Speaking Archaeologically™

When we hear the name Shaniwar Wada the first thing that comes to our mind is the movie Bajirao Mastani and the majestic structure it portrayed, but sadly, it's not what we imagine it to be except some ruins that stand witness to a glorious past. A fire in 1827 that lasted for 15 days destroyed the fort. Before going to the fort I read a little about it and thus I was prepared to see fort in a hopeless condition, but really it wasn't so.  The entrance to the fort was the Dilli Darwaza,  which was intact and relatively in a very good shape, the huge iron door which was built to stand almost anything did what it was meant to do and survived the fire. As soon as I entered the huge iron gate, the inside of the gate the situation changed and the sorry state of the monument was revealed, with the fresco almost fading and the wall plaster falling off. There was a ticket booth or two, I can't seem to remember considering I had been there almost a month ago. When I turned t

               The Forest Research Institute (FRI) provides for a delightful visit on a sultry afternoon of June. FRI is a premier institute of forestry research in India, located in Dehradun, Uttrakhand. It was founded in 1876 as British Imperial Forest School and later re established in 1908 as the Imperial Forest Research Institute. Styled in the Greeko Roman architecture, the building was inaugurated in 1929 by Viceroy Willingdon and now stands as a National Heriatge Site. The Institute is one of its kind and has six museums within its circumference.  Upon entering the premises, one encounters various housing complexes of the IFS officers as well the students of the university of FRI. The greenscape provided a wave of relief from the summer heat of Dehra. The task of covering the museums soon began. M1 : PATHOLOGY MUSEUM This section dealt with the effects of various rot and fungus on  the trees as well as the diseases of poplar and other Indian trees. Samples of vari

The chills one feels when someone visits a mesmerizing  place! That's how I felt when I went for an Indo-Saracenic Revival and Art competition that Government Degree College, Kandaghat organised in their premises in collaboration with Speaking  Archaeologically.  Kandaghat is an idyllic little sleepy town,  situated near Solan in Himachal Pradesh, so picturesque that it took my heart away. It its very heart, it holds a beautiful building constructed  by Maharaja Patiala that combines Mughal, Rajputana and Mock-Tudor  styles of architecture-something that is defined as Indo Saracenic Architecture, an outcome of the British Rule in India. Maharaja Patiala built this for his ailing Uncle, Maharaja Dhaulpur of Malerkotla, when the latter was detected with tuberculosis. For the last few years, the building was left neglected and was set to be demolished to construct a College in its place but the Principal of the College, Mrs  Navita Gautam and the Team of Speaking