Inhabitants Of The Inimitable

Rajasthan, in western India, is geographically the largest state of the country. Although famous for its desert landscape, awe-inspiring forts and palaces, it is the locals that give Rajasthan its authentic flavour. MARWAR presents a selection of photographer Sudhir Kasliwal’s works that immortalise the grand monuments and local folk.

- Sudhir Kasliwal

Tucked into the Thar Desert, on the north-west, geographically the largest state of the country, Rajasthan is known for its rich history. Hundreds of forts and palaces stand tall as testimonies to timeless stories of wars and valour, battles and treaties, victory and defeat, love and hate. Rajasthan has through the years lined the contours of conversations for its monuments and palaces.

Many of these are architectural marvels with their stunning geometry and detail in design. While Amber Fort seamlessly brings together Rajput and Mughal architecture in its arches and murals, Hawa Mahal takes you back in time to the annual procession of Taaziyas on Muharram, and to the processions of the Goddess and her cavalcade on Teej and Gangaur that cruise through the nearly 300-year-old walled city of Jaipur year after year.

But it is beyond the relics of grandeur that the soul of Rajasthan resides, in the people and concerns that move them. The people, armed with their resilient spirit, make the Thar Desert the most populated desert in the world and live their lives not with the spirit of survival but with the spirit of celebration.