Hawa Mahal

Jaipur, Rajasthan, India

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Hawa Mahal, meaning “Palace of Winds,” is a iconic five-storey pink sandstone palace in the heart of Jaipur, Rajasthan, built in 1799 by Maharaja Sawai Pratap Singh and designed by architect Lal Chand Ustad as an extension to the women’s chambers of the City Palace.

Its most striking feature is the honeycomb-like front facade, which is 50 feet (15 m) high and decorated with 953 small, latticed windows or jharokhas that allow cool breezes to flow through the building, creating natural ventilation and giving the structure its name, while also enabling royal women to observe street life and festivals without being seen.

The palace is dedicated to Lord Krishna and is said to resemble his crown, blending Hindu Rajput and Islamic Mughal architectural styles through elements like domes, canopies, fluted pillars, stone inlay filigree, and arches, and it is often described as the tallest building in the world constructed without a traditional foundation, leaning slightly at an 87-degree angle to stay upright.

Today, maintained by Rajasthan’s archaeological department and renovated in 2006, Hawa Mahal is open to tourists from 9:00 am to 4:30 pm, with entry fees around Rs. 10 for Indians and Rs. 50 for foreigners, and it remains one of the most photographed and recognizable symbols of Jaipur and Rajasthan.