Orchha is small hidden gem in MP, which in all probability you would not have heard of.It is the second capital city of Bundelas and had flourished in early 17th century. Like most kingdoms, Orchha is the cornerstone of legacy left by the Bundela dynasty.It is small town that you can cover mostly on foot, but what is amazing is the fact that the town exists among the palaces and temples. So from wherever you are, you get to see the beautiful chataris, which are typical of the local architecture, creating a beautiful skyline, making it picture perfect. Orchha has palaces, fort, temples, samadhis in form of chhataris, beautiful Betwa River, a nature reserve and interesting stories. All the buildings give a kind of burnt look, as if the heat of central plains of India has left its marks on the buildings.
The most visited places in Orchha are Raja Mahal and Jehangir Mahal. Raja Mahal built by the Bundela king Madhukar Shah, is relatively simple externally, but has some exquisite paintings in the bedrooms of King and the main queen Kunwar Ganeshi. The legend has that the King was the worshipper of Lord Krishna while the queen was a devotee of Lord Rama. She dreamt of making a temple of Rama in Orchha and she went all the way to Ayodhya to get Lord Rama. She sat on the banks of river Saryu in Ayondhya and finally lord Ram came to her in the form of a small kid. As she tried to get him to Orchha, Rama had few conditions like she will have to take him to Orchha on foot, and wherever she keeps him in Orchha first he will stay there and not move from there. It took the queen some 12 years to get the idol from Ayodhaya to Orchha, while the king engaged in building a huge temple that would be visible from the queen’s bedroom. When the queen reached Orchha, the temple was still not complete, so she kept the idol in the palace kitchen and thought she would shift it to the new temple when it is completed. But she forgot the condition that Rama had put, and when the temple was complete and the queen tried to shift the idol, the idol refused to move. So the kitchen was converted into the temple and the new temple was dedicated to Lord Vishnu, and is now known as Chaturbhuj temple. Looks like in all eras it was the lady of the house who decided the faith to follow. People in Orchha worship Ram in form of king and believe him to be the King of Orchha. They believe that Ram comes to Orchha every morning and goes back to Ayodhya every evening. Both the temple and the Raja Mahal are preserved as they are not very old, but they could definitely be far cleaner than they are.
A new museum, Saaket, showcasing the different forms of paintings from across India is being built by Adiwasi Lok kala academy. This is located in what was once the Baarood Khana of the fort. As of now it has Madhubani of Bihar, Chitrakathi of Maharashtra, Kalamkari and Cheriyal Pattam of Andhra, Patua of West Bengal and Patta of Orrissa. All of these depict the scenes from Ramayan, glorifying the reigning deity of the town, Lord Rama.
Jehangir Mahal is a palace that was built for mughal king Jehangir, who visited Orchha for a day and stayed in this 236 roomed palace along with his troops. It took 22 years to build this place where the guests stayed only for a day. There was a sheesh mahal also that was a part of this palace, which has been converted into a hotel now. Jehangir mahal has been built in a fusion mode and depicts motifs that can be attributed to Hinduism as well as Islam. Walls have been painted using blue and green color representing the two religions and depicting the co-existence of these faiths in the times of Bundelas. The carvings on the sandstone doors and around the structure are all a mix of two types of architecture. While the domes are round in shape like Islamic buildings, but on top of that you would find lotus and peacocks representing Hinduism. The co-existence of both signs can be seen all around the structure. From the top floor of this 3 storied building you can get a view of the town of Orchha and also see the extent of the fort all around, along with some ruined buildings and Rai Praveen Mahal, which was a palace dedicated to the legendary dancer of the kingdom. From the top you can see the dancing platform where she used to regularly perform.
There is Lakshami temple, which is built very interestingly in the shape of an Owl, a rectangular temple which looks triangular from most angles as the main entrance is placed on one of the corners of the rectangle. There are some of the most amazing paintings of Orchha that are painted on the walls and roofs of the galleries of this temple. There are paintings made with vegetable colors and there are scratch paintings, which are made by scratching a pre-painted wall, usually done in red and white color. The paintings depict scenes from Ramayana, Mahabharata, lives of local kings and scenes from India’s first freedom struggle in 1857, indicating that the temple paintings were updated regularly by the local kings. Climb on top of this temple and you would get the view of Orchha through its delicate arches, again making it a picture perfect view. Do not miss the beak of owl on top of the entrance gate, built to make temple look like an owl, a vehicle of Goddess Lakshami.
The chhataris on the banks of River Betwa are the samadhis of Bundela kings and their families. This is the only place where I have seen samadhis of Hindu kings, and typically built in a variation of tombs. Most of the chhatris are 3 storied and built in Panchayatan style with peaks built in Nagar style of temple architecture. There are palaces, temples and baithaks dedicated to the Bundela kinsman Hardaul, who committed suicide to prove his innocence in an alleged affair with his elder brother’s wife. I met a woman who comes there and worships outside his temple everyday from morning to evening and believes that anyone who prays to Hardaul, gets anything that he or she wishes for.
Something that guide books never mention about Orchha is the nature trails that exist on the other side of Betwa. You can cross Betwa through a low bridge built on it, which you can walk on almost as you walk out of the town. There are various small trails that you can take and walk across the jungle, through Orchha nature reserve. There is river rafting also conducted by the MP tourism on Betwa, though I could not see much white water around the town, but probably they take you somewhere where there is some.
If you like history, picturesque locations, riverside and a bit of nature and hospitality, you must visit Orchha...
The most visited places in Orchha are Raja Mahal and Jehangir Mahal. Raja Mahal built by the Bundela king Madhukar Shah, is relatively simple externally, but has some exquisite paintings in the bedrooms of King and the main queen Kunwar Ganeshi. The legend has that the King was the worshipper of Lord Krishna while the queen was a devotee of Lord Rama. She dreamt of making a temple of Rama in Orchha and she went all the way to Ayodhya to get Lord Rama. She sat on the banks of river Saryu in Ayondhya and finally lord Ram came to her in the form of a small kid. As she tried to get him to Orchha, Rama had few conditions like she will have to take him to Orchha on foot, and wherever she keeps him in Orchha first he will stay there and not move from there. It took the queen some 12 years to get the idol from Ayodhaya to Orchha, while the king engaged in building a huge temple that would be visible from the queen’s bedroom. When the queen reached Orchha, the temple was still not complete, so she kept the idol in the palace kitchen and thought she would shift it to the new temple when it is completed. But she forgot the condition that Rama had put, and when the temple was complete and the queen tried to shift the idol, the idol refused to move. So the kitchen was converted into the temple and the new temple was dedicated to Lord Vishnu, and is now known as Chaturbhuj temple. Looks like in all eras it was the lady of the house who decided the faith to follow. People in Orchha worship Ram in form of king and believe him to be the King of Orchha. They believe that Ram comes to Orchha every morning and goes back to Ayodhya every evening. Both the temple and the Raja Mahal are preserved as they are not very old, but they could definitely be far cleaner than they are.
A new museum, Saaket, showcasing the different forms of paintings from across India is being built by Adiwasi Lok kala academy. This is located in what was once the Baarood Khana of the fort. As of now it has Madhubani of Bihar, Chitrakathi of Maharashtra, Kalamkari and Cheriyal Pattam of Andhra, Patua of West Bengal and Patta of Orrissa. All of these depict the scenes from Ramayan, glorifying the reigning deity of the town, Lord Rama.
Jehangir Mahal is a palace that was built for mughal king Jehangir, who visited Orchha for a day and stayed in this 236 roomed palace along with his troops. It took 22 years to build this place where the guests stayed only for a day. There was a sheesh mahal also that was a part of this palace, which has been converted into a hotel now. Jehangir mahal has been built in a fusion mode and depicts motifs that can be attributed to Hinduism as well as Islam. Walls have been painted using blue and green color representing the two religions and depicting the co-existence of these faiths in the times of Bundelas. The carvings on the sandstone doors and around the structure are all a mix of two types of architecture. While the domes are round in shape like Islamic buildings, but on top of that you would find lotus and peacocks representing Hinduism. The co-existence of both signs can be seen all around the structure. From the top floor of this 3 storied building you can get a view of the town of Orchha and also see the extent of the fort all around, along with some ruined buildings and Rai Praveen Mahal, which was a palace dedicated to the legendary dancer of the kingdom. From the top you can see the dancing platform where she used to regularly perform.
There is Lakshami temple, which is built very interestingly in the shape of an Owl, a rectangular temple which looks triangular from most angles as the main entrance is placed on one of the corners of the rectangle. There are some of the most amazing paintings of Orchha that are painted on the walls and roofs of the galleries of this temple. There are paintings made with vegetable colors and there are scratch paintings, which are made by scratching a pre-painted wall, usually done in red and white color. The paintings depict scenes from Ramayana, Mahabharata, lives of local kings and scenes from India’s first freedom struggle in 1857, indicating that the temple paintings were updated regularly by the local kings. Climb on top of this temple and you would get the view of Orchha through its delicate arches, again making it a picture perfect view. Do not miss the beak of owl on top of the entrance gate, built to make temple look like an owl, a vehicle of Goddess Lakshami.
The chhataris on the banks of River Betwa are the samadhis of Bundela kings and their families. This is the only place where I have seen samadhis of Hindu kings, and typically built in a variation of tombs. Most of the chhatris are 3 storied and built in Panchayatan style with peaks built in Nagar style of temple architecture. There are palaces, temples and baithaks dedicated to the Bundela kinsman Hardaul, who committed suicide to prove his innocence in an alleged affair with his elder brother’s wife. I met a woman who comes there and worships outside his temple everyday from morning to evening and believes that anyone who prays to Hardaul, gets anything that he or she wishes for.
Something that guide books never mention about Orchha is the nature trails that exist on the other side of Betwa. You can cross Betwa through a low bridge built on it, which you can walk on almost as you walk out of the town. There are various small trails that you can take and walk across the jungle, through Orchha nature reserve. There is river rafting also conducted by the MP tourism on Betwa, though I could not see much white water around the town, but probably they take you somewhere where there is some.
If you like history, picturesque locations, riverside and a bit of nature and hospitality, you must visit Orchha...
