Khimsar is a
small village situated around 92 km on the highway from
Jodhpur to Bikaner in the northern Indian state of Rajasthan.
The village of Khimsa
r
provides an excellent starting point to explore the district
of Nagaur, which lies midway between Jodhpur and Bikaner.
A FORT IN
MARWAR
Perched on the edge on the great Thar Desert in the heart of
rural India, the unique fort at Khimsar offers a wide range
of experiences. The battle-scarred walls and turrets remind
one of the glorious past of this place
Perched on
the edge of the Great Thar Desert in the heart of virgin
India lies a unique 16th Century fort. Rao Karamsi-the
eighth prince of Rao Jodha-the founding Maharaja of Jodhpur-successfully
launched the royal dynasty at Khimsar. Currently, the 18th,
19th and 20th generations of the royal lineage still reside
in this historic fort.
This fort
architecture offers great heterogeneity. Originally, the
fort walls, turrets and stables were built solely for war,
and were constructed around the beginning of the 16th
Century. Subsequently, by mid 18th century, the royal family
moved in, and a new 'zenana' or ladies' residence was
erected with finely carved windows in stone that provided 'purdah'
or veil for ladies in waiting. Thankur Onkar Singh, the
present chief and the 17th direct desendant of Rao Karamsi
built himself a regal additional wing in the 1940's. Today,
this fort ranks amongst the premier classified Heritage
Hotels of India.
History
On the
highway from Jodhpur to Bikaner, an hour out of the Rathore
stronghold, past the medieval temples of Osian wit
h
their stunning stone carvings, is the small township of
Khimsar. Established by a scion of the house of Jodhpur,
Khimsar was once a small kingdom. And though Jodhpur royalty
claim it was never independent, the Thakurs of Khimsar claim
that not only was it an individual entity, but that one of
the visitors to their ancestral fort was Emperor Aurangzeb
himself. The construction of the fort initially began in
1523 but the family moved in to the fort only during the
18th century after a new zenana or ladies wing was
constructed. Thakur Onkar Singh, the present occupant of the
fort, built a regal wing for himself in 1940s. The pride of
Khimsar today is still that fort, 450 years old and
currently home to the 18th, 19th, and 20th generations of
the Khimsar thakurs
