Eternal ethos

On a sunny January afternoon, the ivory and puce coloured walls of Meherangarh fort seem bathed in honey, much to the admiration of the visitors climbing the steep pathway through the seven gates.

Beyond these gates lie the main fort palaces, courtyards and cannon ramparts.

The imposing, multi-windowed native red sandstone façade of the awe-inspiring Meherangarh fort situated in Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India, both tantalises and informs one of the variegated historical eras that contributed to its creation and construction — making it one of India's most magnificent forts.

Rao Jodha, the 15th scion of Jodhpur (formerly known as the princely state of Marwar), who belonged to the Rathore clan, laid the foundation of this fort on May 12, 1459.

Situated on the 125m-high hill called Bhakhurcheeria, the fort's construction resulted in the shifting of the capital from Mandore, which was 9km away.

History's testimonial

Meherangarh is testimony to Marwar's tumultuous and exciting history.

The Rathores belonged to the Rajput community, which was known for its brave warriors.

The fort was essentially a defensive stronghold with such impeccable fortifications that it was never once conquered.

The only exception was that of Mogul Emperor, Aurangzeb, who occupied the fort and Jodhpur in 1678 after defeating the Rathores.

Maharaja Ajit Singh regained control of the fort and his throne in 1707.

Spread across a 5km range, most of the fort that stands today was built during the reign of Ajit Singh's father, Jaswant Singh, with emphasis on defensive, functional, and aesthetic features.

It is impossible to walk through the fort without being compelled to imagine the lives of those who dwelt here.

The spaces force you to interact with them, whether it is by imagining the faces of women peering out from the beautiful jali (latticed) windows or the legendary view from the cannon ramparts looking out on to the indigo-blue houses clustered at the base of Bhakhurcheeria, thus lending Jodhpur its epithet — Blue City.

Walls that talk

The walls seem to be particularly articulate in airing their history — some are cannon-ball scarred while the wall adjoining the sixth gate, Loha Pole, has fifteen palm-prints of the queens of Maharaja Maan Singh who committed sati, or immolation, at his funeral pyre in 1843.

Meherangarh is no desolate ghost ruin. This fort remains an embodiment of a combination of human endeavour, beauty and strength, and has popularly featured as a backdrop for several commercials and Hindi and English films.

The fort museum contains historical treasures such as the Jodhpur rulers' fine collection of art, weaponry, palanquins, cradles, musical instruments, turbans, costumes and furniture.

One of the most famous attractions is a 250-year-old silk tent seized from the Moghuls.

However, it was the erstwhile ruler of Jodhpur, Maharaja Gaj Singh, who took upon himself the fort's restoration programme by founding the Meherangarh Museum Trust in March 1972.

Apart from the past, Meherangarh also becomes a window on the lives of those who call Meherangarh their home of sorts.

Traditionally dressed

We proceed to view the impressive collection of various weaponry displayed in the Sileh Khana or armoury, which also includes Emperor Akbar's sword.

Although engaged in battle and defence, the Rathores also displayed a finely nuanced appreciation of art and culture, whose glimpse one gets at Umaid Vilas.

This art gallery showcases a collection of exquisite miniature paintings of the Marwar School, which was a result of cultural osmosis and political alliances with the Moghul Empire.

Beguiling maze

Arches lead into galleries, passages melt into courtyards, courtyards open into doorways; it would be easy to get bewitched and lost inside this beguiling maze.

We venture inside the gold-emblazoned Phool Mahal, the gold being the bounty won by defeating the Nawab of Ahmedabad.

In a nearby royal apartment, Takhat Vilas, modernistic coloured glass balls hang from the ceiling, highlighting the finely painted ceiling and floor.

These rooms are among several other gorgeous period rooms in the fort.

Meanwhile, museum attendant Sang Singh keeps an eye out for the visitors while he converses with me, appearing seemingly immune to the beauty that he sees daily.

“My job is to ensure that visitors behave properly wherever they go,'' he says, casting glances at the visitors pouring in and out of the place.

Both Madan and Sang Singh enthuse about the opportunity to interact with people from various nationalities.

One of the oldest parts

We wander into the painstakingly restored Zenana (women) Deodhi where work has been in progress since 1997 with assistance from the German foreign ministry.

Exquisitely carved façades, colourful doors and interlocking yellow and white arches enclose this miniature courtyard, one of the oldest surviving portions of the fort.

From the courtyard, a corridor leads to the main fort gift-shop where I meet Tej Singh Bhati, security guard dressed in an olive-green military uniform and a maroon beret.

“I make sure no one goes anywhere where they are not supposed to,'' he says with a responsible air, breaking the conversation to direct a young foreign tourist to the gift shop.

“I have been working here since May 2003,'' he informs. Hailing from a village 40km from Jodhpur, he seems pleased with this largely sedentary job.

“It is very nice; my duty starts at 9am and ends at 5pm and then I am home,'' he remarks.

As with other museum attendants, what pleases him most is the opportunity to interact with people of different worlds within the microcosm of Meherangarh itself.

“In my previous [job], we didn't interact with the public that often. However, here I interact with people [from all parts of the world],'' he says.

Artist at work

The fort gift shops thrum with myriad visual and tactile Rajasthani delights.

Outside a shop, we find a man demonstrating the process of making lacquer bangles to curious onlookers.

Despite tourists flocking his store constantly and a cellphone that beeps every few minutes, Mohammad Ayub patiently poses for the camera.

Ayub's family has been making laac jewellry for generations. “I have been working here for four years,'' he says, further informing me of his family's historical connections with the fort.

“My father worked here in 1982 and received a certificate [in recognition of his work] from [present] Maharaja Gaj Singhji while my grandfather received a similar certificate from the Maharaja's father, Hanuwant Singhji,'' he says with a certain amount of pride.

Time to say goodbye

The sun announces its departure by tinting the buildings mandarin; we walk up to the cannon ramparts to see Jodhpur city reclining below, a dull blue enshrouded in dust.

Beneath the cannon ramparts, I hear a baby crying and the radio blaring out a song from the Bollywood blockbuster Om Shanti Om.

Others too live in the fort and call it their home; yet, theirs is another tale altogether.

For now, the sun is setting and we must say goodbye.

— Priyanka Sacheti is an India-based freelance writer

INFORMATION

Name Game

The name of the fort and events leading up to its construction are enmeshed in stories.

It is said that the word Meherangarh is derived from a man called Meheran whose life was sacrificed and body buried in the fort's foundations to ensure its prosperity.

Another theory speculates whether Meheran refers to the Rajasthani pronunciation of the Sanskrit word, mihir, which means Sun.

What lends credence to this theory is that the Rathore clan claim to derive their lineage from the Hindu god of sun, Surya.

Whatever the history, Meherangarh emerges from them as a living entity with a will and destiny of its own.

It's no surprise then that a horoscope was made on its completion, echoing the Hindu practice of making horoscopes on the birth of children.

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