Tour Report 2016 IIEST

2016 Tour Report: Orchha

3rd Semester Tour Report 12/15/2016

Index  Introduction  Raja Mahal  Elements o o o o o o o o o  Rai Praveen Mahal  Elements o o o  Jahangir Mahal  Elements o o o o o o o o o o

3 5 6 Arches Murals Jaali work Architectural Fusion Toilet Facilities Vaastu and Spatial Interaction Construction Techniques Rainwater Harvesting Ventilation 37

Murals Water System Underground Cooling System 46 Entrance Architectural Features Chhatris Jaali Work Shading Techniques Roofing Techniques Ventilation Rainwater Harvesting Sanitation Privacy and Security Higher Plinth and Escape Route Page | 2

o Anthropometry  Conclusion  Word of Thanks  Contributors

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Introduction A small town nestled on the Betwa river, in the state of Madhya Pradesh, established by Rudra Pratap Singh after 1501 as the seat of an eponymous former princely state of central India, Orchha may not be on everyone’ travel destination but it surely should be.

With a name that literally translates into ‘hidden treasure’, Orchha succinctly hides a history that tells tales of the mighty Bundella Empire and their clandestine years, as they were pushed here by the Tughlaqs in the 15th century.

Tourist destinations, among many, include:  Orchha Fort Complex: Jahangir Mahal, Raja Mahal and Rai Praveen Mahal  Chaturbhuj Temple Page | 4

 Raja Ram Temple  Phool Bagh  Laxmi Narayan Temple Orchha saw a golden period of architecture under Bir Singh Deo who also constructed the Jhansi Fort and the Bir Singh Palace at Datia. Rich in art and stories of the day, the most fascinating of all the magnificent surroundings is the Orchha’s Fort complex.

The grand Orchha Complex is divided into three sections; Jahangir Mahal, Raj Mahal and Sheesh Mahal.

The Raja Mahal was once the prime residence of Bundela kings and their queens. Secret alleys, steep stairs and exquisite murals depicting avatars of Lord Vishnu – whom the Kings of Bundelkhand worshipped tell the story of an era long gone.

The Jahangir Mahal was built in the 17th century to mark Jahangir’s visit to Orchha, a fact highlighted by its architecture which is a blend of Mughal and Bundela styles.

The Rai Praveen Mahal, on the other hand has a fascinating tale to go with it as shall be discussed soon.

The Sheesh Mahal, while once the residence of Kings has now been transformed into a tourist hotel.

Prominent features are the stone elephants, latticework on the windows and delicate double chatris. A study of these provide us with an insight of the dayto-day activities of the people. In the following report, we take a closer look at the first three tourist destinations.

The river Betwa here breaks though seven channel called the Satdhara, of which the origin is poetically ascribed to seven of the Orchha Chief in honour of whose achivements they are supposed to have started flowing - (The first channel was caused to flow by Diman Arjun, the second by he who slow the Mughals, the third by Pratap Rudra, the fourth by Bharti Chand, the fifth by Pancham, the , sixth by Madhur(kar) Shah and the last by Rai Dulha).

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RAJA MAHAL

The royal residence of erstwhile kings of Orchha, Raja Mahal homes beautiful towers and intricate mural work on the ceilings.

The first of the trio, work on the Raja Mahal was started by Raja Rudra Pratap, but he died in 1531, leaving the construction incomplete. His son, Bharti Chand, completed the front and the main portion of the palace, but could not complete the entirety during his lifetime. The final touches were added by Madhukar Shah.

Raja Mahal With five stories and a facade which is simplicity personified with hardly any ornamental detailing –bellying the grandeur of the murals inside – the Raja Mahal is a fine example of Mughal architecture with stone lattice work and multifaced arches at the entrance.

was the first of the three to be built.

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The palace is in the shape of a perfect square that is further divided into two courtyards – in accordance with the Indian tradition of mandapas. The main courtyard is flanked by the palace which has a four-storied building at one end of it. The other three sides have five-stories.

Elements: Some notable features and recurring elements were as follows:        

Arches Murals Vastu Ventilation Water Harvesting Architectural Fusion Jaali work Construction Techniques

Let us take a look into them one by one.

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ARCHES Various forms of the arch have been used, with different ornamentations. One must remember that the arch is a Muslim motif but not all the arches here are true arches, as the Bundella Kings were, after all, staunch believers of Shi Krishna.

Arches used include:

1) Tudor Arch A tudor arch without any ornamentation and located below the plinth level of the mahal leads down from the courtyard to the toilets after passing through a dark passageway.

Figure 1: Path to toilet

Tudor arches in the form of Chattris were first featured in the Red Fort.

The main gateway, known as the Shahi Darwaza or the Royal Gateway was also a plain Tudor arch.

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2) Ogee Arch The most ubiquitous of them all, is the four centered ogee arch that is present here with certain clefts.

Also, arches present are always in odd numbers with a central arch followed by symmetrical arches on either side leading to groups of 3, 5, 7,‌ and so on.

Figure 2: Ogee arch framing the slanted air vents

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Figure 3: Ogee arch without clefts, present in groups of odd numbers.

3) Cusp Arches Nine-leaf cusp arches, resplendent in Mughal architecture also find its way here to frame important pathways, here – the gateway to one of the central courtyards.

With a rise of almost twelve feet, these arches however hide Hindu feature, that is, they are not in fact true nine-leaf arches!

Figure 4: Nine leaf cusp arches framing the entrance to the Page | 10 courtyard

 A closer look into the intrados of the arch reveals that the nine-laved cusps are just an external ornamentation. They do not run parallel to the front and back face of the arch. The original arch is a simple Tudor arch constructed of bricks with granite piers.

The arches were also decorated with floral motifs in bass relief.

This strictly went against Sultani architecture which does not allow the use of any motifs whatsoever.

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Lotus bud motifs on the top – imported from Jain architecture. The parapet is a fusion of Islamic kanjura and Bundella crosses.

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Figure 5: Damaged arches revealing the brickwork.

Looking closely at the damaged part of the arch, one can see that it is a simple tudor arch made by bricks laid on end. The external ornamentation in the form of the nine-cusps have peeled off.

These techniques of camouflage may have been due to the workers not being adept at constructing cusp arches.

This type of camouflage is reminiscent of the Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque in New Delhi where Hindu artisans gave off Islamic impressions while using their own methods.

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<< A picture taken from the underside shows the details of the brickwork, the plaster in the front has fallen off, revealing the construction work.

Another picture taken from the interior clearly shows that the leaves were made of lime mortar or plaster and chiseled into shape.

The soffit is plain.

Figure 6: Backside of arches which prove the cusps were ornamentation.

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Another type of cusp arch was the three-cusp arch as seen below in the window joining two courtyards.

The smaller arches are not in fact arches but simply two bricks kept inclined at an angle and then finished off with smooth plaster! This can be observed in this arch where the plaster has peeled off.

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But not all arches found were real; in fact there was also the presence of arches constructed fully of granite.

A picture of the Raja Mahal from the second, inner courtyard depicting three different types of arches used in the palace.

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MURALS The fading walls of the monuments are testimony to magnificent canvases for the various styles of fresco paintings:    

Fresco Buono Fresco Succo Tempra Graffito.

Raja Mahal is the largest repository of frescoes within Orchha.

These paintings largely revolving around the epics of Mahabharata and Ramayana and also depict mundane scenes in the life of the royal kings of Bundelas.

Only Natural colours have been used in painting the murals at Orchha.

The pigment that been most widely used are red, orange, golden, yellow, green, white, brown and black. Elaborate preparation of the surface seems to have been done before the actual painting. Lime and shell powder were used for binding the surface wall, which was subsequently polished. The painting surface is about two to four mm thick.

CEILING ICONOGRAPHY As one enters through the bastion flanked door into the public wing of the Fort Complex, one finds the Diwan-i-Aam – a hall for the King to hold an audience with the public. As one enters into the semi-private realm where wall paintings occupy a place in fifteen of the rooms, the Diwan-i-Khaas (where the King held audience with people of the upper heirachy and courtesans) stands out due to its partly vaulted roof covered with vibrant frescoes of mythological and secular scenes.

The murals embellish the environs with myths and legends from Hindu mythology, along with secular scenes , geometrical patterns, floral designs and motifs. A particular and oft-repeated motif is the one which borrows from the typical Persian carpet.

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Though the subjects in the paintings are based on Hindu religion, one canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t help but acknowledge the influence of Mughal paintings as one looks at the styles of depiction of floral patterns and geometries in these paintings. The mute frescos, along bring alive the importance of literature, fine arts, music and architecture in the Bundela era. The elaborate fresco painting activity seems to have stretched across decades starting from one ruler and finishing descendants later.

Persian carpet motifs on the semi-vaulted roof of the Diwan-iKhaas.

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Murals depicting the life of the royals ●

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Mural of geometric patterns on the ceiling

Here, a double nine-leaf cusp arch is provided with the spandrel containing murals that have faded over time. Once again, arches are present in groups of odd numbers but unlike the Islamic style where the central arch is usually larger, here all arches are of the same size.

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Frescoes from the Raja Mahal.

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JAALI WORK Raja Mahal features typical Mughal style lattice work as shown:

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Some jaali work also acts as air shafts to redirect and focus air.

The inclined shafts act to redirect the wind.

This will be discussed in details later on.

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ARCHITECTURAL FUSION The Muslims had invaded India in 1192AD and brought with them a new architectural style â&#x20AC;&#x201C; one never seen before in India which then consisted of an entirely Hindu population. Slowly, Islamic style spread far and wide and the construction of arches became a common practice due to their ability to span long openings. Other than Orissa and the far south, there is scare any empire left which did not inculcate their idioms.

Here too we see several fusional elements, not only from the Sultanate period but also from Jain architecture as well. Let us take a look at some of them: While primarily a feature of Jain architecture, chhatris soon became ubiquitous in the Mughal style and was incorporated in the Raja Mahal as well. The dome here is placed on an elevated platform and is surrounded by 4 chattris in the corners â&#x20AC;&#x201C; reminiscent of the Saeed and Lodi period.

Another Jain inculcation is the presence of brackets in rhythmic formation along with the presence of straight eaves.

Lotus bud motifs are also present, lining several arches and parapets.

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EAVES

BRACKETS

Lotus bud motif Islamic eight sided star with flower in centre â&#x20AC;&#x201C; fusion of Hindu and Muslim Kanjura

Flower motifs on spandrel (Hindu)

Usually chhatris have domes above but in some chhatris in the complex we find the traditional Hindu kuta shrine with a square planform.

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The presence of arches, kanjura and jaalis is exclusively Islamic whereas chhatris and eaves are Jain, floral motifs are borrowed from Hinduism and the geometric patterns from the Mughals.

Here, seemingly double arches are present along with a granite lintel. While the true arch is visible from the interior, the external arch, while from afar looks like a cusp arch is not at arch at all but serpentine Jain brackets (made of granite) attached to the lintel and posts, which have been made to look like cusp arches. This feature is also enforced in Red Fort.

Figure 7: Main entrance to Raja Mahal

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TOILET FACILITIES The Raja Mahal was provided with toilet facilities, which ranged from regular toilets as well to an elaborate bath chamber or spa for the King. Placed at below ground level, fronted by an arch devoid of ornamentation, one passes through a dark alleyway and then reaches the toilets situated below. The toilets have proper drainage and ventilation shafts high up.

Drainage system>>

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The King, as demanded by his stature, had a separate bath-cum-spa for himself with slanted ventilators and water storage and heating facility.

The Kingâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Bath Chamber had two small catchments to store water, along with a central basin which had provisions for wood to be stoked in from the outside, thereby affording the King with warm water during his bath.

The ventilators were high up and slanted upwards.

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Here we see one of the catchments and the central water basin.

This is the external hearth through which a fire was lit under the basin and stoked, keeping the water warm.

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VAASTU AND SPATIAL INTERACTION

Following the ideals of vaastu, the entry is placed towards North East (Zone of Ishana – God of

Knowledge). The courtyards are in the shape of perfect square and contain platforms which can further be divided into grid forms. The courtyards are interspersed by a four storied building fronted by three equal cusp arches.

Above them, balconied windows allow ladies to watch the goings below.

There is a lack of clear-cut boundaries and transition is not from room to room but rather from one space to another – a reminiscent of the Fatehpur Sikri complex. In general, the structure is introverted with view from outside obstructed by slanted gills or jaali work. The entire palace revolves around the courtyard which acts like the transition from a much-mandapa to a mandapa and then to the five-storey building at the end – much like the planning of a Hindu temple.

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CONSTRUCTION TECHNIQUES The exposed brick work at the side of the structure where the plaster has peeled off indicates that the plinth of buildings was made of stone or rubble work set in mortar.

However the superstructure was composed of lighter materials like brick.

A panoramic view of the squinch indicates that traditional Islamic techniques were employed.

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The roof structure is formed by the interpenetration of two barrel vaults of unequal sizes perpendicular to each other. The system of roofing adopted marks a shift from the usual trabeated system. This system allowed the Diwan-i-Khaas to have vast expanses without columns.

Here we see granite columns at the edge of the floor slab supporting the eaves of a pavilion as the concept of brackets would not work here due to the absence of proper walls.

A trabeated system of beams rest on the columns and the eaves are places over the beam. The parapet walls too ate fixed to the granite columns.

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The ogee arches here are supported by granite stone piers. The central piers are the ones which experience the maximum amount of compressive stress, therefore stone piers are employed as they are good in compression.

Here at the central bracket the lime plaster has peeled off exhibiting the granite bracket placed within it.

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The dome over the chhatri here exhibits a method of construction unlike proper domes. Here were see the dome is developed by arranging arcs of bricks, one series after another.

The floors of the stairs are finished with stone slabs and the concept of nosing has been applied here.

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RAIN WATER HARVESTING Drainage in the form of rain water harvesting was an interesting technique adopted by the Bundelas.

Figure 8: A bird's eye view of the drainage scheme.

There are openings present on the edges of the parapet walls. The rainwater discharged out of the openings is deviated outwards by the slanting eaves so that they do not spoil the walls.

The ground floor courtyard has a level difference. Two exposed drains conduct the water from the upper level of courtyard into an underground drain located below the slab of this courtyard. This drain opens up into the courtyard located at the lower level. The water is finally collected into an underground storage tank located below the floor slab of the lower level courtyard. The underground storage tank is visible through the square openings present.

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Here in this picture we find, water from the roof discharged and collected in the first floor level courtyard and then again it is conducted by the same process to the ground level.

Picture of the drain located under the slab of the upper ground floor level courtyard which opens up at the lower level. >>

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<< Water collected from the roof conducted over the eaves through openings in the parapet, ●

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VENTILATION The overall plan of the Raja Mahal is based on two courtyards, hence the system of cross ventilation is prevalent all throughout. The palaces were fairly large superstructures then compared to its surroundings, therefore maintaining privacy as well as an efficient system of ventilation turned out to be a challenge. However, it is noteworthy that Orchha belonging to Madhya Pradesh experiences extremes of climate. Therefore large ventilations were never a good option. Hence, ventilations throughout the entire façade is provided in the form if small square openings. The small openings are provided near the ceilings to vent out the hot air which rises up from the floor.

The ventilation openings are provided at an angle and not perpendicular to the wall surface. This might be because of two reasons. Firstly, Slanted openings contribute to the privacy. Secondly, to get any view of the exterior from the interior without being seen.

The jail work cools the air entering the building. The jail windows too are placed in a slanted fashion so as to direct the air entering in a desired manner. ●

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The voids present here in the jaali work are slanted and converging. ●

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The centre ones are straight and the others by the sides becomes slanting in nature gradually. Hence, the windows are designed to capture winds from every direction possible.

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RAI PRAVEEN MAHAL

Constructed in honour of the ‘Nightingale of Orchha’, Rani Rai Praveen, this Mahal not only stands as testimony of her brilliant wit and quick feet but also contains an infusion of a story of the day – the tale of Rai Praveen, King Indrajit and the Mughal Emperor Akbar. The romance between courtesan Rai Praveen and King Indrajit has become something of lore, thanks to the works of poet Keshav Das. The paramour of Indrajit Singh, in whose court she performed, Rai Praveen was known for her enchanting beauty as well as for her flair in poetry and music. Stories of her fame spread far and wide until it reached the Imperial court of then Mughal King – Akbar. Akbar summoned her to his court and King Indrajit was too weak a ruler to offer any opposition. Hence Rai Praveen left Vinit Rai Praveen ki, suniye for Akbar’s court. sah sujan.

But once there, the witty Juthi patar bhakat hain, bari, courtesan spoke her way out by bayas, swan. narrating a couplet which roughly translates into: “O' good and intelligent! Please listen to the prayer of Rai Praveen.

Only bari (a low caste among Hindus), barber and cur Eat from a plate, food from which has been partaken by someone else.”

Realizing then implications and impressed by her word play, Akbar sent her back to Orchha where a rejoiced Indrajit Singh built the Rai Praveen Mahal to honour her loyalty.

Rich in murals, and wall paintings depicting various postures of Indian dance and capturing the various moods of Rai Praveen herself, the entire palace is characterized by light and air.

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Figure 9: The entrance of the compound of the Rai Praveen Mahal, designed to look like a maqsurah screen.

The Rai Praveen Mahal, nestled to the north of the Jahangir and Raja Mahal.

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The main features of this palace are: 1) Murals 2) Water System 3) Underground Cooling System Techniques of construction of the day and age were more or less similar for all structures built in that time span. Hence, let us discuss the special features of the Mahal one by one.

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MURALS A three storied structure, once resplendent with vibrant murals that have faded over time and blurred due to minimal restoration tell a tale within their walls. The second floor walls are contains nine murals of Rai Parveen in various â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Nritya Mudraâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; or dance postures.

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Other murals include men on horseback and leisure.

Lime and shell powder were used for binding the surface wall, which was subsequently polished. The painting surface is about two to four mm thick.

Colours used were natural and vivacious.

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WATER SYSTEM An ingenious water harvesting as well as drainage system is present which integrated itself with the famous â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Octagonal Gardenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;.

Upon entering, one is greeted by water channels.

Water channels transport water to the required place.

THE OCTAGONAL GARDEN: There is also the presence of a garden divided into octagonal sections with water channels running in between them. This was method devised to conduct the water to the plants growing in them. The water channels also had a slight gradient to prevent stagnation of water.

Though now in deplorable condition due to the clogging of dry leaves, not raked, it is still ahead of its time.

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Water channels Page | 44

Water is also supplied to a central pool via the channels.

There is also a fountain present just outside the Octagonal Garden and visible from the rooftop.

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UNDERGROUND COOLING SYSTEM For keeping the palace cool in the hot summers of the land locked district, the Rai Praveen Mahal was provided with an indigenous system of underground cooling system.

Thick walls, ventilator shafts placed high up and a central water collecting area characterize this leisure room.

The shafts slanted and opened into the depressed courtyard above.

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JAHANGIR MAHAL

Jahangir Mahal is one of the greatest historial places of India.

The mahal was built out by king Vir Singh Deo in the century.( The Raja Mahal and the fort was built in 16th century). Vir Singh Deo helped the Prince Jahangir his revolt against his father, the Mughal emperor Akbar. Akbar sent AbulFazi to orchha, but with the help of Vir Singh Deo , Jahangir won. After 3 years when Akbar died Jahangir decided to give Bundelkhand to Vir Singh. Jahangir also came to Bundelkhand inVir Singh coronation. So, Raja Vir Singh Deo constructed the Jahangir mahal to show the gratitude. It was also known as “Raja Mahal” as it served as the palace of Madhukar Shah’s wife.

ARCHITECTURE This palace was built by Raja Vir Singh Deo in years 1605 -1626.

-Square of 220 ft each side.

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-Central courtyard with side of 67.6m each.

-136 rooms decorated with wall painting.

-three storied palace.

-red and yellow sand stone used as a material.

-Chamfered Ashlar masonary is in used to construct the building.

-Influence of the both Hindu and Islamic Arch.

-Plastered with thick lime and surki plaster.

ENTRANCE The main entry gates of Jahangir mahal was from the ShahiDarwaja of the fort complex. It is because may be back that time the Betwa river was means of communication. A path from ShahiDarwaja leads to the ceremonial gateway east of the Jahangir mahal.

The Iwan is so big that elephants could have entered. The steps were also provided according to the elephant and camel anthropometry. In front of the ceremonial gateway there was the camel stable or unthkhana. The ceremonial gateway was decorated wih both stone and metal work. The ornamental works on the gateway was influenced by both Page | 48

Hindu and Islamic arch and little by Buddhist arch.

The ornamentation consisted of pure geometry as well as the animal figures and murals.

There was also an secondary entry on the west faรงade from the courtyard in the front of the Sheesh Mahal which leads to the Kateela Darwaza accessed by the staircase.

ARCHITECTURAL FEATURES Architectural Style: The Blending The Jahangir Mahal represents the blending of the Bundela school of Architecture and the Islamic Architecture. The palace has influence of both styles in every construction techniques used. This may be due to the workmanship of the Hindu workers or maybe it is designed as it is to represent friendship through the amalgamation of two styles.

COLUMNS -There were columns of square base the octagonal shaft which represent the Hindu columns where as there were some columns.

-There were columns with geometric patterns ornamented on it which represents the Islamic columns.

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ARCHES -True arches and ogee arches are found which is usually used as a Islamic technique to construct arches.

-The Hindu trabeated arches and lead arches can also be observed.

BRACKETS Brackets are used as used structural supporting member line cantilever beam.

-The whole courtyard of the Jahangir mahal was decorted with the Rajput brackets which consist of elephants carved on it, even the ceremonial gateway has those brackets with peacock and elephants carved on it.

- There were Islamic brackets also used in colonnade pathway.

-The serpentine brackets are also used in some of chhatri which represents the Jain Architecture.

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ORNAMENTATION -The paintings done on the roof of some of the room were known as the famous Mughals paintings. The ornamented stone work “ Pietra Dura “ in the

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chhatris , chabutarahs and the courtyard and at the external walls is a representation of Islamic architecture.

-The geometrical Jaliworks , patterns , and the geometrically shaped roof also represents the Islamic Arch.

-There was lotus bud motif in the ceremonial gate way which represent. The Buddhist Architecture .

In conclusion to the blending of the Architectural styles there was not only

Hindu & Islamic Architecture. It was also due other architectural styles had a influence over the construction of Jahangir Mahal.

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FEATURES DOMES: There were different types of domes in the palace.

-The smaller domes on the smaller chhatriswas a square plan form.

-There were four other types domes on the large chhatris.

-There were chhatris at the exterior side of the buildings was hexagonal plan form.

-The domes with squares plan form but not the true dome , they had a their corner tapered in a curvature.

- The domes octagonal plan form were also available.

-The domes with rectangular plan form, these are also have their corners domes. They also Page | 53

have theirs corners tapered in a curvature. They also have finials where as other have only one.

-The largest domes were of sixteen- sided polygonal base domes. They also had two types one is the true dome.

-Other one is the fluted ones in the four corners of the palace.

CHHATRIS The classification of chhatris was based on: 1. No. of finials.

2. Plan form.

3. Nature of dome.

There were two types of chhatris based on the no. of finials.

1. There were chhartris with one finials on the corners of the domes and the corners of the building.

2. The chhatris with two finials were in the middle of the pathways.

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Also three types of chhatris based on the plan form 1. Square plan form.

2. Rectangular plan form.

3. Hexagonal plan form.

Two types of chhatris based on the nature of the dome.

1. True dome.

2. Dome tapered in curvature.

Chhatris had long eaves for the splashing of rain water and for the shading.

There were chhatris covered on 3- sides with jali work and supported by serpentine brackets.

JAALIWORKS There are several types of jaaliworks on the Jahangir Mahal at colonnade pathway pathways , balconies , courtyard.

Classification of the jaaliwork is on two different approache:.

1. Materials.

2. Pattern of jaali.

Classification based on materials 1. Some jaaliworks were made up of stone they were of basically simple pattern.

2.

Some jaaliworks were made up of metal which were more detailed , very precise and decorative.

Classifications based on pattern of jaali.

1.

2.

The jaalis with geometric pattern.

The jaalis with decorative motifs.

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SHADING TECHNIQUES According to the climate of Madhya Pradesh, which is hot and humid, the direct exposure to the sun in hot summer days is vulnerable. So, the application of shading devices are very much important as the design aspect is considered.

-The long eaves are generally used as the shading devices. Long inclined eaves supported by brackets were used to get the maximum shading.

-But the ultimate designing efficiency in this comes from the way the architect put the blocks around the courtyard. The building so designed that partly the courtyard and the terraces partly remains shades during the whole day and the pathways in the topmost are covered partially which prevents from the direct exposure to sunlight. The palace designed that the rooms inside the buildings stay cooler in the hottest days outside.

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SHADING TECHNIQUES

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ROOFING TECHNIQUES Roofing techniques can be classified into two types: 1. Vaulted roof.

2. Flat roof supported by brackets.

3. Flat roof supported by wooden beams.

Various reasons can be theorized for each, as follow: - Vaulted roofs are used in case of rooms, for larger spans of the roofs which were decorated by Mughal paintings.

- Flat roof supported by brackets & columns were not capable carrying longer spans, used in pathways.

- Flat roof supported by wooden beams were used at ground floor to support cover the rooms.

VENTILATION The palace is situated on the bank of Betwariver , so shorter openings or jaliworks could have wider openings on the side of courtyard. So , all the hotter wind accumulated in Page | 58

courtyard creates a low pressure zone and the cooler wind with humidity from the river comes to the courtyard is also provided with a splash pool which can provide humidity which will make the process more faster. Thus the design of the ventilation is done by the circulation, and replacement of hotter air with cooler air.

The hot and dry climate of Orchha has the great impact on the desiging of the palace, Jahangir Mahal.

RAINWATER HARVESTING The palace being in a hot and dry climate, the rain is less that harvesting is not that efficient. But palace has the system. On the terraces the drainage system that leads to the courtyard has the two openings where the slope of the courtyard leads toward. After that the water goes to the central plash pool through the water channels. The water channels had the vent pipe for the free circulation of water. On the terraces, the water channels end up with a extension which controls the steady water flow.

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RAINWATER HARVESTING SYSTEM

View and explanation of the central rainwater harvesting facility.

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SANITATION: There were latrines provides at the second floor of the palace, it means they had a great sanitation sewer system developed which can afford this.

PRIVACY AND SECURITY The Jahangir palace is within the Orchha fort complex which is fortified enclosed within a fort and only connection is a bridge which leads to Kateela Darwaza .the complex had their Tope Khana and the walls of the complex were punctured in several directions for attacking stealthily. The Jahangir palace also has their own setup cannons for protection from attacks.

HIGHER PLINTH & ESCAPE ROUTE The plinth of the palace was almost one storey high. The plinth had escape route leading to the Shahi Darwza in case of emergency. Ventilation is also provide through the holes to this route.

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ANTHROPOMETRY The anthropometry is so done that standard human clearance dimensions was not available. So , it might be so designed in any case of external attacks, the prosecutions can be controlled to the one- man way and the attacker will get killed on the way upstairs due to the slow rate of movement. Though it is not so acceptable for domestic movement, it ensures the security of the palace.

So , it can be concluded that the design of the Jahangir mahal according to the context was very efficient and even the structure so stable that it is still standing tall and strong.

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CONCLUSION Hidden amidst various gems in our vast country, it is easy for a person to overlook this ‘hidden treasure’ nestled on the banks of the Betwa River that has over time changed its course.

While not being on everybody’s travel route or destination, the winding lanes and thick walls tell an age old story – the walls truly speak, the paintings bring scenes to life and the dusty evenings silhouetting the Laxmi Narayan Temple provide one with a new experience all together.

Our short trip to Orchha was very enjoyable, certainly increased by the light show that is hosted at end of everyday against the arcades of the Diwan-iAam. The barrage of lights followed by the lullaby of the tale of the Bundela Kings, their clandestine affairs, stories of loyalty, love, war and alliance – all within the confines of a small, overlooked city with people as helping as simple their lifestyles, is something everybody must experience at least once in their life.

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WORD OF THANKS The assigned tour for the session of 2016 at Madhya Pradesh under the guidance of Prof. Arup Sarkar was a very enjoyable and enlightening journey.

The trip was full of excitement, exercise and informative knowledge, along with the constant counselling of Sir regarding the historical heritage and cultural practice of the corresponding.

Via this tour have we all got to bear the knowledge of Medieval Architecture of India, simultaneously knowing all its prospects in the evolving of Modern Architecture. For this, we would all like to thank our respected faculty Prof. Arup Sarkar for the organisation of such a memorable and knowledgeable expedition.

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CONTRIBUTORS SOURA MANNA SAMBADITYA MITRA RITTIKA BOSE SHREYASI NEOGI SOURAV SUMAN KIRTI RAJ KHALKHO NAYANIKA DEY SOURADEEP PAL SAKSHI SINGH ARITRA GHOSH VAIBHAV SINGH L. MALEMGANBA SINGH LONGMEI SUMIT

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