Art house hospitality

Place: CHURI AJITGARH

Hotel: VIVAANA

While Vivaana offers the comforts of a modern boutique hotel, its heritage will make your visit memorable

The haveli is an imposing 125 year old richly
adorned erstwhile townhouse

However much you think you have ‘done’ Rajasthan - seen all the majestic forts, lived vicariously as a pretend royal in palace hotels, been to camel safaris and heard desert music, shooed birds and made faces at tigers – from a distance of course, shopped and gorged and swung between the authentic and exotica, along comes the next destination. 

Shekhawati is a special part of Rajasthan. Unlike most of the state, is green, lays high priority to education, exports entrepreneurs and paints its houses as few anywhere do. At first glance Churi Ajitgarh, a little brown hamlet somewhere in the middle of this edge-of-desert region, has little to offer to the tourist. 

Vivaana's best feature are its
original paintings, lovingly restored

But look closer, and every wall of the old havelis of the now twin villages of Churi and Ajitgarh are just waiting for people to decipher their tapestries. A royal court here, traders there, a garden in its splendour, Radha and Krishna dancing, scenes from the ancient myths, impossibly attired people, floral patterns, even British soldiers – it’s a rich tapestry of visual history that entices anyone willing to spend time traipsing around the unpaved, soft twisting lanes that are flanked by many majestic havelis, an occasional mandir, madrasa or johad, and even a colonial style garden, complete with follies with cupolas! Check out Nemani Kothi for the best art. 

Painted havelis are a hallmark of the region, and many today have been restored, some well, others criminally badly. Vivaana, a new boutique heritage hotel, the first in Churi Ajitgarh, has chosen to let its richly painted walls remain as they were, while restoring a two adjacent late 19th century havelis and converting them to a 23-room hotel. For owners Atul and Devna Khanna, it has been a labour of love. And it shows – each room is distinct, stocked with period furniture, and complemented by modern amenities, though no television or refrigerators. 

Paintings cover most wall surfaces at Vivaana. Note the expressions on Radha and Krishna in this work. Priceless.

The rooms even have original frescos – while most have religious or everyday life themes, there are even erotic ones. Restoration took quite a few years, say the Khannas, a Delhi based entrepreneur couple. While they have tried to maintain the traditional look, some changes had to be made for it to be modern hotel. The rooms added washrooms, electricity has been brought in. Some open spaces have been converted (the elephant stable is now the spa). Changes included adding a green colour to doors to rnliven the inner courtyards, a step not well received by purists, recollects Atul Khanna. 

Intach was involved in the restoration, and there is actually a little tucked away museum that illustrates the story of restoration. It offers a fascinating story of how this property transformed to a hotel, from when Khanna and his son Shiven, now a lawyer in Bombay, found this haveli about five years ago to how the former owner's family had to be persuaded to sell an adjoining haveli. 

A grand tea room on the upper level of one the havelis

For the average guest however, a stay here is akin to time travel, albeit with a modern spa, pool, bar, restaurant, tea lounge, library, game room, gardens and other modern facilities. Rich detailing in the selection of interiors, from furniture to crockery to curios, is guaranteed to make the guest delight in quaintly informal home. Look out for the old world safes, the beautiful courtyard flanked on one side the reception, the way the name of the hotel is written outside (on an orange Amby’s numberplate).  Service unsurprisingly is personalized, right from the entry heralded by musicians playing traditional trumpets to gently falling rose petals. 

While an art lover will fall short of time, given the huge expanse of paintings in Vivaana, and indeed Churi Ajitgarh, other options for entertainment are also available, such as camel safaris, admire the visiting peacocks or visits to neighbouring towns such as Mandawa, Nawalgarh and Fatehpur, also known for their painted havelis. The evenings have cultural shows, but you could relax by the pool, or indeed in it, or marvel at the brightness of the stars in the inky blue skies that India’s urban dwellers no longer get at home! Vivaana is a corner of Rajasthan you will be glad to have discovered. 

Churi Ajitgarh has many havelis
that if restored, could make it a
 bigger destination for tourists

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Checklist: 

GETTING THERE: About 260 kms from Delhi, and 142 kms from Jaipur. Easy access by roads, which are of decent quality too! Nearest airports at Jaipur, nearest railway station at Mukundgarh, 5 kms away 

WEATHER: North Indian weather – hot summers, cool winter, can get chilly in the evenings

ROOMS: 23, each unique

AMENITIES: Includes free internet - check connectivity though :); pool, spa, fitness centre, room service, kitchenette; missing - televisions, refrigerators

TARIFF: Mid range