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Padmavati’s palace is the keeper of many stories

More than 500 years after the legend was born, it continues to live within the walls of Chittor Fort


Who would have thought that the red and gold zardozi ghagras spinning in graceful circles as Deepika Padukone renders the traditional Rajasthani Ghoomar in a fort lit up with a thousand lamps, would invoke the wrath of ministers, religious and women’s groups alike?

Well, no matter which side of the debate you choose to be on, we recommend a visit to the imposing Chittorgarh Fort, where this legend is set. Who knows, you may unravel a few secrets yourself.

Chittorgarh Fort. Photo: Guiziou Franck / / Getty Images
Chittorgarh Fort. Photo: Guiziou Franck / / Getty Images

Who was Padmavati?

The answer will vary depending on who you ask. Rajasthani lore says Padmavati was the queen of Chittor, a woman beautiful beyond words. The first reference of the gorgeous queen of Chittor is in Padmavat, a poem written by Malik Muhammad Jayasi in 1540, more than 200 years after the death of the Sultan of Delhi Alauddin Khilji. Whether the poet’s artistic work was inspired by reality or was simply a creation of his vivid imagination is contested. The ones convinced about the queen’s being however, believe that Padmavati was Rani Padmini, a princess from Sri Lanka who married Rajput ruler Rawal Rattan Singh and moved to Chittor.

The story of Padmavati, who immolated herself to escape an obsessive Allaudin Khilji, has made for interesting folklore and ballads. You can hear some versions of these when you visit Chittor Fort in Chittorgarh, Rajasthan.

The Padmini Palace, Chittorgarh. Getty Images.
The Padmini Palace, Chittorgarh. Photo: RBB/Getty Images.

Padmavati’s home: Chittor Fort

Sitting in southern part of Rajasthan, two hours away from Udaipur, Chittor Fort was built in the seventh century, and is now UNESCO World Heritage Site. At 700 acres, it one of the largest forts in India, and can take more than two hours to explore, not the least because it has several points of interest. The chief attraction is Padmavati’s Palace, a white, three-storeyed structure (a 19th-century reconstruction of the original). Built on the banks of a lotus pool, this is where Alauddin Khilji was purportedly allowed to glimpse Rani Padmini’s reflection on the water. Besotted, Khilji made up his mind to possess her and waged a war on Chittorgarh in 1303. Or so the legend goes.

Apart from Padmini and Rawal Ratan Singh’s palaces, Chittor fort houses intricately carved Jain temples, ornamental pillars, Gaumukh reservoir, considered sacred by the locals and Meerabai’s temple where she worshipped lord Krishna. Rana Kumbha’s palace, one of the most massive monuments in the fort is believed to have underground cellars where Rani Padmini committed jauhar (self-immolation).

Meerabai's temple. Photo: Milind Torney/ Getty Images
Meerabai’s temple. Photo: Milind Torney/ Getty Images

You can hire an official guide to show you around the fort and tell stories of Padmavati. But do stay back for the impressive light-and-sound show that takes place every evening (7pm in English and 8pm in Hindi. Timings change with season). The show will bring you more stories of other important characters like Bappa Rawal, saint-poet Meerabai, Rana Kumbha and Rana Sanga (whose queen Rani Karnavati is also said to have performed jauhar when Bahadur Shah ransacked Chittorgarh) and other historical characters from the fort’s history.

Getting to Chittorgarh:
By road: Udaipur is the closest major city, 105km away. It is also the closest airport. By rail: Several express and passenger trains pass through Chittorgarh.