Why is Jaipur called the Pink City? History and facts

The world knows Jaipur, the capital of Rajasthan, as the "Pink City". The buildings of the old city are still painted in a special pink-terracotta colour. But where did the colour come from? Its story is as colourful as Jaipur's history is interesting.

The founding of Jaipur

Jaipur was founded in 1727 by Sawai Jai Singh II, the ruler of Amber. He was himself a scholar of mathematics and astronomy. The city was planned by the architect Vidyadhar Bhattacharya on the principles of the Vastu and Shilpa Shastras. Jaipur is one of India's earliest planned cities — wide, straight streets, orderly rows of markets and a grid that divides the city into blocks.

The story of the pink colour

In 1876 the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VII) visited India. To welcome him, Maharaja Sawai Ram Singh II of Jaipur had the whole old city painted pink, because the colour is seen as a sign of hospitality and welcome. Since then the colour has been Jaipur's identity, and the tradition of keeping the old city's buildings in this colour has continued.

Did you know? In 2019 Jaipur's "Walled City" was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Hawa Mahal

Maharaja Sawai Pratap Singh built the Hawa Mahal in 1799. Its 953 small windows (jharokhas) were made so that the women of the royal family could watch the festivals and processions in the street outside without being seen. The breeze flowing through these windows kept the palace cool even in summer — which is how it got its name, the "Palace of Winds".

Jantar Mantar: an observatory of stone

Sawai Jai Singh built astronomical observatories in Delhi, Jaipur, Ujjain, Varanasi and Mathura. The largest of them is Jaipur's Jantar Mantar, declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2010. Its Samrat Yantra is the world's largest stone sundial and can tell the time to an accuracy of about two seconds.

Amber Fort

Amber Fort, on a hill a few kilometres from Jaipur, was earlier the capital of the Kachhwaha Rajputs. It is part of the "Hill Forts of Rajasthan" group, which became a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2013. Its Sheesh Mahal is famous for its fine mirror work.

How the city is laid out

Old Jaipur was surrounded by high walls with big gates for coming and going — such as Chandpol, Surajpol and the Sanganeri Gate. Inside, the straight grid of streets divided the city into square blocks, and each block was given markets for different craftsmen and traders. Old markets such as Johari Bazaar and Bapu Bazaar still recall this plan.

More interesting things

Delhi, Agra and Jaipur together make up the famous tourist "Golden Triangle".
Jaipur is also known worldwide for gem cutting, blue pottery and block printing.
On Makar Sankranti, Jaipur's sky fills with kites.
Near Jaipur are the Nahargarh and Jaigarh forts; the "Jaivana" cannon kept at Jaigarh is counted among the biggest cannons on wheels in the world.