Adalaj Vav
Ahmedabad is a city of color, full of lights and having rich heritage. Recently i had a pleasure of visiting one of the beautiful ,intricately carved stepwell known as “Adalaj Ni Vav”. A Vav in Gujarati means Stepwell - A well that is accessed through many steps.
As everybody knows the importance of weekends in corporate world.My friend jenny and i were eagerly waiting for outing on sunday.So we have decided to visit these beautiful vav.So the fun has been started.In morning arround 9:00 AM we left for Adalaj.The atmosphere was very pleasant.We reached there by 11:00 AM.It’s too late!! right..?I’ll tell you the reason.When we reached at Nirma University ,I have seen one small farm ,I told her to stop as she was driving.We had taken the permission and then after we went inside.We had clicked some photos over there and the most amazing thing which we had found was the “Banyan Tree” .We were swinging with it’s branches.It was a great fun.
Prior to going to Adalaj, I was warned by a lot of people about how dirty the place was and how bad their experience of Adalaj was, but I was pleasantly surprised when I saw a clean courtyard leading to the step well.The structure is still awesome but there is a need to do with some maintenance work. It was almost dry and has a very stinky smell due to less maintenance. Yet, it attracts a number of visitors drawn to its beauty and architectural brilliance.I was surprised to see the architectural design of it.
History :-
As soon as we were going inside Vav ,One guide came and told us the story behind the Vav.
The well was started by Rana Veer Singh Vaghela, as a place where travellers and locals could rest and get water from. But before he could complete the construction of the well, his kingdom was attacked by neighbouring sultan – Mohammed Begda and he died in the battle.When Mohammed Begda later saw the queen of the kingdom, Rani Rudabai, he fell for her and asked her for marriage. Rani accepted the offer but also said she wanted to complete the well before the marriage and asked Begda to help to complete the construction. Bedga obliged and thus the 5 storeyed brilliance came into existence. But soon after, when it was time for the queen to accept matrimony, she killed herself by jumping into the well.It was a grievous end what’s say!?
The design of Islamic Architecture blend very well with the symbols of Hindu and Jain gods carved at various level of well.The design on its wall includes flowers,leaves,fish,birds and other dizzling ornamental designs.It has five storeys. There were an awesome balconies with superb carvings on both the sides of the steps.Everyone would like to take snap inside it.The rooms inside would always be cooler than the atmosphere of outside.I must say it is the best place for photography.Vav is surrounded by beautiful garden so you can sit over there. Another remarkable feature of this stepwell is that out of the many stepwells in Gujarat, it is the only one with three entrance stairs.Mostly people can take one hour to visit the vav.
When To Go :-
As Adalaj vav is very close to Ahmedabad ,Don’t visit in Summer because the temperature is too high in summer.Winter is the best time for visit.
How To Reach :-
Adalaj Vav is situated in village of Adalaj which is 20 kilometer from Ahmedabad.If you have vehicle then you can go with that else You can take private taxi from ahmedabad.
You can also take auto from ahmedabad city .It will charge you 250-300 Rs.It takes 45 minutes to reach.
Another Stepwells Near Ahmedabad :-
Rani ki Vav
Dada Harir Vav
Helical Stepwell
Visiting Timings :-
Everyday 10:00 am to 7:00 pm.
Vav is just “Wow”.So make a plan for it.It will be fun.
0 comments: