Shekhawati

In the northeast part of Rajasthan lies the region known as Shekhawati. A harsh, forbidding land: barren desert, with virtually no annual rainfall, and temperature extremes from below freezing in the winter to over 120 degrees Fahrenheit (50 Celsius) in the summer.

And yet.

In spite of, or perhaps because of the harsh land, the Shekhawati region is home to some of the finest business minds in India. Shekhawats have over the ages prospered via trade, and even in emigration to other parts of the country soon rise to the top of the entrepreneurial landscape. In Shekhawati, such business prosperity led to much building of forts (over 50 in this small region) and scores of palatial mansions (havelis).

Historically, Shekhawati is at the heart of the ancient Vedic civilization, and it is said that the Vedas were written in this land. In the story of the Mahabharata, it is said that the Pandavas (the 5 brothers of whom the famous Arjuna is one) spent one year here in anonymity after their twelve years exile in the forest.

We sojourned in Nawalgarh, one of the most interesting small towns of the Shekhawati region.