Hawa Mahal
Hawa Mahal is a palace which is at the centre of the city of Jaipur City, Rajasthan State, India. Hawa Mahal is known as the ‘palace of wind’ (breeze). It was built by Maharaja Sawai Pratap Singh in 1799, the grandson of Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh (the founder of Jaipur). It was purely built as a woman’s chamber or zenana, since they had to obey the strict rules of ‘Purdah’ which forbade the ladies from appearing in public without covering their face.
Maharaja Sawai Pratap Singh was inspired by the wind palace at Khetri in Junjudu district. Both Khetri Hawa Mahal and this palace was designed by Lalchand Ustad (architect). As Maharaja Sawai Pratap Singh was a devotee of Lord Krishna, Lalchand Ustad had designed the palace in the form of Lord Krishna’s Crown.
Entrance gate to Hawa Mahal
The view which we see from the main road has no entrance gate, hence it is called the rear view. The palace has to be entered through the ‘Ananda Pol’ gate. The tickets have to be bought and then entered through ‘Chandra Pol’ Gate. As we enter inside the palace courtyard, we see a fountain, and towards the North is the ‘Bhojan Shala’.
Architecture of Hawa Mahal
The windows of the Bhojan shala are decorated with coloured glasses (red, yellow, green, white and blue) imported from Belgium. The usage of these glasses was for 2 reasons; in Naturopathy they were used as therapeutic glasses to give definite therapy for certain diseases and the other reason being the flag of Sawai Jai Singh was made by the combination of these 5 colours.
To the south of the courtyard is ‘Pratap Mandir’ which was the personal room of the Maharaja. The palace is a five story pyramid shaped monument which is around 15 metres (50 feet) above the ground level. Built in red and pink coloured sandstone, it has 365 windows and 953 intricately carved ‘Jharokhas’, which gives a feeling of a honeycomb structure. The wind passing through these small windows keeps the palace cool during summers.
In the five storey building, at the ground level is the “Sharad Mandir’ and ‘Pratap Mandir’, on the first floor is ‘Ratan Mandir’, on the second is ‘Vichitra Mandir’, third ‘Prakash Mandir’ and finally on the fourth floor is “Hawa Mandir’. Sawai Pratap Singh was into poetry called ‘Bridge Nidhi’ and did his writing work at Pratap Mandir.
After a gap of 50 years, in 2006, the restoration work was undertaken. The estimated cost for the facelift was Rs. 4,568 million.
Entry Fees
Indians – ₹50
Foreign Tourist – ₹200
Students – ₹5
Hawa Mahal Timings
Monday to Sunday – 9:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Guide Charges
Fees – ₹200 – ₹400
Best time to Visit
October to February
Summers are very hot.
Hawa Mahal Website
hawa-mahal
Hawa Mahal Email
contact@hawa-mahal.com
Hawa Mahal Phone Number
No Contact Number
Hawa Mahal Address
Hawa Mahal Rd, Badi Choupad,
J.D.A. Market, Pink City,
Jaipur, Rajasthan 302002
Accommodation
There is no accommodation inside the palace, there are a few Boarding & Lodging near the Palace.
However if you are looking for Royal Accomodation (Heritage Properties) you can check – Heritage
Hawa Mahal Distance
From Jaipur – 5.4 kilometres
From Ajmer- 140 kilometres
From Jodhpur- 357 kilometres
From New Delhi – 255 kilometres
How to reach Hawa Mahal
JCTSL (Bus)
3 & AC2 are direct buses available from the Jaipur City
Ticket Approximately ₹20 Person. (Duration 35 Min)
You can also take shared auto rickshaw (Tuk-Tuk) to this palace from Jaipur City which is 5 kilometres, ₹10/ Person /Per Kilometer
This palace is 850 Mts from City Palace
ISRTC(Train)
The city is well connected from all sides, you can take auto rickshaw or taxi from Jaipur Junction railway station
Private auto rickshaw to the palace – ₹50/One way, ₹100 both ways
Air
Nearest Jaipur International Airport (International / Domestic Airport) is 15 kilometres from the Mahal
Drivetime approximately 40min – 1hr
Bike / Car
Jaipur city bus station) – Patrakar Colony – Chandpole – Pink City – Hawa Mahal
NOTE – Information mentioned above is completely based the information that i received from the tourist guide