Sajjangarh Palace, Udaipur

 Sajjangarh Palace, Udaipur

Situated on the outskirts of Udaipur on a hill, Sajjangarh Palace is a former royal residence of the Mewar dynasty, which ruled the place for centuries. The palace complex is named after its patron Maharana Sajjan Singh, who commissioned and built the structure in 1884. It was originally intended as a nine-storey astronomical observatory to observe and assess the arrival and patterns of the monsoon clouds, which could be easily seen from the palace as it is located at a strategic vantage point on one of the hilltops of the Aravalli range, Bansdara Peak. It is for this reason that it earned the name Monsoon Palace. It would also have provided employment opportunities for the subjects.

However, due to the untimely death of Maharana Sajjan Singh, this did not materialise. His successor Maharana Fateh Singh transformed it into a place of recreation. During his tenure and thereafter, the Monsoon Palace was mainly used as a hunting lodge for the royal family of Mewar and their guests. The Sajjangarh Palace remains true to the contemporary style of the period and features fascinating Rajput architecture with tall towers, turrets, balconies and pillars. It even had the facility to collect rainwater using unique scientific techniques.

The Monsoon Palace is surrounded by the Sajjangarh Wildlife Sanctuary, which is home to numerous indigenous and exotic plants and animals. The slopes of the hill on which the palace stands are covered with dense forests that are part of the sanctuary. These areas were once the favourite hunting grounds of the Mewar kings and the palace served as their hunting lodge. Whether you go on a safari or a trek, chances are you will come across some of the forest's wild inhabitants, such as tigers, panthers, jackals, nilgais, sambhar and barking deer, hyenas, wild boars and various species of birds.

The Monsoon Palace is open seven days a week from 8am to 6pm.

Rickshaws and taxis charge around INR 200-300 to ferry passengers up the 4km road to the Sajjangarh Sanctuary gate. To get there, you can take several forms of public and private transport from Udaipur town, just 5 km away.

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