Shekhawati Haveli Paintings

Shekhawati describes a district, or nizamat, of the pre-Independence kingdom of Dhundar or Jaipur. This region was ruled by descendants of the 15th century Rajput baron, Rao Shekha, who were known as Shekhawats. It is covered by the two modern districts of Jhunjhunu and Sikar. Churu district lay in the neighbouring kingdom of Bikaner, but its nearest towns to the north and west, although never part of Shekhawati, contain similar painted buildings.
Shekhawati was established by the Shekhawati Rajputs who ruled over their little kingdom right until the day of independence. The region was divided into several parts called Thikanas, each of which was ruled by a Rajput Rao. Each ruler went about setting up a fort and palaces within his kingdom, which eventually resulted in a cluster of fabulous structures concentrated in a relatively smaller part of the state. The settlement of rich merchants and traders additionally ensured the building of magnificent living quarters with richly painted interiors and exteriors in traditional Rajasthani colors and style. And today, in spite of little to no govt aid, these crumbling homes with their exquisite murals are the toast of the region and are responsible for the increasing multitude of visitors who stop by every year.

Almost every village in the region boasts of fabulously painted havelis and architecture so it becomes quite difficult for a casual traveler to pick where to go or what to see. We asked several people (a shekhawati mixture of locals, hotel staff and on-line travel advisers) and got varied answers on what was ‘best’ in the area. In the end, we randomly picked a few villages for visit and left the rest for another time.

The bus from Bikaner dropped us off in the village of Mandawa where we stayed for 2 nights. It is the most tourist-friendly town of the region and has several hotels, including the gorgeous Castle Mandawa. We stayed at the more budget-friendly Heritage Mandawa, which is a restored haveli with paintings covering every inch of its interior and exterior walls. It was our first introduction to Shekhawati paintings and we loved it. So we spent the rest of the day enjoying the haveli and ventured out only the next morning in a cab rented for the day.