Alwar Temptation
Aditi Ghosh
In the later half of the 18th century, during the chaos following the death of Aurangzeb, Pratap Singh, a Rajput adventurer, created the State of Alwar. It was then ruled by many Maharajas and had a colourful history.
Maharaja Vinay Singh built the Siliserh Lake Palace overseeing the vast and spectacular Siliserh lake in 1845 as a hunting lodge. The palace has a charming story. Once when Mangal Singh went hunting, he wandered into the nearby village of Kishanpur. There he fell in love with the beautiful Silika, daughter of the village chief. Mangal Singh and Silika were immersed in deep conversation when the girl’s father came back. He was infuriated at sight and insisted Mangal Singh marry his daughter.
The king protested first but later agreed to marry Silika. Rani Silika lived happily at the City Palace in Alwar for some time. But after the death of her child at birth, she wanted to go back to her parents in Kishangarh. The king thus prepared the Siliserh Palace for his queen to live near her parents. Silika lived in Siliserh for a few months but soon died of a broken heart. We stayed there over a long weekend immersing in the colorful stories of beautiful Alwar.
The writer is a globe traveller
