Urvi Shah
Chittorgarh, established on the Berach river , was a former capital of the Sisodia dynasty of Mewar. They had captured the fort from the Mori dynasty in 738 AD. There are endless tales of heroism of Rani Padmini, the bravery of Maharana Pratap,the sacrifice of Chandan by Panna Dai and the devotion of Meera Bai. there are untold sagas from this historic land of Chittorgarh. Here is a list of places one must see while in Chittorgarh.
Rana Kumbha palace is in Ruins today but its worth going for all historical buffs who have traveled till here.
There are at present six Jain temples in Chittorgarh. One of the famous one is Satavees Devri temple. It has 27 idols in it. Beautiful carvings can be seen all over these temples.
The main fort is magnificent and beautiful. The view from up there is worth a gaze. Lot of movies have been shot here including the sunset scene from Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani.
This is the place where Rani Padmini had performed Jauhar, which is jumping into a pit of fire along with other married women to save herself from being captured by Allaudin Khilji who wanted to marry this beautiful queen of Chittorgarh. The stories of her enchanting beauty are very famous. It is said that when Allaudin Khilji was told that Rani Padmini sacrificed her life in fire so that she wouldn't have to cheat on her husband he was so furious that he made sure he destructed every beautiful constructions of Chittorgarh. Till date all the statues are destroyed.
Vijay Stambh also known as the Tower of victory is built by Rana Kumbha of Mewar as a rememberance of his grand victory in the war with Mahmud Khilji . This is one of the most intricate towers you have ever seen. Built in 1440 AD , a nine storeyed 37 meters high tower has the intricate carvings on its exterior side of the Hindu Gods and Goddesses and also some stories from the Ramayana and Mahabharata. It overlooks the Sati and Jauhar sthal.
Kirti Stambh is a symbolization of Jainism, built by Jijaji Kathod a jain merchant in the 12th Century. It is 22 metres in height. It has a statue of the first Jain tirthankar Adinath Bhagwan and many small statues of other jain tirthankars. There is small jain Mandir close to it. It is said that at that time Jainism was a religion which was promoted.
Rani Padmini was the most beautiful queen of her times. She was married to Ratansen, the Maharaja of Mewar. Rani Padmini's palace is between a lake. This palace has seen the most exceptional tales. It is said that Allaudin Khilji, after making a lot of requests to the Maharana, was given a chance to see Rani Padmini from the mirror in a palace far from Rani Padmini's palace. He was threatened to be killed if he looked back and directly tried to have a look of the queen.
Meera Bai was one of the greatest devotee of Lord Krishna. Although she was married to Maharana Kumbha, her soul was lost in Krishna's devotion. She was a very innocent woman and her ill wishers tried to kill her while she was in this temple a lot of times but all in vain. There are a lot of interesting stories about Mira Bai's true devotion.
This was earlier the battle field where famous wars have taken place. As of now, it is used for cultivation of Custard Apples, which are the major crop from this area. Custard Apples are even used in making textiles. The famous custard apple sarees are available in Chittorgarh Emporium.
This Kund is famous for it was created by Bheem, one of the Pandavas. Bheem was known for his strength and might. Once Draupadi was very thirsty when they were travelling from this place and there was no water around. So, Bheem kicked the ground so hard that water started flowing out of the ground and a pond was formed eventually.
24, NIDian, Toy Designer by profession and artist by passion. I love reading, writing, cooking and travelling. Life is about using the whole box of crayons!
