Sunday, April 28, 2013

Huzoor Palace @ Porbandar

     I am in the land of 'The Mahatma' or 'Bapu' or 'Mahatma Gandhi' as the world knows him. Porbandar is his place of birth. This painting is of the 150 room palace of the erstwhile King of the erstwhile state of Porbandar. It was built in the early 20th century by the then King Natwar Singh. He named it 'Huzoor Palace'. Huzoor can be roughly translated as 'My Lord'. But before he could enjoy the fruits of his labour, India gained independence and his kingdom became a part of the Indian Union. Devastated, he migrated to UK. His son who inherited this palace keeps visiting but either due to lack of interest or resources, the palace is in a state of disrepair. What surprised me most was that the locals do not even know his name... so neither do I. What an irony, all this wealth and prosperity could not give him recognition. But, the whole world remembers Mahatma Gandhi who was born in a small house in this same place. It goes to prove that all your wealth cannot buy you what your good deeds can.
     Hope you all enjoyed this small bit of history and also like this work.