Jaipur is one of the most fascinating cities in India. It is the capital of norther state of Rajasthan, however, there is one distinct identity that it holds. It is called the pink city of India.
To know the reason why Jaipur is called the pink city of India, we need to travel back in history and understand the events that led to this historic city of Kings and aristocrats be named the pink city of India.
What was the reason for Jaipur to be named Pink city of India
The reason that Jaipur has been popularized with the name of Pink City is because of the color of the stone exclusively used for the construction of all the building and structures.
Anyone who has witnessed the city can confirm the fact that all the buildings of Jaipur are pink in color.
Why are all the buildings pink in color?
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Amer Fort Jaipur -
Hawa Mahal Jaipur
It was in the year 1876, the Prince of Wales and Queen Victoria was to visit colonial India on a tour.
Since pink was considered to be the color of hospitality, Maharaja Ram Singh of Jaipur painted the whole city pink in color to welcome the guests.
Prince Albert spent a mammoth 17 weeks conducting royal duties throughout the Indian subcontinent but he grew tired and lonesome of his official engagements as he was without his dear wife, Victoria.
For Indian leaders, this was an ideal opportunity to strengthen ties to the British aristocracy and gain personal favors with the Royal family.
The Maharaja of Jaipur was one of the richest and most powerful men in India and he impressed the British court like no other.
Maharaja Sawai Ram Singh II first strategy was to ensure Albert would visit Jaipur and to succeed in this he constructed a lavish concert hall and named it in honor of the prince.
The exquisite Albert Hall stands amid the carefully laid out grounds of the Ram Niwas Public gardens and can be visited by tourist today.
With Prince Albert enticed to Jaipur, the Maharaja set about beautifying his city and this included repainting the entire city.
It was then that English Lord Albert exclaimed Jaipur to be a ‘Pink City’, and hence Jaipur is known as Pink City
A law was later passed directing all buildings in the area to be painted the same color.
How did it manage to stay pink till now?
The answer lies with Maharaja Sawai Ram Singh’s favorite wife who adored the colour scheme.
The queen with her private ear to the maharaja convinced him to pass a law making it illegal for buildings to be painted any other color than Jaipur Pink.
This law passed in 1877 still remains in effect today and helps transform the otherwise polluted and dirty city into the pink city, albeit a grimy shade of pink.
Every building within the walled historic center also called as CHAR DIWARI is painted a terracotta “pink” color. Even today the by the order of chief minister the city gets painted pink on every Diwali to the keep it up with its name.
If you get to visit this tourist attraction you can see the rich heritage of Jaipur is decorated with this color and the design of popular rajasthani paintings over it
