Delhi: Red Fort
This is a collection of articles archived for the excellence of their content. |
Contents |
The status of the monument
2016: some decay
Richi Verma, Callousness stains relics of history at Red Fort, Dec 8, 2016: The Times of India
For an agency entrusted with the delicate task of preserving the country's precious heritage, the Archaeological Survey of India has rather callously endangered the beauty and integrity of parts of a World Heritage Site. The marble piers, inlaid with coloured stone in the form of floral arrangements, in the Diwan-e-Khas at Red Fort in Delhi now have ugly welts of blue. There also are signs of abrasions on these precious relics of history .
ASI, astoundingly , appears to be unaware of the daily damage that is being inflicted on the marble structures, and it is enraged conservationists who have called attention to this neglect. What has irked the conservationists is the avoidable staining of the marble piers by blue plastic ropes tied to them to keep visitors at bay. For a heritage structure of the stature of Red Fort, the thoughtless -and damaging -expediency of having plastic ropes tied to the pillars instead of erecting a proper barricade could prove a costly mistake.
“Buildings of the Shah Jahan era, such as Taj Mahal and Diwan-e-Khas, are nothing less than priceless paintings and need to be treated with a high degree of sensitivity ,“ said a historian. The permanent damage done to the intricately carved pillars recall the horror of the damage done to the marble jaali at tached to the Rang Mahal a decade ago, he added.
ASI superintending archaeologist Daljit Singh was not available for comment, but sources in ASI said that the marble pillars would be cleaned of the stains. This hasn't enthused experts though.Swapna Liddle of INTACH explained that cleaning could easily mar the porous marble.“In theory , of course, ASI can scrub off the blue marking, but at what cost?“ she asked.“Chemical treatment can damage the structure and scrubbing, after all, involves the removal of a micro layer of the marble.“
Another conservationist observed that even if ASI had only ropes to fall back on in trying to cordon off the area, it could have used ropes made of natural materials. Rajeev Sethi of the Indian Heritage Foundation was more critical of the measure. “This should not have happened at all,“ he said.
The Diwan-e-Khas, or hall of private audience, was used by Mughal emperors to meet the nobility and was grandly decorated, with the lower portion of the piers bearing inlaid floral motifs and the upper portions gilded and painted.“The ceiling, which was originally inlaid with silver and gold, was stripped bare by the Jats and Marathas during the successive crises of the empire,“ informed a historian.The interiors of the audience hall were plundered in the aftermath of the war of 1857, and the throne, carpets and many other artefacts went missing. The current ceiling was installed in 1911.
Architecture, décor
Chatta Bazaar: paintings
Richi Verma, Mughal arcade reveals canvas, January 10, 2018: The Times of India
From: Richi Verma, Mughal arcade reveals canvas, January 10, 2018: The Times of India
From: Richi Verma, Mughal arcade reveals canvas, January 10, 2018: The Times of India
From: Richi Verma, Mughal arcade reveals canvas, January 10, 2018: The Times of India
Restoration Of Chatta Bazaar Inside Red Fort Exposes Exquisitely Painted Ceiling
The next time one visits the Red Fort, one would walk through a grand arcade. The ceiling of the historic Chatta Bazaar, which was once adorned with the most exquisite paintings, is getting some of its former glory back.
This original Mughal art is being painstakingly exposed and conserved by the science branch of Archaeological Survey of India. Conservation of the paintings started in early October last year, and it would take a few more months to complete. The beautiful floral and geometric patterns had been covered by multiple layers of lime plaster laid out over the years.
But the process to peel off the plasterwork is not easy. Unless it’s done with complete precision, there is risk of damage. “In each painting that is being exposed, up to seven layers of lime coating have been found at some points. And each layer has to be very carefully removed to ensure the original painting is not harmed in any way,” said an official.
ASI officials report that the frequent use of lime coating over the years in the fort, particularly during preparations for Independence Day, and painting work by the shop owners of Chatta Bazaar, hid the art work. “We trace impressions of the paintings wherever we can see or detect them, and then slowly work to remove the layers of lime to expose the paintings. And the plaster is slowly peeled away,” said an official.
Exposing the facade of Chatta Bazaar was planned in an effort to bring out the original design of the citadel. A major challenge here is to decide which layer of the painting should be exposed. “Some paintings have single layers. But some paintings also have multiple layers. In such cases, we usually keep the uppermost layer exposed even if there are more layers beneath. After all, each layer of painting is part of the fort’s history. Every effort is made to preserve whatever is available,” said an ASI official.
Exposing each painting depends on the condition of the lime plaster. At some points, the plaster is thicker and at others it’s thinner that makes scraping it away easier.
ASI hopes to unearth new, hidden information about the Red Fort from these exposed paintings. Through the centuries, Red Fort has undergone many changes. Historians say the fort is witness to many historical events, and each change within the fort is monumental. “The paintings over the Chatta Bazaar are similar testaments to many years of being under different rulers. Each painting tells a different story and we would like visitors to be able to view these paintings as well,” said an official.
Chhatta Bazaar
2019 restoration
Richi Verma, Chhatta Bazaar’s new look reminder of glory days, February 12, 2019: The Times of India
From: Richi Verma, Chhatta Bazaar’s new look reminder of glory days, February 12, 2019: The Times of India
Shop Owners Spend From Own Pockets For Restoration
The next time you visit Red Fort, you could see how the Chhatta Bazaar might have originally looked. Restoration work here is nearing completion, and hidden artworks on the ceiling are now fully exposed.
The bazaar has 47 shops. Its owners, at their own initiative and expense, are doing away with heavy shutters and replacing them with woodenframe doorways topped with Mughal-style arches. This will bring the bazaar a step closer to its 17th-century look.
Each of the shops specialises in handicrafts, gems, garments, scarves, silk brocade, silverware, etc. The shops are managed by descendants of the original allottees from the Mughal times. As part of an understanding with the the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), the shop owners agreed to take up conservation of the front facade of their shops to give the bazaar a more authentic look. Work on some shops has been completed. ASI officials said the wooden frames were designed based on archival images of the bazaar.
“In the centre of the arch, the shop number and name will be printed in identical fonts so there is complete uniformity. Once the work is completed in all the shops, it will give visitors an authentic Mughal feel as they walk past the bazaar through Lahori Gate to see the monuments inside,” said N K Pathak, superintending archaeologist, ASI Delhi circle.
According to ASI officials, getting every shop owner to agree to the task was challenging as many had to close their shops for a certain duration to allow construction work. Each shop-owner has paid about Rs 80,000- Rs 1 lakh for the exterior work while maintenance and structural stability will be managed by ASI. “Ever since we got the work done for my shop, I have got more customers. Visitors are very happy with the new look of the bazaar and are impressed with the uniformity in design with the historical touch,” said Pradeep Kumar Gupta of shop number 1 in the bazaar. Gupta’s Indian Arts shop was the first to change its external facade.
O P Agarwal from Art Corner said the effort on the part of the shop-owners was worth it. “Ever since the new museums have opened at Red Fort, we are getting more visitors. Everyone has to pass through Chhatta Bazaar to get inside Red Fort and all visitors appreciate the work in the bazaar,” he said.
The newly revealed paintings on the Chhatta Bazaar roof are also a huge draw. Work on exposing the hidden artwork took almost a year and was completed recently. The geometric and floral patterns had been hidden below several layers of plasterwork through the years.
“We traced impressions of the paintings wherever we could see or detect them, and then slowly worked to remove the layers of lime to expose the paintings. And the plaster was slowly peeled away,” said an official. In some places, the paintings were so delicate that only small portions could be exposed and ASI did not expose the whole painting fearing damage. The work started in October, 2017 and was completed by 2018-end.
Interpretation centre
Priyangi Agarwal, August 26, 2022: The Times of India
From: Priyangi Agarwal, August 26, 2022: The Times of India
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From: Priyangi Agarwal, August 26, 2022: The Times of India
NEW DELHI: Have you wondered how Mughal emperors ruled from Red Fort, what their traditional attire was and what they ate? The answers to these can be found at the Red Fort Centre, which recently opened to the public.
The Red Fort Centre, which is housed in a barrack built by the British in 1862, has been conserved by monument mitra, the Dalmia Bharat Group.
The brick British army barrack has been restored and its first floor now houses the Interpretation Centre that takes visitors through the history, architecture and culture of Delhi, including the historic capitals of various empires such as Tughlaqabad, Firozabad and Jahanpanah. The centre has interesting features like move maps to know what was happening in India and abroad around Shah Jahan’s lifetime (1592-1666).
There is a replica of Chhatta Bazaar offering a glimpse of the grandeur of the Mughal empire. Originally known as Bazaar-e-Musaqqaf or ‘Roofed Bazaar’, Chhatta Bazaar was inspired by the great covered markets of Peshawar. A man who acts as if he was still an employee in the Mughal era points out wares like jars for warm and cold water, body scrubbers and paan daans.
There is a section dedicated to the lifestyle of the Mughals. The royal men and women of the fort would wear clothes made of the finest, softest material in the land and their lifestyle was so luxurious that they would wear an outfit once and then discard it forever, donating it to an underling. The Mughal emperors ate lavishly, among the delicacies served to them being badam ki nuql as starters, moti pulao, sunheri pulao, korma, qaliya and yogurt accompaniments.
The ground floor of the centre showcases a unique, 360-degree immersive viewing experience with projections on the walls, ceiling and floor, reimagining the first day of the Red Fort’s inauguration. The centre is open for the public from 10am to 6pm from Tuesday to Sunday with a ticket costing Rs 100.
Puneet Dalmia, managing director, Dalmia Bharat Limited, said, “We welcome our fellow citizens and guests from across the world to visit and experience Delhi’s old-world charm through the best-in-class Red Fort Centre. It aims to provide a first-hand understanding of the transformation and history of Delhi and how the majestic monument’s grand opulence has left a mark.”
Dalmia added, “We hope that our nation-building effort will lead to greater awareness about our country’s rich heritage and we also look forward to giving back to the community, including the employment generated by this endeavour.” Anand Bhardwaj, CEO, heritage and events, Dalmia Bharat Group, added, “We are planning to add a sound and light show and project mapping show in November.”
Lahori Gate
English cannons
Manimugdha Sharma, August 9, 2019: The Times of India
From: Manimugdha Sharma, August 9, 2019: The Times of India
When it reopens after Independence Day restrictions are lifted, two cannons parked right outside Lahori Gate entrance will welcome visitors to the Red Fort. These are the latest additions to the 17th-century Mughal citadel and are expected to delight visitors, even inspire them to click selfies with.
Placing guns at the entrance of buildings is a British practice that continues to this day in India. So, one finds cannons at the entrance and exit of Victorial Memorial Hall in Kolkata, at Rashtrapati Bhavan, at the Water Gate of Fort William in Kolkata, and Coehorn mortars outside the United Service Institution of India. There will be many such public buildings with similar guns on display all over the country. Now, Red Fort will be added to that list.
The guns that are being installed there were found inside the fort during the ongoing conservation work by Archaeological Survey of India. “These were mostly buried in the ground with only about a few inches protruding out. These were immediately behind the Lahori Gate, fixed on either side and used as supporting pillars. They must have been installed there when the fort was under the occupation of the Indian Army (1857-2005),” said N K Pathak, superintending archaeologist, ASI Delhi Circle.
The cannons were excavated and cleaned with chemicals. Then preservative coatings were applied on them and they were readied for public display mounted on gun carriages called trucks in military parlance. Such carriages were primarily used in naval artillery.
ASI authorities said they aren’t aware of the vintage of the guns. But TOI was handed close-up images of the guns and the markings on them. The date 1827 is engraved below the cipher on the gun barrel that has a crown marking and the letter ‘P’. That suggests the gun was manufactured in England and underwent ‘proofing’ or quality testing for barrel integrity and accuracy. This was a professional mark of the time to say that the gun passed all quality checks.
Other marks indicate the weight of each cannon: one has the code 47-3-25 and the other 50-2-0. Going by the ordnance factory weighing standards of the time, the guns should weigh 2,437 and 2,565 kilograms respectively. The trunnion marks are not distinct so the foundry where these were cast or the identity of the gunsmith couldn’t be known. But the date suggests these belonged to the time when the East India Company’s writ ran large across the country with the Mughal emperor being reduced to a pensioner, Mysore added as a vassal state and the Marathas subdued and the Peshwa packed off to Bithoor.
It’s also a tad ironic to place guns at the Red Fort: the citadel where the Mughals never placed artillery to defend it. Actually, it didn’t need defending, for in the 17th century, there was nobody to challenge the power of the ‘Great Mughal’. But following Aurangzeb, after the Mughal grip on power loosened, challengers came from the north and south. Nadir Shah Afshar came unmolested inside the fort after trouncing the Mughals at Karnal in 1739. Then came the Marathas under Sadashivrao Bhau in 1760 whose artillery commander Ibrahim Khan Gardi pounded the Mughal citadel to submission with his artillery.
In the climacteric of the Mughal rule, the emperor continuously depended on artillery of allies to defend his capital. So, when the avaricious Rohilla chieftain Ghulam Qadir seized the fort and later blinded Emperor Shah Alam II, it was Sardana chief Begum Sumroo who rushed to the emperor’s aid with her park of artillery. The last time guns were placed at the fort was after the Siege of Delhi ended in 1857.
In that backdrop, the two artillery pieces at Lahori Gate will make history and also unmake it somewhat.
Placing guns at the entrance of buildings is a British practice that continues to this day in India. So, one finds cannons at the entrance and exit of Victorial Memorial Hall in Kolkata, at Rashtrapati Bhavan, at the Water Gate of Fort William in Kolkata, and Coehorn mortars outside the United Service Institution of India. There will be many such public buildings with similar guns on display all over the country. Now, Red Fort will be added to that list.
The guns that are being installed there were found inside the fort during the ongoing conservation work by Archaeological Survey of India. “These were mostly buried in the ground with only about a few inches protruding out. These were immediately behind the Lahori Gate, fixed on either side and used as supporting pillars. They must have been installed there when the fort was under the occupation of the Indian Army (1857-2005),” said N K Pathak, superintending archaeologist, ASI Delhi Circle.
The cannons were excavated and cleaned with chemicals. Then preservative coatings were applied on them and they were readied for public display mounted on gun carriages called trucks in military parlance. Such carriages were primarily used in naval artillery.
ASI authorities said they aren’t aware of the vintage of the guns. But TOI was handed close-up images of the guns and the markings on them. The date 1827 is engraved below the cipher on the gun barrel that has a crown marking and the letter ‘P’. That suggests the gun was manufactured in England and underwent ‘proofing’ or quality testing for barrel integrity and accuracy. This was a professional mark of the time to say that the gun passed all quality checks.
Other marks indicate the weight of each cannon: one has the code 47-3-25 and the other 50-2-0. Going by the ordnance factory weighing standards of the time, the guns should weigh 2,437 and 2,565 kilograms respectively. The trunnion marks are not distinct so the foundry where these were cast or the identity of the gunsmith couldn’t be known. But the date suggests these belonged to the time when the East India Company’s writ ran large across the country with the Mughal emperor being reduced to a pensioner, Mysore added as a vassal state and the Marathas subdued and the Peshwa packed off to Bithoor.
It’s also a tad ironic to place guns at the Red Fort: the citadel where the Mughals never placed artillery to defend it. Actually, it didn’t need defending, for in the 17th century, there was nobody to challenge the power of the ‘Great Mughal’. But following Aurangzeb, after the Mughal grip on power loosened, challengers came from the north and south. Nadir Shah Afshar came unmolested inside the fort after trouncing the Mughals at Karnal in 1739. Then came the Marathas under Sadashivrao Bhau in 1760 whose artillery commander Ibrahim Khan Gardi pounded the Mughal citadel to submission with his artillery.
In the climacteric of the Mughal rule, the emperor continuously depended on artillery of allies to defend his capital. So, when the avaricious Rohilla chieftain Ghulam Qadir seized the fort and later blinded Emperor Shah Alam II, it was Sardana chief Begum Sumroo who rushed to the emperor’s aid with her park of artillery. The last time guns were placed at the fort was after the Siege of Delhi ended in 1857.
In that backdrop, the two artillery pieces at Lahori Gate will make history and also unmake it somewhat.
Latticework (stone jaali)
The 2019 restoration
Richi Verma, May 4, 2019: The Times of India
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From: Richi Verma, May 4, 2019: The Times of India
Stone jalis were a favourite of the Mughals. That’s why they are seen at almost all Mughal monuments. Apart from acting as ventilators, these also accentuated the architecture.
Till today, original Mughal marble jalis can be seen at Taj Mahal, Fatehpur Sikri and Delhi’s Red Fort. But jalis at Red Fort are in a terrible shape. Now, for the first time, Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has embarked on a challenging task of restoring missing jali work with new ones made from the same marble used by the Mughals centuries ago. Doing this complicated work are artisans who have been specially trained in the craft.
The jali work at Khas Mahal really stands out for its intricacy. There are six small jalis on either side of the monument with open gaps, and a large one at the centre of the monument where a big chunk has been missing for decades. For years, ASI did not touch any of the marble jalis. But a few months ago, talks began to conserve these. “This was a new arena for us. Conservation of marble jalis was very delicate work and required complete precision, right from the quality of the stone, to the cutting and shaping and fitting in the gaps of the jali window,” said N K Pathak, superintending archaeologist (Delhi circle).
The first challenge was finding the right kind of stone. “We sourced the marble from Makrana in Rajasthan, the same place where the Mughals had sourced it from. But just any marble stone wouldn’t do the job. We tried out at least half a dozen marble types before finding one with fine grains that would set in with the original marble in the monument. The composition of the marble had to be exact because it wouldn’t work if the grains were too coarse, the marble too smooth or water porosity not zero. We could not compromise on quality,” said archaeological engineer Munazzar Ali.
Once the stone was finalised, artisans from Agra were brought to cut and shape the marble. The jalis in Khas Mahal had both geometric and floral designs, and the artisans who have done similar stone work at Taj Mahal spent weeks cutting and shaping the stones. ASI officials said the work can take anything from days to weeks and even months.
To ensure the new jalis fit perfectly, ASI first did a laser scan of the entire jali work and then traced the missing elements. Work on the jalis has been completed and finishing touches are being given. A huge slab of marble, over a foot long, has been identified for the task. “Just getting this piece ready has taken months. While jalis are relatively common in Mughal architecture, this piece has a blend of both floral and geometric patterns and is very detailed,” Pathak said.
But that isn’t the only problem. “The missing piece is also very large and just shaping the curves for a perfect fit has taken weeks. Artisans have spent hours on this stone work, and after it is finally fitted in, we will use sandpaper for final finishing and smoothness. Chemical cleaning will be the last step,” said Pathak.
ASI policy does not allow reconstruction, but it was possible to do this with the jalis because the monument body had evidence of it, and archival material showed the entire piece. “The patterns were already there and we just had to replicate it to complete the whole piece,” said an official.. The final stage would involve applying ‘mud therapy’. “This will be done so that the new and old can blend. There will always be a little variation, but after some time, colour differences will fade,” the official added.
Mangey Bridge
2018: poor condition
Traffic takes toll on heritage bridge, November 21, 2018: The Times of India
From: Traffic takes toll on heritage bridge, November 21, 2018: The Times of India
Major Portions Damaged From Impact Of Trucks, Buses Passing Under It
A British-era bridge that connects Red Fort with Salimgarh Fort is in an extremely poor condition with major portions of the bridge damaged on impact with heavy vehicles that regularly pass under it.
The Mangey Bridge is over a century old and is protected by the Archaeological Survey of India. It is located on the busy Ring Road and has three arches. Two lanes of the road go under each arch. Traffic movement is pretty heavy here. As a result, trucks and buses routinely hit the underside of the bridge. Over time, this has resulted in large chunks coming off. Officials have identified the root of the problem to a considerable rise in the road level under the bridge in recent years due to constant relaying.
Earlier, ASI had requested traffic police to change the route taken by heavy vehicles, but it couldn’t happen.
N K Pathak, superintending archaeologist, Delhi circle, said, “The problem is that heavy vehicles drive through the bridge at high speed, sometimes hitting the structure that has led to the condition of the bridge today. I will be writing to the joint CP (traffic), asking him to erect height barriers at the two side arches to stop heavy vehicles from passing underneath. Heavy vehicles can pass through the middle arch where the road level is lower.”
Installing height barriers is routinely done by traffic police to restrict movement of heavy vehicles, and was also done at Tripolia Gateways in north Delhi—another ASI monument which suffered similar damage due to heavy vehicles passing through it.
ASI officials have surveyed the bridge and taken stock of the damages. They would soon prepare estimates to start conservation work on the bridge.
“This is a routine problem with this bridge and requires a permanent solution. The location is such that it will be hit by heavy vehicles unless their movement is restricted. Even lowering the road level won’t help much,” said another ASI official.
Conservation work was done on the bridge earlier in 2010 when ASI had roped in a British firm. That time too, the bridge had sustained heavy damage. PWD had then agreed to realign the road to ensure that all heavy vehicles pass through the arch where the road level was the lowest. But the civic agencies kept on relaying the road every year, raising the level by several inches, an official said.
Museums
2018: Four new museums
Swati Mathur, July 15, 2018: The Times of India
From: Swati Mathur, July 15, 2018: The Times of India
Come August, four new museums at the Red Fort will open to the public, enriching Delhi’s cultural scene and giving people a glimpse into 160 years of Indian history — from the First War of Independence in 1857 to Subhas Chandra Bose’s Indian National Army, India’s participation in World War I, and Jallianwala Bagh.
An initiative spearheaded by the Union culture ministry, the project will see a makeover of the large, erstwhile British barracks, which had been locked up till now. “The idea is to develop Red Fort as a museum hub,” said culture secretary Raghavendra Singh. The barracks are three floors high and have teakwood panelling, wooden floors and large staircases. Now they will have thematic representations of Indian history.
The first museum will contain original archival material and replicas related to 1857. Also on display will be 70 original paintings on the uprising, each of which are more than a century old. Singh said that some of the exhibits will also be borrowed from other museums like the Victorial Memorial Museum of Kolkata.
The second museum will commemorate 75 years of Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose’s INA. The museum will have displays on the INA trials held inside the Red Fort. Several officers of the INA were court martialled here in November and December 1945.
The massacre of Jallianwala Bagh, in its centenary year now, will form the bulk of the third museum, alongside archival material on India’s participation in WWI.
The fourth museum will have artifacts from the Indian War Memorial Museum and Archaeological Museum, till now housed in Naubat Khana and Mumtaz Mahal Palace respectively. After the collections are shifted, these two original Mughal buildings will be opened to public as part of the Red Fort heritage areas.
The Archaeological Survey’s superintending archaeologist N K Pathak said the aim is to educate people about Indian valour and history. Officials said the presentation styles and the stories in each museum will be unique, using a generous mix of archival material and state-of-the-art technology to create an immersive experience for students of history.
Incidentally, a fifth museum, on martyrs of India’s independence movement, has also been planned. However, the site is yet to be finalised, although it will also be within the Red Fort precincts.
2019: 4 new museums
From: Richi Verma, 4 museums at Red Fort open window to battle for freedom, January 24, 2019: The Times of India
A cap frequently worn by Subhas Chandra Bose was presented to Prime Minister Narendra Modi by his nephew, Chandra Kumar Bose, on Netaji’s 122nd birth anniversary on Wednesday. The cap can be seen by visitors at a new museum at Red Fort dedicated to the life of the nationalist leader and his Azad Hind Fauz movement.
The museum was among the four, all sited in the colonial-era barracks at Red Fort, inaugurated by the PM. From February 1, when the museums open their door to the public, visitors to the iconic Mughal edifice can go on a trip through key moments of Indian history and revive memories of the freedom struggle while paying tribute to the patriots.
The eight barracks were built by the British to accommodate officers after occupying the fort post 1857. These double-storey buildings have been preserved by Archaeological Survey of India as part of Red Fort’s history and developed into museums.
Barrack B1 is dedicated to the 1857 war of independence, while B2 showcases the horror of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre of 1919. B3 is focused on Netaji and the INA movement, while the fourth in B4, called Drishyakala, is a collaboration between ASI and Delhi Art Gallery on India-related art. The three older museums on the fort’s premises — Indian freedom fighters museum, Mumtaz Mahal museum and Naubad Khana — have been closed and the exhibits allotted to the new museums.
Prof Kapil Kumar, director of the Centre for Freedom Struggle and Diaspora Studies and curator of three of the museums, said that each museum had taken months of research to reveal new insights into Indian history. “In the museum on Bose, for instance, for the first time we have on display an assassination order given by the British secret service to their counterparts in Cairo and Kabul to get rid of Netaji,” said Kumar. “We also have on display the last known photographs of Netaji boarding a plane at Saigon in Vietnam.”
Regarding the Bose museum’s artefacts, Kumar disclosed, “A lot of them came from the government’s collection, but we also got others from the private collections of the descendants of INA officers.”
The 1857 museum brings back memories of the first war of independence against the British East India Company and addresses how the British historians misrepresented the event for years as a sepoy mutiny or a feudal revolt. “The museum argues through folklore, contemporary accounts, historical records and detailed accounts that Indians from all sections of society revolted against the British,” said an ASI official. Prof Kumar added that details of how secret messages were passed and how token protest were held against the British all showed an India united in attempting to oust the British.
In Yaad-e-Jalian, the museum dedicated to the massacre in Amritsar, a wall is inscribed with the names of all those who died on April 13, 1919. In addition to the Jallianwalla Bagh incident, the museum also showcases the valour of Indian soldiers during World War I. The last museum, Drishyakala, has been conceptualised by Delhi Art Gallery and houses paintings by iconic artists like Raja Ravi Varma and Rabindranath Tagore and also works by British artists representing Indian royal patronage and British monarchy.
A fifth museum in another barrack, Azadi-ke-Dewane, will be completed in another month and will be dedicated to the unknown faces behind India’s war of independence. The central government has compiled a list of names of people who contributed to the freedom struggle but remain largely unknown. These names will be engraved on a wall in the museum.
ASI officials said all the museums will be ticketed, though a decision on the price of admission is yet to be taken. It is also not yet decided whether a single ticket will allow entry to all four museums or whether there will be separate norms for each. Earlier, one could access the old museums in Red Fort for a mere Rs 5. Presumably, the new ticket rates will not be very different from that.
Netaji Museum
From: Richi Verma, New Netaji museum to offer rare chunks of INA history at Red Fort, February 3, 2019: The Times of India
Museum Trying To Get Personal Memorabilia Of INA Veterans
The newly inaugurated museum on Subhas Chandra Bose and INA at Red Fort is likely to get rare memorabilia in the form of uniforms, medals and other artefacts that have so far been privately held.
Many INA veterans and their families have promised to either donate or lend uniforms, weapons, medals and diaries to the museum which is housed in the same barrack, B3, where the INA trials had been held in 1945.
“Lalta Singh, a 94-year-old INA veteran from Panchkula, has promised to give three medals given to him by Netaji. Another veteran, 91-yearold Lieutenant Bharti Rai used to write a diary in Japanese as a soldier of Rani Jhansi Regiment. This has also been promised to us,” said Prof Kapil Kumar, historian and curator of the museum on behalf of ASI.
Netaji’s revolver and pistol have also been promised to the museum by the son of INA supporter Seth Trilok Singh Chaawla, a Bangkok-based businessman. These were frequently worn by him on his belt. “Once the technicalities of bringing firearms from Thailand to India are worked out by the respective governments, we will have them in the museum,” said Kumar.
Families of known INA veterans are also being contacted to donate personal items from their collections. “I have contacted the nephew of Colonel Mohan Singh to donate INA uniforms and other items for display. There are also many items by families of INA supporters in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Myanmar and Japan who we are requesting to either donate or lend to the museum. We are in touch with Indian missions to contact these families,” said Kumar.
Within India itself, families of INA veterans aren’t the only ones holding on to precious memorabilia. There are files in the National Archives of India detailing interrogation reports of INA soldiers, which ASI is requesting to be loaned to the museum for display. “The Indian Army also has in its possession Japanese equipment. We have requested the Army to identify these and pass them on to us,” Kumar said.
So far, the museum has items that cover Bose’s life right from childhood to adulthood, his journey as a political leader, travels to other nations to seek support for India’s independence, even his last recorded picture leaving a plane at Saigon in Vietnam. There’s the uniform of INA leader Lieutenant Bharti Rai and Netaji’s famed sword. A chair used by him at Rangoon headquarters is also on display. It was bought in 1980 when Bose’s nephew A N Bose was in Burma. There are also medals worn by INA members, shoulder insignia, identity cards, ledger and diary of Shah Nawaz Khan.
A documentary on Bose and INA with a voiceover by actor Abhishek Bachchan will also be shown.
“For the first time, the assassination orders of Bose by the British secret service to its agents in Cairo and Istanbul have been displayed. The records kept by American intelligence have also been displayed for the first time, as is a fake news of his death in a plane crash near Tokyo in the New York Times of March 29, 1942,” Kumar said.
2021: The National Museum’s artefacts
Mohammad Ibrar, April 8, 2021: The Times of India
From: Mohammad Ibrar, April 8, 2021: The Times of India
In August, a new museum at Red Fort will give you a glimpse of India’s weapons through the ages. The National Museum has decided to shift its arms and armour section to one of the barracks of the 17th century fortress as part of the India@75 programme and over 600 artefacts, including weapons from pre-history and armament from the 16th to 19th centuries will be put on display.
The National Museum also plans to set up two other repositories in the barracks — one on the history of Jammu & Kashmir and another on India’s Independence struggle from 1857 to 1947.
A museum source revealed that the staff was busy identifying, tagging, cleaning them in the laboratory and packing the precious objects for the shift to the fort. There are other collections showcased in the barracks and the National Museum’s three new installations will be added attractions there. “We have a good collection for the arms and armour section,” the source said. “However, for the Jammu & Kashmir and Independence galleries, we will have to collect meaningful artefacts from across the country.”
Since 2019, the renovated barracks at Red Fort have housed several museums, including the Archaeological Museum, the Indian War Memorial Museum and one commemorating the life of Subhas Chandra Bose. The double-storeyed barracks had been built by the British after razing hundreds of structures in the fort following the exile of the last Mughal emperor Bahadur Shah Zafar to Burma.
The World Heritage Site monument has been shut since January 19 after reports of bird deaths on the complex and the scare of bird flu in the air. The work on the three new museums, however, hadn’t been impacted by the closure. Asked when Red Fort could reopen, an Archaeological Survey of India official said, “The local authorities closed the fort due to rising cases of bird flu. We will reopen the monument for the public when we get permission from the local authorities.”
Kamlesh Kumar Sharma, former curator (public relations) and currently a consultant to the National Museum, has been assisting in the establishment of the arms and armour museum, mostly on the selection of exhibits and the setup of the gallery. He reiterated, “The gallery will showcase the evolution of Indian weaponry and arms, starting from prehistoric stone weapons, proto-historic implements and then through the medieval ages.”
He felt that Red Fort was ideal for a museum on arms because “this is where Indian history played out”. He said, “This Mughal structure is iconic and we have a suitably huge collection of Mughal armament, for instance, the bow of Bahadur Shah Zafar and the inscribed body armour of Aurangzeb. It is only fitting these items find a home in the fort.”
Zafar Mahal
As in 2021
Zumbish, Dec 13, 2021: The Times of India
From: Zumbish, Dec 13, 2021: The Times of India
Zafar Mahal, a pavilion at Red Fort constructed in 1842 during Bahadur Shah II’s reign and named after him…. The ASI-protected structure stands in the middle of a water tank and, according to one conservator, has been severely hit by the heavy rains this year. A faulty drainage system hasn’t helped, as the structure has absorbed water from the tank that surrounds it.
There was a time when the pavilion and the tank were among the central pieces of the heritage site, according to historian Rana Safvi.
“Zafar Mahal was once known as Jal Mahal. Its tank was a major part of Nahr-e-Bahisht, or the stream of paradise, which was designed to flow into the row of palace buildings during Red Fort’s glorious days in the Mughal era. The water from the Sawan Bhadon pavilion would come through the water shoots and fall in this tank,” Safvi told TOI.
The structure, Safvi said, was situated in the Hayat Bakhsh Garden, or ‘life-giving garden’, which bore flowering and fruit trees and was a place for the emperor to rest. “Originally, a red sandstone bridge led to the pavilion, but it was probably lost at some point in time,” she added.
As in 2022
Anuja Jaiswal, Dec 18, 2022: The Times of India
From: Anuja Jaiswal, Dec 18, 2022: The Times of India
Assistant superintendent archeological engineer Munazzar Ali said that since the Mahal was built of red sandstone, the replacements had been brought from Bansi Paharpur in Rajasthan. Ornamental work, including carving on brackets, which would support the Chajjas (eaves) from the base, would be done by traditional craftsmen from Agra and Fatehpur Sikri. “Thala stone will be placed above the eaves to hold it,” he said.
On the reason for the partial collapse of the mahal, he said this could be due to extra load of layers of sandstone and multiple layers of concrete on the terrace during the phase of repairs of the structure. The structure stands in the centre of Hayat Baksh Bagh (Life Bestowing Garden), which is in the north eastern portion of the fort. It consists of two pavilion s, Sawan and Bhadon — made of marble and named after the Hindi months of rain. The third part of the bagh was Mehtab Bagh, which the British removed, and, instead, made barracks for officials. This was a pleasure garden for princes and princesses. Now, Zafar Mahal stands alone without water.
It is in the m iddle of a four-sided tank (constructed almost completely of red stones). Though the tank was part of the original construction of the fort, Zafar Mahal was added 200 years later, in 1842, by Bahadur Shah Zafar, who also added a parapet to the tank.
The Mahal is made out of red sandstone, which was cheaper than white marble, with money being in short supply for the Mughal emperor. Originally, a red sandstone bridge led to the pav ilion, which was probably lost at some point of time. A bridge originally connected the pavilion to the edge of the tank. Incidentally, British troops at Red Fort used the tank as a swimming pool for many years.
