Friends’ Center, Royal Gardens of Rajnagar / Dharatal
Textual content material description provided by the architects. Dharatal was commissioned by the Belgian Chapter of the Indian Perception for Rural Heritage and Development (ITRHD) in 2016 to design a Friends’ Centre for Pateriya ka bagh, Rajnagar in a development adjoining to an current Shiva temple the place an earlier kothi as quickly as stood. The Center acts as an interpretation center for the Royal Gardens of Rajnagar along with a training center in pure farming for the native farmers, vocational teaching for ladies and youth, and a venue to host the pure seed monetary establishment run by the native individuals.
Pateriya ka Bagh is doubtless one of many fifteen royal produce gardens specified by Rajnagar by the royal family of Chhatarpur, Madhya Pradesh between the 18th and nineteenth centuries all through Bundelkhand. ITRHD funded the conservation of these royal gardens, beforehand known as the Misplaced Gardens of Khajuraho. These gardens share an similar spatial typology – ranging from 3 to 6 acres; each is walled with an entrance gate, a Shiva temple, an outhouse/kothi, memorial platforms/samadhis with a draw-well, stepwell, and irrigation channels. The design intention was to create a updated architectural sort with a Bundeli soul with out making a mere copy of the earlier kothi and incorporating typical establishing strategies.
The kothi is a load-bearing development, made primarily with lime, stone, and bricks. Following the distinctive plan, the development has one room with adjoining steps to entry the roof. The design of the steps was composed to invoke the feeling of a stepwell, typical of a Bundeli yard. The tall stairwell tower located throughout the south casts a shadow in route of the north over the roof of the hall, conserving it cooler. The verandah throughout the entrance was extended as a venue for neighborhood events harking back to individuals music stay exhibits, neighborhood feasts all through festivals, and lots of others. The elevational proportions and projections of the kothi adjust to these of the adjoining temple and as seen throughout the completely different royal gardens.
The interiors are naturally lit with indirect lighting. The rectangular fenestrations have centrally pivoted arched picket doorways. Openings alongside the rear wall had been prevented to adjust to the design of the distinctive kothi and to cut the merciless west photo voltaic. This wall serves as an exhibition wall for the present of panels. A criss-cross pattern terracotta jaali has been provided beneath the slab diploma for cross air movement. The pattern of the jaali is impressed by the house home windows throughout the historic constructions found all through Bundelkhand.
Considered one of many distinctive architectural interventions is the three jharokhas (balconies) throughout the kothi. They’re a updated expression, superior and impressed by the usual sort of Bangaldar jharokhas. Each jharokha was crafted by assembling gadgets of powder-coated Aluminium in situ. Comfortable ramps are included into the design making the Friends’ Center and the lavatory block located on the rear, accessible to all. The roof slab of the kothi was made using domestically obtainable gneiss stone. The Friends’ Center for the Royal Gardens of Rajnagar in Pateriya ka Bagh was inaugurated on thirtieth April 2022.
