Adventures in a ghost town
My biker club RODS- Ryderz Of Da Storm has travelled to many places, especially near the capital, but our trip to Bhangarh is the best ride ever.
It all came together in the moment when I Googled Bhangarh and was astounded to know that it’s India’s “most haunted” place. Further detailed research led me on to facts related to the place and the most important one was that no one is allowed to enter its premises before sunrise and after sunset. That’s when we figured this is going to be our next destination. Next morning, we left for Bhangarh.
Bhangarh is a place between Jaipur and Alwar in Rajasthan. Bhangarh is known for its ruins, but still worth a visit; the place is beautiful and tranquil. What remains though is a shadow of a once beautiful kingdom. About 300 km from Delhi, the road to Bhangarh has nice bends and lovely landscape and the journey can be completed in 6-7 hours. Since we had the weekend to ourselves, we decided to keep it slow and give ample time to Alwar, Sariska and Azabgarh, which are on the way to Bhangarh. These places are virgin with no influence of commercialisation and have beautiful landscape, hills, streams, ancient forts and temples.
Passing by Bhangarh, banyans and temples dot the landscape and a chhatri can be seen up on the hill. The most remarkable are the temples of Gopinath, Shiva (Someshwar), Mangla Devi and Keshava Rai. Other more or less preserved buildings are shops along the main road, several havelis, a mosque, and palace. The palace was protected by two inner fortifications across the valley. The town is separated from the plain by ramparts with five gates. Bhangarh is also a pre-historic site.
Bhangarh, on the other hand, offers no accommodation or food, but has a few tea-shops to its credit. Hence, for night stay, we decided to go to Dausa, which is about 28km from Bhangarh. The road was in an acceptable condition and we covered the distance in barely 30-minutes. Dausa is the only village close to Bhangarh. We looked around for a place to spend the night and were directed to The Pinky Hotel, which had rooms for `900 a night.
Next morning, we first stopped by at the nearest petrol pump to refuel our bikes and headed for Bhangarh. Enroute, we spotted a village where marble sculptures and statues greeted us at every nook and corner. We spoke to the villagers and learnt that these marble sculptures are their means of livelihood. Finally, we made it to Bhangarh and parked our bikes outside the city gates where the city walls are the remnants of its glorious past. Inside the walls, lie the ruined houses, market lanes, temples and the main fort. With excavation work on at most places, the Archaeological Survey of India is trying to revive the fort. However, the emptiness of the ruined city and its fort is what makes the place a tourist attraction. We spent about five hours in the ruins and left for Delhi at 5 pm.
The writer is an adventurous traveller
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