Exploring a place called Pilani

With T's Dad taking a position in BITS Pilani, we made a 1 day visit to Pilani in Nov 2010 while visiting our families in Delhi and Jaipur. His family (Dad and Mom) had yet to shift completey to Pilani, so we stayed at the guest house. 

This post will cover a few things in Pilani, its history, BITS campus, Birla family museum, their history and miscellaneous stuff. Some other stuff will be covered in a sequel post when our next visit happens.

Background

Pilani is part of the Shekhawati region in Rajasthan (the wiki page with more info and the Rajsthan Tourism page on Shekhawati region). It is located in the district of Jhunhunu.

Location of Pilani - Image courtesy http://www.bbvpilani.com

It's own claim to fame is that it's the ancestral home of the the famous business family of India, the Birlas, who also run the Birla Institute of Pilani, one of the top engineering colleges in the country which now has 4 campuses (Pilani, Hyderabad, Goa and Dubai). The name Pilani is derived from the name of the Jat fighter with Pilania gotra. He died while protecting the fort and the king honoured him for his courage and valor by giving his name to this town.

Location and Climate and other facts Wikipedia

In 2009, on the World Tourism Day, a special feature on Pilani was carried out. 

Places of interest are :

• Birla family haveli and museum- Built in 1862, the haveli is home to beautiful frescos in Shekhawati style of paintings.
  
• The BITS campus and Science Museum- Mif of old world and new architecture. The museum shows working models of science and technical processes.
• Shiva Ganga-
• Saraswati temple 
  
• Pachwati (Deer Park)- Zoo where you will find mostly deer, but other animals as well
• Hanuman Mandir

  
Pics from our trip to the Birla family museum

The entrance

Beautifully carved door

A window

Ceiling with Hindu deities

Photographs of the Birla family

One of the painted courtyards

200+ year old Tusli (Of Basil family) tree in the center of inner courtyard (women's area of the house)

View of the another courtyard

Women's section of the haveli

Orante and elaborate doorway

The intricate artwork on the walls

No wonder, the Shekhawati region is called the open air art gallery of Rajasthan and even India. 


Some other glimpses of Pilani can be found here, A beautiful set of BITS Pilani pics on flickr

Connectivity: Pilani is connected by road from Delhi (210 Km) and Jaipur (220 Km). Its nearest railhead is Chirawa and L Directions to Pilani can be found here or "to Pilani from Delhi"