KULDHRA: - THE VICTIM OF TYRANY
OR
THE NIGHT OF FORCED DESERTION
Seventeen kilometers from Jaisalmer, off the Sum road, was once a flourishing town on the shores of river kak. Than some thing strange happened one night some two hundred years back that the entire village was deserted en-mass, but the town, its ambience and its legend still exist. That fateful night as many as 700 households of Kuldhra village vacated their homes en-mass, along with the residents of 84 other villages, to go to another faraway land and to create a New World. Their 700 houses though in ruined condition still stand till today as testimony to their forced desertion.
But it wasn’t like this always. A few hundred years back Kuldhra was a living town full of activity and business. Its streets bustling with life, children playing in the courtyards, well dressed women performing the daily household activities and men conducting business.
Kuldhra and its adjoining 84 villages were resided by the community of Palliwals. According to epigraphic sources the names of some of these villages are Badiyada, Kotada, Gunga, Jasera, Nagdara, Mandai, Khodal Sadhu, Kediyasar, Bijorai, Dangari, Kotara, Sitodai, Jasuwa, Unda, Devikot, Bando Rodi, Modha, Niwan, Pithodai, dhanawa, Pipalda, Basanpir, Bhujkantha, khaba, Kuldra, Ridhu, Nimiya, Dholay, manakya, Khinwalsar, Bisal and many others
These residents were Brahmins and were denominated as Palliwal from having been temporal proprietors of Palli, and all its lands, long before the Rathores colonized Marwar. Tradition is silent as to the manner in which they became possessed of this domain, but it is connected with the history of Palli, or pastoral tribes, who from the town of Pali to palithana, in saurashtra, have left traces of their existence.
These brahmins, the Palliwals, as appears by the annals of Marwar, held the domain of Palli but were frequently looted by the mair and meena looters and Muslim invaders. According to the historical records of Marwar, they engaged Rao Siha, the progenitor of Rathore families of Marwar, Bikaner and Kishangarh to protect their properties. But Rao Siha at the end of 12th century, by an act of treachery established his own power. Because of the taxes imposed by Rao Siha on the Palliwals and due to extortion and atrocities Palliwals migrated from Palli. The greater part took refuge in Jaisalmer, though many settled in Bikaner, Dhat, and the valley of Sinde. In jaisalmer Palliwals settled in Kuldhra and 84 other villages in the early 13th century approximately.
As the Palliwals were wealthy and mercantile in nature and agriculturists of very high order in Jaisalmer also they soon captured the main business of finance and trade. At one time their number in Jaisalmer was calculated to equal that of the Rajpoots. Almost all the internal trade of the country passed through their hands, and it was chiefly with their capital that its merchants traded in foreign parts. They were the Sahookars of the desert, advancing money to the cultivators, taking the security of the crop; and they used to buy all the wool and ghee (clarified butter), which they transported to Sinde, Afganistan, Baloochistan and other foreign parts. They also reared and kept cattle flocks.
Apart from doing so well in business and enjoying great wealth Palliwals also developed well planned towns and villages. That they had fine taste and very good knowledge of town planning is evident from the remains of Kuldra, which was a developed town and business center of that time. According to TAVAREEKH-JAISALMER written by Mohata Nathmal there were 20 thousand houses of Palliwals in the 84 villages and approximately a hundred thousand Palliwal families used to live in these villages. The architecture of their houses is a very fine example of Vaidic and ancient roman style. The houses are in straight lines and every house has a courtyard and kitchen. There are big chhatters and “chabootras” for people to meet. All houses are equipped with easy approach to the roof to enjoy the evening breeze. There is provision of space for cattle and also a place for the bullock cart. In some houses there is space to keep horses.
But all this glory beauty and wealth are the things of past. Kulhdra and all other Palliwal villages are deserted now. The remains of Kulhdra stand a silent witness to that night of 1817ad approximately when such a flourishing village was deserted. Though no certain cause for the desertion is known, there is a legend which is still survives.
According to legend the Deewan of Jaisalmer state Mohata Salam Singh, who was a tyrant had a roving eye. Enchanted by the beauty of a Kuldra belle, he wanted to claim her. The Palliwals took it as a great insult to their clan opposed it and stood in revolt. It was a tussle for power as well as question of saving the self-respect for the Palliwals. They tried to approach the king but could not succeed. Salam Singh was so powerful that he virtually ruled the state by himself. The king was a mere puppet in his hands.Salam Singh left Palliwals with no option. He issued an ultimatum. “hand over the girl or I’ll come and claim her tomarrow” the farman read. So the entire village decided to teach the greedy tyrant a lesson.
They evacuated Kuldra and 84 adjoining villages that very same night, taking away the girl Salam Singh was lusting for. It is said that Salam Singh died soon and so did his lineage with no descendent to carry his name.
These villagers migrated and settled down in different parts of north Rajasthan and became pioneers of business and industry. What happened to the girl was never known.
However historians of the time do not agree with this theory of desertion. According to them there is another reason, which explain the en-mass evacuation. It states that Salam Singh had imposed forced levy and extra taxes on the Palliwals as they were very prosperous and were doing roaring business. Angry at being exploited and left with no choices they deserted. Also they were frequently looted and humiliated by robbers and outlaws from the Bhati Rajpoots of Maldots and Tejmalots and no protection was given by the state so they shifted hearth one dark night. Salam Singh was left with bare walls; gapping streets and a haunting silence.
This is how Kuldra is today. A deserted and ruined village of about 700 houses. Broken walls, holes where doors and windows would have once stood, wild shrubs growing in the nooks and corners and hot desert winds blowing through the empty streets.
The streets are there, rows and rows of ruins lined up on either side. But these empty streets and ruins speak. They tell you about the inhabitants, about the villager’s life style, about the art and architecture of that era and the mode of communications used by the villagers.
There are streets crossing at right angles with corners gently bending for easy transportation. The houses made of bricks and stone are solid and sturdy. The roof comprises of woodlogs to insulate the houses from the heat of the desert. The roof of each house is approached through stairs—slabs of stone put in an ascending manner, to enjoy the cool desert evenings. The houses had courtyard. They did not need to visit their neighbors to talk. Opening into the courtyard was a window from the adjacent house facilitating communication. Probably that’s how they passed on the message that fateful night.
Predominantly a Hindu community, Kuldhra still has a huge temple in the middle of the village. Made of red sandstone, it has the delicate Jharokhas cut into the stone. Though the main idol of Krishna is missing, one can see small carvings of Vishnu and Surya in the temple. The roof of the temple is carved out of stone in Jain architectural style. Kuldra also had a chhatter where the villagers gathered together to talk and discuss the events of the day.
Palliwals also were good at water management. They by turning the course of the river water used to create water bodies in the village. On the out skirts of Kuldhra lie four wells, approximately 300 feet deep, covered with stone slabs, to prevent the dirt from seeping into the water.
They even had an alternative when the well dried up. A stepwell of 14th century has been excavated from the sand in Kuldhra known as Pug Baoli 400 steps deep.
Recently the village has been taken up by Jaisalmer development Trust. The village is now a heritage site. The Trust has redone one house, the temple and the chhatter where the villagers of Kuldhra set in the evenings and had their meetings.
Now a days the village in ruins provide a perfect backdrop for film shootings. In the Amir Khan starer Sarfarosh these ruins were made good use.
But standing on the empty streets of Kuldhra, you can still feel the same good old pulsating town with frenetic activity of that night 200 years ago. Some times, a night is all that it takes to change the fate and history of a community for all times to come.
OR
THE NIGHT OF FORCED DESERTION
Seventeen kilometers from Jaisalmer, off the Sum road, was once a flourishing town on the shores of river kak. Than some thing strange happened one night some two hundred years back that the entire village was deserted en-mass, but the town, its ambience and its legend still exist. That fateful night as many as 700 households of Kuldhra village vacated their homes en-mass, along with the residents of 84 other villages, to go to another faraway land and to create a New World. Their 700 houses though in ruined condition still stand till today as testimony to their forced desertion.
But it wasn’t like this always. A few hundred years back Kuldhra was a living town full of activity and business. Its streets bustling with life, children playing in the courtyards, well dressed women performing the daily household activities and men conducting business.
Kuldhra and its adjoining 84 villages were resided by the community of Palliwals. According to epigraphic sources the names of some of these villages are Badiyada, Kotada, Gunga, Jasera, Nagdara, Mandai, Khodal Sadhu, Kediyasar, Bijorai, Dangari, Kotara, Sitodai, Jasuwa, Unda, Devikot, Bando Rodi, Modha, Niwan, Pithodai, dhanawa, Pipalda, Basanpir, Bhujkantha, khaba, Kuldra, Ridhu, Nimiya, Dholay, manakya, Khinwalsar, Bisal and many others
These residents were Brahmins and were denominated as Palliwal from having been temporal proprietors of Palli, and all its lands, long before the Rathores colonized Marwar. Tradition is silent as to the manner in which they became possessed of this domain, but it is connected with the history of Palli, or pastoral tribes, who from the town of Pali to palithana, in saurashtra, have left traces of their existence.
These brahmins, the Palliwals, as appears by the annals of Marwar, held the domain of Palli but were frequently looted by the mair and meena looters and Muslim invaders. According to the historical records of Marwar, they engaged Rao Siha, the progenitor of Rathore families of Marwar, Bikaner and Kishangarh to protect their properties. But Rao Siha at the end of 12th century, by an act of treachery established his own power. Because of the taxes imposed by Rao Siha on the Palliwals and due to extortion and atrocities Palliwals migrated from Palli. The greater part took refuge in Jaisalmer, though many settled in Bikaner, Dhat, and the valley of Sinde. In jaisalmer Palliwals settled in Kuldhra and 84 other villages in the early 13th century approximately.
As the Palliwals were wealthy and mercantile in nature and agriculturists of very high order in Jaisalmer also they soon captured the main business of finance and trade. At one time their number in Jaisalmer was calculated to equal that of the Rajpoots. Almost all the internal trade of the country passed through their hands, and it was chiefly with their capital that its merchants traded in foreign parts. They were the Sahookars of the desert, advancing money to the cultivators, taking the security of the crop; and they used to buy all the wool and ghee (clarified butter), which they transported to Sinde, Afganistan, Baloochistan and other foreign parts. They also reared and kept cattle flocks.
Apart from doing so well in business and enjoying great wealth Palliwals also developed well planned towns and villages. That they had fine taste and very good knowledge of town planning is evident from the remains of Kuldra, which was a developed town and business center of that time. According to TAVAREEKH-JAISALMER written by Mohata Nathmal there were 20 thousand houses of Palliwals in the 84 villages and approximately a hundred thousand Palliwal families used to live in these villages. The architecture of their houses is a very fine example of Vaidic and ancient roman style. The houses are in straight lines and every house has a courtyard and kitchen. There are big chhatters and “chabootras” for people to meet. All houses are equipped with easy approach to the roof to enjoy the evening breeze. There is provision of space for cattle and also a place for the bullock cart. In some houses there is space to keep horses.
But all this glory beauty and wealth are the things of past. Kulhdra and all other Palliwal villages are deserted now. The remains of Kulhdra stand a silent witness to that night of 1817ad approximately when such a flourishing village was deserted. Though no certain cause for the desertion is known, there is a legend which is still survives.
According to legend the Deewan of Jaisalmer state Mohata Salam Singh, who was a tyrant had a roving eye. Enchanted by the beauty of a Kuldra belle, he wanted to claim her. The Palliwals took it as a great insult to their clan opposed it and stood in revolt. It was a tussle for power as well as question of saving the self-respect for the Palliwals. They tried to approach the king but could not succeed. Salam Singh was so powerful that he virtually ruled the state by himself. The king was a mere puppet in his hands.Salam Singh left Palliwals with no option. He issued an ultimatum. “hand over the girl or I’ll come and claim her tomarrow” the farman read. So the entire village decided to teach the greedy tyrant a lesson.
They evacuated Kuldra and 84 adjoining villages that very same night, taking away the girl Salam Singh was lusting for. It is said that Salam Singh died soon and so did his lineage with no descendent to carry his name.
These villagers migrated and settled down in different parts of north Rajasthan and became pioneers of business and industry. What happened to the girl was never known.
However historians of the time do not agree with this theory of desertion. According to them there is another reason, which explain the en-mass evacuation. It states that Salam Singh had imposed forced levy and extra taxes on the Palliwals as they were very prosperous and were doing roaring business. Angry at being exploited and left with no choices they deserted. Also they were frequently looted and humiliated by robbers and outlaws from the Bhati Rajpoots of Maldots and Tejmalots and no protection was given by the state so they shifted hearth one dark night. Salam Singh was left with bare walls; gapping streets and a haunting silence.
This is how Kuldra is today. A deserted and ruined village of about 700 houses. Broken walls, holes where doors and windows would have once stood, wild shrubs growing in the nooks and corners and hot desert winds blowing through the empty streets.
The streets are there, rows and rows of ruins lined up on either side. But these empty streets and ruins speak. They tell you about the inhabitants, about the villager’s life style, about the art and architecture of that era and the mode of communications used by the villagers.
There are streets crossing at right angles with corners gently bending for easy transportation. The houses made of bricks and stone are solid and sturdy. The roof comprises of woodlogs to insulate the houses from the heat of the desert. The roof of each house is approached through stairs—slabs of stone put in an ascending manner, to enjoy the cool desert evenings. The houses had courtyard. They did not need to visit their neighbors to talk. Opening into the courtyard was a window from the adjacent house facilitating communication. Probably that’s how they passed on the message that fateful night.
Predominantly a Hindu community, Kuldhra still has a huge temple in the middle of the village. Made of red sandstone, it has the delicate Jharokhas cut into the stone. Though the main idol of Krishna is missing, one can see small carvings of Vishnu and Surya in the temple. The roof of the temple is carved out of stone in Jain architectural style. Kuldra also had a chhatter where the villagers gathered together to talk and discuss the events of the day.
Palliwals also were good at water management. They by turning the course of the river water used to create water bodies in the village. On the out skirts of Kuldhra lie four wells, approximately 300 feet deep, covered with stone slabs, to prevent the dirt from seeping into the water.
They even had an alternative when the well dried up. A stepwell of 14th century has been excavated from the sand in Kuldhra known as Pug Baoli 400 steps deep.
Recently the village has been taken up by Jaisalmer development Trust. The village is now a heritage site. The Trust has redone one house, the temple and the chhatter where the villagers of Kuldhra set in the evenings and had their meetings.
Now a days the village in ruins provide a perfect backdrop for film shootings. In the Amir Khan starer Sarfarosh these ruins were made good use.
But standing on the empty streets of Kuldhra, you can still feel the same good old pulsating town with frenetic activity of that night 200 years ago. Some times, a night is all that it takes to change the fate and history of a community for all times to come.
2 comments:
The story reminds "Atlus Shrugged" by Ayn Rand in which all productive people just leave their places stoping work in protest against the state.
You have told the story of desertion of Palliwals in moving manner.
a well-written piece on Kuldhara .
Thanks !
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