Vernacular houses of Bikaner district - Jalwali house, and Jaisalmer district - Khidrat house

1. VERNACULAR ARCHITECTURE
OF
RAJASTHAN
1 – JALWALI HOUSE
2 – KHIDRAT HOUSE
MADHU SAGAR (2BV14AT028) ; SHREYA WADEKAR (2BV14AT045)
SOURCE : THE MUD ARCHITECTURE OF INDIAN DESERT
-KULBHUSHAN JAIN
-MINAKSHI JAIN

2. MADHU SAGAR
1V – SEM , B.ARCH
2BV14AT028
BVBCET
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JALWALI HOUSE
BIKANER DISTRICT
RAJASTHAN
•State – Rajasthan
•Area – 27,244 km2
•Coordinates – 27o 11’ – 29o 03’ N
71o 54’ – 74o 12’ E
•Altitude – 238 mts above MSL.
•Population – 6,42,550
•Density of Population – 78 per km2
POPULATION MALE-RURAL
(8,21,434)
MALE-URBAN
(4,19,367)
FEMALE RURAL
(7,42,119)
FEMALE-URBAN
(3,81,017)
LITERACY
MALE-LITERATE (40%)
MALE-ILLITERATE
(12.6%)
FEMALE-LITERATE
(25.3%)
FEMALE-ILLITERATE
(22.1%)
Month Jan Feb Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C 23.0 25.5 38.2 41.7 41.6 37.8 36.6 36.7 36.2 30.7 25.3 33.76
Average low °C 5.6 8.8 22.1 26.8 28.8 27.7 26.8 24.7 19.1 12.1 6.9 18.7
Average precipitation m
m
5 7 7 31 46 106 71 34 4 3 1 325
Average precipitation
days
0.8 1.0 0.9 2.6 3.2 6.6 5.6 3.0 0.6 0.3 0.5 26.6
SUMMER MAX.
TEMPERATURE
48 0C
SUMMER MIN.
TEMPERATURE
28 0C
WINTER MAX.
TEMPERATURE
22 0C
WINTER MIN.
TEMPERATURE
4 0C
RAINFALL 25 cm
•The smaller villages north of Bikaner epitomize true Indian village.
•The main activity of the desert region is agriculture and dairy
products.
•The farmers produce millet and other grains for their own
consumption as well as to sell.
•These villages show very few signs of progress.
•Occasionally, some villages near the bus route area are seen to
have more modern facilities, like electricity.
•It is in the interior villages that one finds some of the most beautiful
mud forms in an undisturbed, vernacular architectural environment.
• The village of Jalwali is situated in this region on an uneven terrain.
• Here, the houses are compactly grouped within a network of
narrow meandering paths.
• Generally, each of these houses has a private inner courtyard and
a semi-private outer courtyard for the cattle.
• The most significant and typical feature is the entrance gate of
these houses, and also their unique grain and other storage jars
made of mud.
• The streets of the village of Jalwali are defined by the long
boundary walls or hedges of the outer courtyards of the houses.
• An occasional entrance gate enlivens these walls or hedges.
• The various sizes and shapes of these entrance gates symbolize
transition and proclaim individual territory and identity.
• The structure of this element houses and supports the entrance
door.
• The mud walls of the boundary are heightened at this to cover the
doorway in shape of an arch, a triangle or a square.
• A few niches may be provided for lamps.
• The selection of the form of this element is always special and
individual, and means a lot to the residents.
• Any single street is dotted with a number of entrance elements and
made interesting in that manner.
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3. MADHU SAGAR
1V – SEM , B.ARCH
2BV14AT028
BVBCET
SHEET NO.REMARKS
•In the plan form, the houses have an enveloping
quality with the inner courtyard as the nucleus.
•The mud walls of the rooms and the encircling
walls with their numerous storage elements, are the
first envelope around their private open-to-sky
domain.
•The outer envelope encloses the open space for
animals, the rooms for visitors, the storage area for
fuel-wood and areas for other, less private
activities.
•The entrance gate is the main reference point.
•The guest rooms are in one corner and are away
from the main house.
•These indicate the need for privacy in line with
social custom.
•The guest rooms have platforms in the front.
•These rooms might also be used for storage
purposes or to house animals during conditions of
severe heat or cold.
•The floor of this court is left unfinished and is often
left in its natural condition.
•The main house is entered through a small
opening in a low mud wall, separating the two
courtyards.
•Two rectangular rooms on the two sides and one
circular jhompa right across the entrance
surrounding the internal space which is open to
sky.
•The circular jhompa has conical thatched roof.
•The rectangular rooms have flat roof.
•Symmetrically placed rooms, emphasize the
entrance door of the circular jhompa when
observed from the gate.
•It is also the seat of the head male member of the
family.
•The view of the entrance from the jhompa is
important, both visually and socially.
•The circular jhompa is the main living space while
the rectangular rooms are for children and
members of the family.
JALWALI HOUSE
BIKANER DISTRICT
RAJASTHAN
Sl No COLOUR MEANING
1 PUBLIC ZONE
2 SEMI-PUBLIC ZONE
3 SEMI-PRIVATE ZONE
4 PRIVATE ZONE
SECTION
PLAN
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4. •On the two diagonal walls linking the rooms, are seen grain storage units of various sizes,
built of mud.
•Since they are hand-made, the heights, depths and widths of each differ from one another.
•The sizes of these grain storage units are such that access to them is possible only from
the outside, as in case of a large bottle.
•A storage unit is never entered into.
•The conical top is closed once the dried grain is placed within and it is then locked.
•At Jalwali, these storage units stand out due to their shapes and the architectural
composition of their forms.
•Unlike other places, where single storage units were found, this village had many units
within one house, perhaps due to the prosperity of the local farmers or their need to protect
themselves from draught.
•The functional and sculptural storage units have two openings, the larger one near the top
and the smaller one at the bottom.
•The upper opening generally has a lockable shutter.
•The lower opening is small and used for the daily quota of food grains.
•A cotton rag is used to plug it.
•The walls of the storage jars are 15 to 20 centimeters thick, with stone or wood on base,
and the jars are propped up from the floor on fixed stilts.
•They are replastered every year before new grains are stored.
•The hand made storage units are never identical.
•Such variations of detail add to the beauty of these mud houses and give them a highly
personalized look within a generic order.
•However, the surface treatment differs.
MADHU SAGAR
1V – SEM , B.ARCH
2BV14AT028
BVBCET
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JALWALI HOUSE
BIKANER DISTRICT
RAJASTHAN
STORAGE UNITS OF DIFFERENT SHAPE AND SIZE AND DIFFERENT HOMES. RECTANGULAR ROOMS WITH FLAT ROOF
BESIDE STORAGE UNITS.
LESS
CONVENTIONAL
ENTRY DIRECTLY
INTO SEMI-
PRIVATE
COURTYARD
STORAGE UNIT
3

5. SHREYA WADEKAR
1V – SEM , B.ARCH
2BV14AT045
BVBCET
REMARKS
KHIDRAT HOUSE
JAISELMER DISTRICT
RAJASTHAN
Area: 5.1 km²
Elevation:
225 m Weather: 18°C,
Wind: N at 18 km/h, 40%
Humidity: 65,471 (2011)
Jaisalmer is a former medieval trading
center and princely state in the western
Indian state of Rajasthan, in the heart of
the Thar Desert. Known as the "Golden
City," it's distinguished by its yellow
sandstone architecture. Dominating the
skyline is Jaisalmer Fort, a sprawling hilltop
citadel buttressed by 99 bastions. Behind its
massive walls stand the ornate Maharaja's
Palace and intricately carved Jain
temples.
TOURISM
• Tourism is a major industry in Jaisalmer.
• Jaisalmer is one of the most preferred event organizing destinations in Rajasthan.
• Jaisalmer is also known for its leather bags made from the camels in the district.
• Jaisalmer is connected to rest of rajasthan by buses provided by rajasthan state transport
corporation and other private bus operators.Airport is currently inactive.
• Jaisalmer is connected to rest of india.There are daily trains between jaipur and jaisalmer.
Jaisalmer is connected to delhi by jaipur route.Additionally there exists a luxurious train palace
on wheels for tourists
While Jaisalmer may always have been remote, it is filled with many artistic structures and
monuments of local historical importance.
• Jaisalmer's medieval mud fortress and walled township make it a popular tourist destination. The
surrounding desolate landscape evidences a stark, austere beauty.
• Camel safaris through the nearby desert dunes are popular with tourists; competition for business is
fierce.
• Prices range wildly and one has to bargain for everything, hotel rates included.
• A few quiet days spent wandering around the town and the surrounding desert can be a
wonderful way of unwinding from the chaos of larger Indian cities
In the village the caste system is very much prominent . Each sector of caste have their own specific
dwellings inside the village.
Brahmins stayed together but away from harijans and so on.
The houses of lower caste people are comparitely well maintained
Better designed and maintained with paint , several factors act in the favour of these craft-oriented
people who value hard work.
They have plenty of time they are talented and gifted artisans both embleshing their home and
themselves
They bring joy and happiness to their otherwise isolated life.
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6. SHREYA WADEKAR
1V – SEM , B.ARCH
2BV14AT045
BVBCET
REMARKS
KHIDRAT HOUSE
JAISELMER DISTRICT
RAJASTHAN
The village of Khidrat spreads over both
sides of road with mud jhompas and three
layer of thatch clearly being visible on one
side and other with tin and country tile
rectangular roofs .
The later type of house shows an early stage
of contemporary house development.
The older side of the village with its clusters
of circular jhompas has about 50 houses
loosely positioned
Khidrat is a small village situated 60km from Bikaner.
The main activity of these people was agriculture
and dairy.
It is often seen in the village that woman folk wear
the same colour of clothing in khidrat the colour was
maroon red to compliment the brown and muddy
nature of the soil.
mud replastering is done Every year after it rains, for
farmers nature establishes the cycle.
After the damage caused by rain and as they are
comparatively free the damage done to their houses
is repaired and the houses are replastered.
KHIDRAT HOUSES Three kinds of plan formation are observed
in this village
• In the larger houses the the inner courts
are for the people and outer for the
cattle
• In the second category the houses are
without courtyards for animals and the
animals rest outside the inner court wall
• The third category of houses has two
jhompas with ottas but without coutyards.
The inside and outside of the house are
strongly defined by an emphatic entrance.
The most special element in these houses
are the conical thatched roof .
.
The materials used in making the thatch are
the main twigs from jowar , bajara or millet
from their agricultural production
The gates of these houses are generally
made of natural logs. The log branch is
often fixed to another similar forked one so
they are locked together .
These rough logs are about 15-20 cm in
diameter and are heavy to lift .
These gates are placed to keep the
animals away , a large stone bowl filled with
water is placed just outside the entrance
and the roof is constructed with hay.
In unbearable
summer days the
jhompas with its 3
layered thatched
roof keep the
inside environment
cool.
Typically, each house has open courtyard
around which 5-6 jhompas are posted.
A low wall defines the court
The outer boundary walls are defined with
weed hedges on vertical stone strips.
Walls are mud platered
The personal rooms are small where the
courts are large
the people built only to the minimum extent
so they wasted very little . By scooping out
depressions or adding projections they
created little thick plastered niches which
held oiled lamps for their deities.
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