KULDHARA (JAISALMER):History is again at stake in Rajasthan. This time in the ancient, eerie village of Kuldhara, some 18 km from Jaisalmer.
Known for tales of persecution, lust and eventual abandonment by the Paliwal Bhramins one night 200 years ago, the quaint village of Kuldhara now finds its "spirits" relegated to the background.
Replacing its trademark dilapidated structures are glistening new yellow sandstone buildings at the forefront as the state government goes on an overdrive to "restore" it even at the risk of erasing stories that draw the crowd.
Too much restoration kills authenticity, says tourist
In a bid to cater to the growing number of tourists from the country and abroad drawn by tales of how fed up with steep taxation by the then Diwan of Jaisalmer Salim Singh and his lustful eye on the 16-yearold daughter of the village chief, 84 villages vacated the area suddenly on the eve of Buddha Poornima. The Diwan had five wives but had given an ultimatum that either the girl be handed to him or he would use force. On their way out, the villagers carried all they could and buried behind their pots, pans and wealth. The evacuation was, however, not before leaving a curse that whosoever stays the night over would never live to see the next day.
Since then the otherwise crowded place comes to a standstill after sunset. A guard, posted by the government, tried to spent the night over at the village but had to pay a heavy price for his defiance as his father, wife, daughter-in-law met a premature death. Till date no one lives at Kuldhara.
And it is these tales that the BJP government tried to cash in on and decided to actively develop the village in a public-private partnership with Raj WestPower Ltd, JSW, in 2015. Two years later replacing the dusty, dilapidated, cow dung coated structures in the middle of nowhere reminding of bygone era is a cobble stoned walkway, chick shining building, freshly painted signages, complete with provisions for a cafeteria and a dance floor — a far cry from the Congress' stance when a film crew tried to tamper with the ruins in 2011.
Then during the shooting of Bollywood movie 'Agent Vinod' starring Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor the film's crew painted the ruined walls of Kuldhara with Taliban signs, Urdu words and hung up many a insignia to resemble the Pakistan border. Irked with the tampering, the government stalled the shoot immediately and booked cases against three of the crew members. The producers had to also cough up a steep fine for restoring the place to it original settings.
"The whole place was crumbling and that is what we were assigned to correct. We are reconstructing six old buildings on either side of the road with blocks for ticketing, administration and common facilities. There will also be two model blocks 'A' and 'B' where we have reconstructed the old structures to show how people in those days lived, what kind of ventilation they had, how they made their roof with structures that were weather proof etc. It is just the front part of the village that we have restored, the dilapidated house are still there behind," said Aditya Agarwal, director, Raj West-Power Ltd.
"There is also a place for a dance floor and a cafeteria so that tourists get basic facilities. Most construction work has already been done and we are awaiting to hand over the structure to the government after which we will install the lights so that the place is lit at night. We will also be establishing a water connection here and hopefully hand over the place to the government by April next year," he added.
But that is exactly what irks Antonio Gonzalez. "Too much restoration kills authenticity. These new structures obstruct imagination," says Gonzalez, a tourist from Canada, who drawn by the ghostly tales of the place had come visiting it with a group. "The structures look so out of place with the tales of a 200-year-old village that we had heard," says Carmen Plante, another from the group.
Zvika Bar, from Israel, could not believe her eyes that the wooden doors were from the days past and she went about searching for relics amidst noise from construction work that by now has surely exorcised any ghost that ever lived in Kuldhara.
However, even after the transformation none from the district administration feel that the modifications have come as a road block for tales of Kuldhara.
"The work has been done with an eye to promote tourism. It was a dilapidated area and our work is aimed at preserving it," said DC Meena, collector, Jaisalmer. Echoing similar sentiments was Babu Lal Maurya, superintendent, Jodhpur zone, State Art and Culture Department.
"The construction at Kuldhara was about to crumble so we restored it. We have not tampered with the place. The place was dusty and so we built a cobbled road," he added.
Known for tales of persecution, lust and eventual abandonment by the Paliwal Bhramins one night 200 years ago, the quaint village of Kuldhara now finds its "spirits" relegated to the background.
Replacing its trademark dilapidated structures are glistening new yellow sandstone buildings at the forefront as the state government goes on an overdrive to "restore" it even at the risk of erasing stories that draw the crowd.
Too much restoration kills authenticity, says tourist
In a bid to cater to the growing number of tourists from the country and abroad drawn by tales of how fed up with steep taxation by the then Diwan of Jaisalmer Salim Singh and his lustful eye on the 16-yearold daughter of the village chief, 84 villages vacated the area suddenly on the eve of Buddha Poornima. The Diwan had five wives but had given an ultimatum that either the girl be handed to him or he would use force. On their way out, the villagers carried all they could and buried behind their pots, pans and wealth. The evacuation was, however, not before leaving a curse that whosoever stays the night over would never live to see the next day.
Since then the otherwise crowded place comes to a standstill after sunset. A guard, posted by the government, tried to spent the night over at the village but had to pay a heavy price for his defiance as his father, wife, daughter-in-law met a premature death. Till date no one lives at Kuldhara.
And it is these tales that the BJP government tried to cash in on and decided to actively develop the village in a public-private partnership with Raj WestPower Ltd, JSW, in 2015. Two years later replacing the dusty, dilapidated, cow dung coated structures in the middle of nowhere reminding of bygone era is a cobble stoned walkway, chick shining building, freshly painted signages, complete with provisions for a cafeteria and a dance floor — a far cry from the Congress' stance when a film crew tried to tamper with the ruins in 2011.
Then during the shooting of Bollywood movie 'Agent Vinod' starring Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor the film's crew painted the ruined walls of Kuldhara with Taliban signs, Urdu words and hung up many a insignia to resemble the Pakistan border. Irked with the tampering, the government stalled the shoot immediately and booked cases against three of the crew members. The producers had to also cough up a steep fine for restoring the place to it original settings.
"The whole place was crumbling and that is what we were assigned to correct. We are reconstructing six old buildings on either side of the road with blocks for ticketing, administration and common facilities. There will also be two model blocks 'A' and 'B' where we have reconstructed the old structures to show how people in those days lived, what kind of ventilation they had, how they made their roof with structures that were weather proof etc. It is just the front part of the village that we have restored, the dilapidated house are still there behind," said Aditya Agarwal, director, Raj West-Power Ltd.
"There is also a place for a dance floor and a cafeteria so that tourists get basic facilities. Most construction work has already been done and we are awaiting to hand over the structure to the government after which we will install the lights so that the place is lit at night. We will also be establishing a water connection here and hopefully hand over the place to the government by April next year," he added.
But that is exactly what irks Antonio Gonzalez. "Too much restoration kills authenticity. These new structures obstruct imagination," says Gonzalez, a tourist from Canada, who drawn by the ghostly tales of the place had come visiting it with a group. "The structures look so out of place with the tales of a 200-year-old village that we had heard," says Carmen Plante, another from the group.
Zvika Bar, from Israel, could not believe her eyes that the wooden doors were from the days past and she went about searching for relics amidst noise from construction work that by now has surely exorcised any ghost that ever lived in Kuldhara.
However, even after the transformation none from the district administration feel that the modifications have come as a road block for tales of Kuldhara.
"The work has been done with an eye to promote tourism. It was a dilapidated area and our work is aimed at preserving it," said DC Meena, collector, Jaisalmer. Echoing similar sentiments was Babu Lal Maurya, superintendent, Jodhpur zone, State Art and Culture Department.
"The construction at Kuldhara was about to crumble so we restored it. We have not tampered with the place. The place was dusty and so we built a cobbled road," he added.
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