Exploring Shekhawati: Rajasthan’s open-air art gallery of frescoed havelis

Key Takeaways

• “This haveli is at least a hundred years old, so are the frescos in your room,” the bellman tells me proudly as he opens the low-hung wooden door that requires you to bow to enter.
• After five hours on the road from Delhi, I am eager to rest before heading out to explore Churu, one of several towns where you can experience the faded grandeur of Shekhawati.
• Often described as the world’s largest open-air art gallery, this region in northern Rajasthan is known for its dense concentration of 18th–20th Century merchant havelis hand-painted with intricate frescoes.
• What I do not yet realise is that my exploration has already begun, right here inside my room at Malji Ka Kamra, one of several havelis now restored as heritage hotels.
• It blends Italianate details with Rajput architecture, featuring Corinthian columns, arched balconies and stained glass.