic life, while folk performances and village walks extend the experience beyond the haveli. One such walk leads me to the Dr. Ramnath Podar Haveli Museum, among the oldest and largest private museums in India.
A session during the 10th edition of VHAH Fest at Ramgarh Fort | Photo Credit: Satarupa Paul
About two hours away, through fields of mustard and open countryside, Ramgarh Shekhawati, once a major centre of Sanskrit learning and Ayurvedic medicine, was known as Doosra Kashi. Today, its havelis, stepwells, chhatris, and fort still reflect that legacy.
I arrive during the 10th edition of the annual Vedaaranya Heritage and Healing Festival (VHAH Fest). Envisioned by Ramgarh native and heritage conservationist Shruti Nada Poddar. At Ramgarh Fort, I move from a UNESCO-led panel to a Kathak recital, from a Dastaangoi to a thrilling performance by percussion ensemble Tal Fry. Between discussions, performances, and heritage walks through MOHAR Haveli (Museum of Heritage & Art), Vedaaranya Haveli, stunning century-old cenotaphs, and temples, Ramgarh momentarily feels like its old self again.
The richly decorated interiors of a Jain temple in Churu | Photo Credit: Satarupa Paul
Named after one of the region’s three districts, alongside Jhunjhunu and Sikar, Churu is easy to overlook at first. Broken roads, a busy railway crossing, and a dusty marketplace lead into the old town centre, where narrow lanes reveal a compact grid of havelis. Built around 1870, the Surana Haveli, with 1,111 windows and doors designed for ventilation, is locally known as the Hawa Mahal of Churu. The Mantri Haveli, one of the oldest in town, remains fully covered in frescos. Amid these private residences stands the Bhagwan Shri Shantinath Jain Temple, its white marble exterior offering visual relief from the intricate frescos within.
On the edge of Churu lies Sethani Ka Johara, a historic stepwell built during the severe famine of 1899. Today, it is one of Shekhawati’s most contemplative spaces, where I find myself one evening immersed in a powerful cello recital by maestro Saskia Rao-de Haas, as part of the VHAH Fest. Framed by stone arches and chhatris, the performance offers a fitting close to my week in Shekhawati, shaped by art, history, and culture. .
Published - May 01, 2026 03:57 pm IST
The Hindu Weekend / travelogues / travel and commuting / Jaipur
Source: The Hindu - India News
