ARCHITECTURE AND PLANNING OF JAIPUR

BY : DEEPAK KUMAR SINGH SAUMYA KOHLI

Sushant school of art and architecture

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• Jaipur lies at a distance of about 200 miles from Delhi, 150 miles from Agra and 84 miles from Ajmer.

• located amidst the Aravali hill ranges at an altitude of about 430 m above sea level.• Latitude – 26 55’ ; Longitude – 75 50’• The current district of Jaipur lies in Eastern Rajasthan, in the Banas River basin and forms a part of

Eastern Plain of Rajasthan.• The eastern Rajasthan, lying to the east and south east of the Aravalli divide includes the modern

administrative districts of – Udaipur, Chittorgarh, Rajsamand, Banswara, Dungarpur, Kota, Bundi, Baran, Jhalawar, Bhilwara, Ajmer, Jaipur, Tonk, Dausa, Dholpur, Karauli, Bharatpur and Alwar.

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/jaipur-history.jpg

• 10th century onwards : the district Dhoondhar formed one of the four distinguishable politico-cultural regions of Eastern Rajasthan, in addition to Mewat, Hadauti and Mewar.

• Dhoondhar region was roughly comprised of current districts of Jaipur, Dausa and Tonk, with Jaipur and Amber further constituting Dhoondhar subzone within the larger tract of Dhoondhar region.

• The region was held by Badgujars, Rajputs and Minas till the 11th century.

• From the 11th century onwards, however, the Dhoondhar region was increasingly under the power of Kachchwaha dynasty of Rajputs.

• Sawai Jai Singh II (1700 – 1743) from the Kachchwaha dynasty established the city of Jaipur and strengthened the boundaries of Dhoondhar.

The three main capitals of the Dhoondhar Region under the Kachchwahas – Dausa, Amber and Jaipur.

Raja Sawai Jai Singh

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/jaipur-history-2.jpg

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REASONS FOR MAHARAJA SAWAI JAI SINGH TO CHANGE HIS CAPITAL FROM

AMBER TO JAIPUR (1727)

MILITARY REASONS• Defence• A site at the South of Amber ensured greater

distance from Delhi. • the out skirting hill ranges (Nahargarh hills)

shaped as a horseshoe would allow the new city to expand only in the South.

• It was an open plain bounded on the north-west and east by hills.

GEOGRAPHICAL REASONS• The rocky terrain of Amber restricted

expansion.• Jaipur had the potentialities of developing into a

city with adequate drinking water due to the presence of a perennial stream nearby and good drainage system.

• Its rugged hills also ensured a constant supply of building material.

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/site-selection.jpg

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/graphical-reason.jpg

TWO SIGNIFICANT FACTS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ORIGIN OF THE CITY AND ITS SUBSEQUENT LAYOUT: • The need of a new capital for 18th century Dhoondhar

as the earlier one of Amber built on a hill was getting congested.

• Sawai Raja Jai Singh’s vision of the new capital as a strong political statement at par with Mughal cities and as a thriving trade and commerce hub for the region.

The site with the natural east west ridge and the surrounding forts as defense feature

SITE : a valley located south of Amber and the plains beyond, a terrain that was the bed of a dried lake ; dense forest cover to the north and the east of the site.

PHYSICAL CONSTRAINTS : hills on the north that housed the

fort of Jaigarh and the Amber palace beyond, and the hills on the east, which contained the sacred spot of Galtaji.

WATER SUPPLY : the Darbhavati river in the north was

dammed to create the Jai Sagar and Man Sagar (that later housed the Jal Mahal) lakes. Later the Jhotwara River in the north west was diverted through the Amani Shah Nallah and a number of canals were channelised through Brahmapuri and Jai Niwas to supply water to the city.

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/graphical-reason-1.jpg

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/graphical-reason-2.jpg

• The medieval towns of Rajasthan were of military, agrarian, mercantile or religious nature. • The presence of a deity marked the reference point for the ruler’s abode and the rest of the city.• The name of the town was usually associated with the political or religious centre (with the

Ambikeshwar temple in the case of Amber and with Sawai Jai Singh in the case of Jaipur).

The hill town of Dausa with an organic layout guided by the topography

Amber Town with the Fort on top of the hill and the walled town down the slopes

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/dausa-2.png

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Unlike Dausa and Amber, the two previous capital cities of the Dhoondhar region established on hill-top, whose planning was guided by topographical structure of the areas, Jaipur city was revolutionary both in terms of its grid-iron pattern planning and its location at the base of the hills.

There was also a significant economic shift from an agricultural base in Dausa and Amber to trading in the capital of Jaipur.

The layout of the city of Jaipur wonderfully links the concept of a Shastric city with the practicalities of the chosen site.

First, the straight line of the ridge suggested itself as the route for one of the main east-west thorough fares and building a road along its crest makes best possible use of the topography for the purpose of drainage.

What followed then was to regularize the Amber-Sanganer road as a north-south route at right angles to it.

The point of intersection would be one of the city’s main cross-roads (chaupar)

PLANNING OF THE CITY

The intersection of the axes to define the Badi Chaupar (City Square).

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/int-1.jpg

A road cutting the plain from N to S linking Amber,the capital to Sanganer, the principal trading town. This road had to be preserved and controlled and therefore had to fall within the city’s boundaries

A second road ran E to W between the Mughal cities of Agra and Ajmer and placing the new city on this already established communication line would help secure its economic success. However since this was an imperial road that could not be encroached on, thus the city had to be contained to the north of this line.

Also, a natural ridge runs across the plain, N of the road and parallel to it, in a roughly EW alignment (with a slight deviation of15 deg. from the cardinal axes). The area to its S is flat while that to its N slopes down gently. In Shastric terms, this is an ideal arrangement as declivity towards the north-east Is considered the best site. In practical terms, the ridge too had to be accommodated

Ends of the roads marked by Gates in the City Wall

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/int-2.jpg

CONCEPTUAL PRASTARA PLAN

Vaastu purusha mandala

prastara

It is a model of town planning the first planned city in India. It is based on Hindu systems of town planning and followed the principles prescribed in the Shilpa-shastra, an ancient Indian treatise on architecture .according to this shastra the site should be divided into grids or mandalas ranging from 2x 2 to 10 x 10.

Planned according to the Prastara type of layout, which gives prominence to the cardinal directions.

Thus plan of jaipur is a grid of 3x3 with gridlines being the city’s main streets.

Source:http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/int-2.jpg

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Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/conceptual-prastara-plan-3.png

The central axis of the town was laid from East to West between the gates of the Sun(Suraj pol) and the moon(Chandpol) .

This was crossed by two roads at right angles dividing the town into nine almost square, almost equally sized blocks, which were further sub divided by lanes and alleys all at right angles.

By building the western boundary of the city right up to the hill’s southern apex, it provided a continuous line of defense.

The mandala could not be complete in the NW due to the presence of the hills. On the other hand in the SE an extra square has been added that plugged the gap between the city

and the eastern hills.

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/mandala-1.jpg Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/mandala-2.jpg

1. RAMCHANDRASI2. GANGAPOI CHAUKRI3. TALKATORA4. TOPKHANA HAZURI5. PURANI BASTI6. TOPKHANA DESH7. MODI KHANA / VISHESHWARJI8. GHAT DARWAZA 9. PALACE

South of the main road were four almost equal rectangles. The rectangle opposite the palace has been broken up into two equal and smaller rectangles by the Chaura Rasta.Thus altogether there are now five rectangles on the south of the main road called Chowkris.

On the North of the main road from West to East are the Purani Basti, the Palace and Ramchandraji.

The principal bazaar leads from the western gate in the city wall, The Chandpole, passing in front of the Tripolia Gate, to the eastern city gate, the Surajpole.

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/masonry-wall.jpg

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/equal-rectangles.jpg

• The palace building covered two blocks, the town six and the remaining ninth block was not usable on account of steep hills. So this North-West ward was transferred to the South-East corner of the city, making the shape of the plan as a whole asymmetrical rather than square.

• The city’s division into nine wards was also in conformity with the Hindu caste system, which necessitated the segregation of people belonging to different communities and ranks.

• Even the lanes were named after the occupations of inhabitants such as Maniharon ka Rasta, Thatheron ka Rasta & many others.

• Following the directions of the Hindu Shilpa shastra, width of the main streets & other lanes were fixed. Thus the main streets of the city were 111ft. wide, secondary streets 55 ft. wide & the smaller ones 27ft. wide.

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/masonry-wall-1.jpg

URBAN FORM AND ARCHITECTURAL IDENTITY

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/urban-form.jpg

WHY PINK?

Jaipur is known as the Pink City, a rather idealized description of the terra-cotta-colored lime plaster that coats the old part of the city's walls, buildings, and temples.

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The reasons for painting the town pink are unknown, but various theories have been tossed about:

• using pink to cut down glare

• Jai Singh II's apparent devotion to Lord Shiva (whose favorite color is reputedly terra cotta).

• Others believe Singh wanted to imitate the color of the sandstone used in the forts and palaces of his Mughal emperor-friends.

• The most popular reason (spread no doubt by "Britishers" during the Raj era) is that pink is the traditional color of hospitality, and the city was freshly painted and paved with pink gravel to warmly welcome Edward VII for his visit here in 1876.

ROAD NETWORK• Jaipur’s road network follows a definite hierarchy. The major east-west and north-south road ,form

the sector boundaries and are called Rajmarg as they lead to the city gates. These measure 33m. wide.

• Next there is a network of 16.5m wide which runs north-south in each sector linking the internal areas of the sectors to the major activity spine.

• An orthogonal grid of 8.25mx4.00m roads in the prastara-chessboard pattern further divide sectors into Mohallas.

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/road-network.png

PUBLIC SPACES

Chaupars Bazaars

Mohallas

Streets

Temples

CONCEPTUAL PLAN - CHAUPAR

• a square that occurs at the intersection of east west roads with three north south roads.• 100m x 100m• used for public gathering on festive occasions• The distance between two chaupars is about 700m which is ideal for pedestrian movement. • It has controlled façade treatment enveloping it.

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/conceptual-plan-chaupar.png

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/road-network.png

STREETSCAPES AND CHOWKS

View of a main bazaar street - the width of the main roads was kept 39 1/4 gaz - 108 feet, secondary roads are half this size - 54 feet, the tertiary roads are 27 feet and the inner mohalla streets are 13 feet wide.

View of a chaupar today

• The main markets, havelis and temples on the main streets in Jaipur were constructed by the state in the 18th century, thus ensuring that a uniform street facade is maintained. The widths of roads were predetermined.

• Junctions of the main axial streets formed the two square civic open spaces called chaupars (Badi chaupar and Chhoti chaupar). The width of the square chaupars was three times that of the main street.

• Historically, the chaupars were outlets for intense social use with water structures connected by underground aqueducts, supplying numerous sources of drinking water at street level. Presently, the centre of each chaupar has square enclosures with ornamental fountains.

• The streets and chowks (central open squares in a town) of the internal chowkries (sectors) with numerous clusters or mohallas were not predetermined; hence show a mix of grid iron and organic pattern, with the basic unit of built form being the rectangular haveli.

Source:http://ww

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View of the badi chaupar by raja deen dayal 1876 with the stepwell partly enclosed

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/streetscapes-3.jpg

The view westwards across the city from the direction of galtaji.

Sanganeri gate

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/streetscapes-4.jpga

BAZAARS• Original markets in the city include Kishanpole bazaar, Gangauri bazaar, Johari bazaar, Sireh Deorhi

bazaar, along the main north-south and east-west axes that intersect at Chhoti and Badi Chaupars. • Typical architectural features of the bazaar streets are - use of chhajjas (sunshades) resulting in strong

horizontal lines, projecting vertical blocks on brackets, a modular system of arches filled with delicate latticed screens to cut direct sun and glare of reflected sun in the street.

• Bazaar streets have temples above shops with wide staircase starting from pavement to the temple level. Space above shops at first floor level originally functioned as galleries for watching royal processions, religious festivals and public celebrations

• On the main streets strict control was exercised on the street façade, along which were located shops and arcades- one storey high, but beyond the frontage the buildings could be of any height or any shape, some built with flat roofs & others with traditional chattris.

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/bazaars-1.jpg

Uniform planned shop fronts on bazaar streets.

Defined street façade at a chaupar with sunshades and latticed colonnades at upper floors and shop fronts on the

ground floor.

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/bazaars-2.jpg

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/bazaars-3.jpg

Section through ramganj bazaar

Chandra mahal in 1876

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/ram-ganj-bazaar.jpg

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/chandra-mahal.jpg

JAIPUR : PUBLIC AND PRIVATE INTERFACES

Source: http://www.archinomy.com/sites/default/files/case-studies/2011/publicprivate-interfaces-1.png

ARCHITECTURE OF JAIPURHAWA MAHAL

• The main architect of this palace built of red and pink sandstone, is Lal Chand Ustad and the palace is believed to have been constructed in the form of the crown of Krishna, the Hindu god. Considered as an embodiment of Rajputana architecture, the main highlight of Hawa Mahal is its pyramid shape and its 953 windows or 'Jharokhas' which are decorated with intricate designs.

• The main intention behind the construction of the Mahal was to facilitate the royal women and provide them a view of everyday life through the windows, as they never appeared in public.

Architecture

• Hawa Mahal, designed as a beehive castle with small windows, has a height of 50 feet from its base.

• This structure, erected on a thin shield or podium approximately fifty feet high, has walls less than a foot thick.

• Constructed of red and pink sandstones by Lal Chand Ustad,

• Hawa Mahal is famous for its windows or 'Jharokhas' which enable free circulation of air within the structure.

JharokasSource: http://selectrajasthan.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/hawamahal1-600x250.jpg

Source:http://indiaheritagesites.files.wordpress.com/2013/09/hawa-mahal-3.gif?w=645&h=483a

• Its entrance is a door which leads to a spacious courtyard surrounded by two-storey buildings on three sides. Of the five storeys of the Mahal, the top three storeys have the thickness of a single room while the bottom storeys have courtyards.

• The interior of the Hawa Mahal is stark and plain with passages and pillars reaching to the top storey. The building does not have stairs to reach the upper floors; the storeys are connected by slopes. From Hawa Mahal, you have an excellent view of the city.

Source: http://www.justnuances.com/wp_blog/wp-uploads/2011-india07-jaipur-hawamahal/2011/03/1113r11-450x299.jpg

Source: http://www.justnuances.com/wp_blog/wp-uploads/2011-india07-jaipur-hawamahal/2011/03/1113r11-450x299.jpg

View Of the City From Hawa Mahal

Courtyard

Amer fort

Architectural LayoutThe structure has four different parts, each with a separate entrance. The main entry to the fort is through the 'Suraj Pol' or Sun Gate which opens up into the main courtyard. This east-facing gate is also the main entrance to the palace and its position with respect to the rising sun is the source of its name. The 'Jaleb Chowk' is one of the four courtyards of the Amer Palace. The 'Sila Devi' Temple is right at the entrance to the main palace grounds. The second courtyard is famous for its 'Diwan-i-Aam' (Public Audience Hall), the 'Sheesh Mahal' and the 'Sukh Mahal'. A very famous attraction here is the 'Magic Flower', a fresco carved out of marble.

Source: http://www.onthegotours.com/repository/TheAmberFortJaipur-183641342772783_crop_538_259_f2f2f2_center-center.jpg

Source: http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/6f/Amber_fort_jaipur.jpg/1000px-Amber_fort_jaipur.jpg

Courtyard

'Diwan-i-Aam' (Public Audience Hall)

It has forty pillars and is a best example of intricate craftsmanship. The wide assembly hall measures 201 by 67 and has flat roof with two gateways of ′ ′arched red sandstone to the north and south. The hall is divided in three parts and has nine bold arches. This is built in red sandstone and is plastered with white shell plaster which looks like white marble. There is also a raised rectangular stage from where the emperor used to address the audience.

Source: http://amberfort.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/amer-fort-jaipur-L-EsE57o.jpeg

REFERENCES1. Jaipur,Evolution of an Indian City. archinomy, bridging the gap. [Online] :

www.archinomy.com/case studies/1906/jaipur-evolution-of an- indian -city.

2. Profile Of Jaipur. Indian Heritage Cities Network. [Online] http://www.ihcn.in/jaipur/jaipur/282-planning-and-architecture.html.

3. Hawa Mahal. Jaipur. The Pink City. [Online] http://www.jaipur.org.uk/forts-monuments/hawa-mahal.html.

4. Amer Fort. Jaipur, The Pink City. [Online] http://www.jaipur.org.uk/forts-monuments/amber.html.

5. Diwan-E-Aam or The Hall of Public Audience. Amber Fort- Pink City Jaipur. [Online] http://amberfort.org/amber-fort/diwan-e-am-or-the-hall-of-public-audience.