Architecture of India  
Firoz Shah and After – 2

The Madrassa at Hauz Khas

To be forgotten - is not the fate of the Madrassa - or religious school - at Hauz Khas - having for company some of the most exclusive (and expensive) restaurants and boutiques in the city. The story of modern Hauz Khas village is all too familiar - of an urban village being hijacked for its (initially) low property prices. Today Hauz Khas sells you India - if you’re a foreigner - neatly packaged, right from ‘antiques’ from Kerala and Tamil Nadu to fabrics to paintings, and when you’re tired of it all, there are the restaurants to relax. And spend some more money.

All this activity, of course, does not detract from the solemnity of the monument. Originally the site of a large water-storage tank built by Ala-ud-Din Khilji, a large school, mosque and his own tomb were added by Firoz Shah. These buildings are laid out in an ‘L’ shape on a high rocky outcrop overlooking the tank. Firoz Shah’s tomb is at the junction of this ‘L’, and is also the highest building there, surmounted by a dome with its interior finely stuccoed.

Exterior surface decorations have long disappeared, of course, so what we are left with is a network of buildings, almost barrack-like in their disposition, with a mosque at one end, and teaching cells at the other, the whole composition hinging on Firoz Shah’s tomb as the pivot. Jaali windows overlooking the tank (and the setting sun) make for a fine place to spend summer evenings, and the whole complex nestles in the midst of a forest - the Deer Park at Hauz Khas.

The major buildings of Firoz Shah’s reign would end here - except for one example. This is the tomb of Khan-i-Jahan Telengani, an official at the court. His tomb, though otherwise decaying, marks a radical design innovation in the sense that for the first time the plan was octagonal instead of square. This may have been done to facilitate the placing of the dome at the summit, which would be far easier over an octagon than over a square. Whatever the reason, this tomb would be the forerunner and model for tombs of the next two dynasties, each of whom would refine it further, and persist even after the Mughal invasion of India.

The Death of Delhi

In the last years of the 14th century, Delhi was invaded by the hordes of Timurlane, the grandson of the terrible Mongol scourge, Chengiz Khan. The decaying empire of the Tughlaqs could offer no more than feeble resistance, and thousands of citizens were slaughtered. Timur left behind him a shattered and emasculated city, which would not rise to its former glory for many decades hence. 

– Ashish Nangia
March 10, 2002

Previous Page 

Top | Architecture of India    

Recommend This Page!

Analysis | Architecture | Astrology | Ayurveda | Book Reviews | Buddhism | Cartoons | Cinema | Computing | Culture | Dances
Environment | Fables | Family Matters | Festivals | Hinduism | Health | History | Home Remedies | Humor | Individuality | Jagoji
Literary Shelf | Memoirs | Musings | Opinion | Parenting | Perspective | Photo Essays | Places | Ramblings
Random Thoughts | Recipes | Sikhism | Society | Spirituality | Stories | Teens | Travelogues | Vastu | Vithika | Women

Home | Hindi | Bolography | BoloKids | Kabir | Poetry | Quotes | Workshop | Writers | Contribute | Search | Contact

Boloji.com is owned and managed by Boloji Media Inc
Privacy Policy | Disclaimer
No part of this Internet site may be reproduced without prior written permission of the copyright holder.