Saturday August 8, 2009
Champaner without the bubbles
By GRAHAM SIMMONS
The city of Champaner is little visited although it’s on the Unesco World Heritage List.
When Unesco inscribed the Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park on its highly respected World Heritage List five years ago, its citation could not have been more impressive.
“Champaner is a concentration of largely unexcavated archaeological, historic and living cultural heritage properties cradled in an impressive landscape which includes prehistoric sites, a hill fortress of an early Hindu capital and remains of the 16th century capital of the state of Gujarat. The site is the only complete and unchanged Islamic pre-Mughal city.”
Above: The freestanding Sat Karman arches. Champaner is indeed unique. It lies about three hours by road from Ahmedabad, Gujarat’s biggest city. This formerly magnificent metropolis served as the capital of Gujarat for just 53 years (from 1484 to 1537) before being sacked by the Moghuls.
I took a trip from Ahmedabad to Champaner via the city of Vasodara, along the crowded National Highway 8. With its western-style roadhouses, this highway could be anywhere in the US. Until, that is, you get to the Champaner turn-off just north of Vasodara.
The then-extensive and eclectic city of Champaner was first built by the Hindu King Vanraj Chava, back in the Eight Century. Even today its walls and fortifications look thick enough to deter any invader.
Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park, Gujarat — the entrance to Jami Masjid (mosque) This is deceptive. In 1484, the city was captured by one Mahmud Begada, the Muslim Sultan of Gujarat, after a devastating 20-month siege. The city was renamed Muhammedabad, and the capital was moved there from Ahmedabad.
Sultan Begada then went on a 20-year building spree, constructing mosques, palaces, splendid gardens and administration buildings. One of the most notable of his many constructions is the Jama Mosque, which also incorporates Hindu, Buddhist and Jain motifs. Clearly, religious tolerance was the order of the day.
Noted Indian architect Karan Grover spends much of his time at the Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park. It is largely through his efforts that the park was accepted for inclusion on the Unesco World Heritage List. Prior to the listing, the Baroda Heritage Trust, headed by Grover, held a number of design workshops aimed at tackling the complex tasks involved in restoring and conserving the site.
The challenges were many: in brief, Champaner-Pavagadh has many archaeological layers, from prehistoric to postmodern, and many potentially conflicting considerations (pilgrimage, tourism, economic development, forest management and archaeological protection) had to be taken into account.
The Trust finally came up with a masterplan for an archaeological park centred on Champaner City; a cultural sanctuary focussed on Pavagadh Hill; and a series of five trails linking Champaner and Pavagadh.
Grover has little time for mere mortals like myself. Instead, he directs my attention to a comprehensive guide-book which contains a map and plans of all the major excavation sites. This guide is available at the Champaner information centre, and is highly recommended.
There are two main precincts within Champaner. The first is the Hissar-i-Khas, or the Royal Enclosure, housing the present-day Champaner village and government offices. Much of the other precinct, the Jahanapanar, or City of the Sultanate of Champaner, is still buried underground.
Champaner’s extraordinary helical step-well. The biggest structure amongst those so far excavated at Champaner is the Royal Mosque (Masjid-i-shah). No fewer than 112 pillars support the multi-domed roof, with two tall minarets at the front. Stepping inside from the heat of an Indian summer day is like walking into an air-conditioned bank vault.
However, I prefer the smaller Jami Mosque. The spectacular interior somehow conveys an impression of lightness and airiness despite the weight of its huge stone-domed roof. Its amazing acoustics mean that you can almost hear a whisper from the other end of the room. Fifty-two pillars support the roof, while the outside walls are decorated with Buddhist lotus-flower carvings.
But the many sights of Champaner are almost too numerous to mention.
My favourites include the dizzily free-standing arches of Sat Karman; the Kabutarkahana Pavilion perched right out over Vada Talao Lake; the fine tracery of Nagina Mosque; and the views over Champaner from Sat Manzil Hill. The helical step-well, with a spiral stone staircase leading down into its murky depths, is a masterpiece of mediaeval engineering.
Towering over Champaner is Pavagadh Peak, towering more than 700m out of the surrounding plains. From its foothills, you can see the colossal fortified walls, the attack gate with its 72 catapults, Vada Talao Lake, the ponds and the step-wells and all the other trappings of the past days of glory. And atop Pavagadh Peak itself, monkeys and wood pigeons play among the treetops, while leopards are said to roam the slopes at night (mercifully, I didn’t come across any).
Buddhist lotus motifs in a carving on the exterior of the Royal Mosque (Masjid-i-shah). Maa Mahakalika Temple, dedicated to the goddess Kali, also sits atop Pavagadh Peak. Millions of pilgrims make their way to the temple every year. Opposite the temple is a supremely restful (albeit government-run) guesthouse, with 270-degree views over the surrounding countryside. The silence here is palpable, but the patronage meagre.
Sadly, not many people visit Champaner on a day trip out of Ahmedabad. In these days of fast living and restricted schedules, maybe this is understandable. But with views such as those from Pavagadh Peak, who would be in a hurry to leave?
Getting there
Malaysia Airlines flies directly from Kuala Lumpur to Ahmedabad.
To get to Champaner, take Highway 8 from Ahmedabad. Just north of Vadodhara (Baroda), turn left onto the Jaraod-Halol road for about 48km. Champaner is about 5km east of Halol.
WHERE TO STAY Atop Pavagadh Peak, the Government resthouse Hotel Champaner (run by Gujarat Tourism), Tel +91 267 6224 5641, offers great views. Excellent Gujarati thali-style meals are on offer in the hotel’s restaurant.
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