It all started afresh in the
morning. The sun was rising on the horizon. The city was waking up. The first
thing I felt after reaching Pune was its air. There was almost a smell of freshness
in the air as I breathed in. Was it because I was coming from Delhi which was
called one of the most polluted cities? Or was it that the smell was of a nostalgia
which should be natural for me? I had a couple of hours which I wanted to
splurge in an aimless walk. Thanks to smartphones we are never ill-equipped to capture
a moment these days. Hence I walked.
This was the city which was my
home for six fruitful years. How does it feel visiting your city as a tourist?
It felt weird – as if there was something secretive about me walking in. Did
people realize I was walking in there after so many months? I walked on the
same roads and pavements; looked at the same buildings and sky; came across the
same people and their eyes; I can’t sum up the feeling but some feeling that
was!
The first place to go was
naturally the Dagduseth Ganapati Temple. Before coming to Pune, I had lived in
Mumbai for hour years where I had developed a special bond with Lord Siddhivinayak.
In the form of this Ganesh temple, I had found a continuation of affection and faith
which I so desired.
It was early in the morning when
I walked in; and it felt having never gone away as I walked out.
This is the Dagduseth Ganapati Temple
of Pune:
From there as I walked towards
Shaniwar Wada, I found Lal Mahal on my right hand side. The current Lal Mahal
is the reconstruction of the original. The original Lal Mahal was built by Shivaji's
father Shahaji Bhosale around 1630. Shivaji stayed there with his mother
Jijabai for many years.
It was in this Lal Mahal where an
encounter happened between Shivaji and Shaista Khan, a Mughal general and
maternal uncle of Aurangzeb. Shaista Khan had arrived in Pune with a large army
and had captured several palaces and forts around it. Shivaji made a surprise
attack on him in the night which made Shaista Khan flee. While fleeing from Lal
Mahal, he lost his three fingers in an attack from Shivaji’s sword. After this
defeat, he was insulted and was shifted from Pune forever by Aurangzeb. Currently
Lal Mahal houses a museum.
In the same area we can see some
heritage buildings like below:
Then I reached Shaniwar Wada. Built
in 1732, this was the seat of the great Peshwa Rulers of the Maratha Empire
from where they ruled over most part of India for a long period. Inside the
fort they had their grand multi-storied palace made from teak wood which was
gutted in a fire reportedly started by the British after the later had captured
it.
If you have watched the recent
movie Bajirao Mastani which is based on the life of Peshwa Bajirao I; the
palace shown in the movie is based on the actual palace which was inside
Shaniwar Wada - the palace-fort which was built by Peshwa Bajirao I. The river
shown in the movie which Peshwa Bajirao sails in a boat in a famous scene, is
the Mula-Mutha river in Kasba Peth which is very near to the fort.
A splendid statue of Peshwa
Bajirao I is installed outside the main gate called ‘Dilli Darwaja’ of the Shaniwar
Wada.
Some other buildings and scenes which I came across are put below. Some of these are beautiful heritage buildings too.
The last picture sums up my
experience very well – pleasant!
Although I have presented it in
images, my experience could best be called poetic. Nothing but poetic.
Btw, you may also like to see my other blog post capturing images of the temples of Pune which I came across during my visit:
Btw, you may also like to see my other blog post capturing images of the temples of Pune which I came across during my visit:
All pictures (C) - Rahul Tiwary
1 comment:
Very interesting.
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