Ghalib ki Haveli ( ur,

ALA-LC ALA-LC (American Library AssociationLibrary of Congress) is a set of standards for romanization, the representation of text in other writing systems using the Latin script. Applications The system is used to represent bibliographic information by ...

: ''lit.'' "Ghalib's Mansion") was the residence of the 19th century Urdu poet

Mirza Ghalib ) , birth_date = , birth_place = Kala Mahal, Agra, Maratha Confederacy , death_date = , death_place = Gali Qasim Jaan, Ballimaran, Chandni Chowk, Delhi, British India , occupation = Poet , language ...

and is now a heritage site located in the Gali Qasim Jan, Ballimaran,

Old Delhi Old Delhi or Purani Dilli is an area in the Central Delhi district of Delhi, India. It was founded as a walled city named Shahjahanabad in 1648, when Shah Jahan (the Mughal emperor at the time) decided to shift the Mughal capital from Agra. Th ...

and reflects the period when the Mughal era was on the decline in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. The house was given to him by Hakim, a physician who is believed was an enthusiast of his poetry. After the poet's death in 1869, Hakim used to sit there every evening, not allowing anyone enter the building.

About

Mirza Ghalib's

Haveli A ''haveli'' is a traditional townhouse, mansion, manor house, in the Indian subcontinent, usually one with historical and architectural significance, and located in a town or city. The word ''haveli'' is derived from Arabic ''hawali'', mean ...

is located in the

and is a heritage site declared by

Archaeological Survey of India The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) is an Indian government agency that is responsible for archaeological research and the conservation and preservation of cultural historical monuments in the country. It was founded in 1861 by Alexande ...

. It offers an insight into the Mirza Ghalib's lifestyle and architecture of the Mughal Era. The large compound of the

with columns and bricks are the reminiscence of the Mughal Empire in

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...

. The walls are adorned with the huge portrait of the poet and his couplets which are hung around the side walls. After the takeover by the Delhi government the haveli was made into a permanent memorial museum housing objects related to the poet and his times. It also houses various hand written poems by the poet besides his books. The museum also houses a life size replica of the poet in a realistic setting with a hookah in his hand. Portraits of Ustaad Zauq, Abu Zafar, Momin, and other noted contemporaries of Ghalib can also be seen. On 27 December 2010, former Delhi Chief Minister

Sheila Dikshit Sheila Dikshit () (née Kapoor; 31 March 1938 – 20 July 2019) was an Indian politician. The longest-serving Chief Minister of Delhi, as well as the longest-serving female chief minister of any Indian state, she served for a period of 15 yea ...

unveiled a sculpture of the poet that was sculpted by a well known artis
Bhagwan Rampure
and commissioned by poet and Hindi film lyricist

Gulzar Sampooran Singh Kalra (born 18 August 1934), known professionally as Gulzar, is an Indian Urdu poet, lyricist, author, screenwriter, and film director known for his works in Hindi cinema. He is regarded as one of greatest Urdu poets of this ...

. A portrait of Ghalib commissioned by the former president of India Dr.

Zakir Hussain Zakir Hussain ( ur, , link=no) is the name of: * Zakir Husain (politician), an Indian politician and former president of India * Zakir Hussain (actor), Bollywood actor * Zakir Hussain (field hockey) (1934–2019), Pakistani field hockey player * ...

served as the blue print for the sculpture.

History

Ghalib lived in this Haveli for a long period of his life after he came from

Agra Agra (, ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital New Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is ...

. While staying at this Haveli, he wrote his

Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

‘diwans’. Many a year after Ghalib's death the place housed shops inside it until the year of 1999 after which the government acquired a portion of it and renovated it. It was given a special touch with the use of Mughal Lakhori bricks, sandstone & a wooden entrance gate to recreate the 19th century period.

Architecture

It is built using traditional material including

lakhori bricks Lakhori bricks (also Badshahi bricks, Kakaiya bricks, Lakhauri bricks) are flat, thin, red burnt-clay bricks, originating from the Indian subcontinent that became increasingly popular element of Mughal architecture during Shah Jahan, and remained ...

and

lime mortar Lime mortar or torching is composed of lime and an aggregate such as sand, mixed with water. The ancient Egyptians were the first to use lime mortars, which they used to plaster their temples. In addition, the Egyptians also incorporated various ...

Information

Located near Chawri Bazar metro station and

Delhi Junction railway station Delhi Junction railway station is the oldest railway station in Old Delhi, Delhi, India. It is one of the busiest railway stations in India in terms of frequency. Around 250 trains start, end, or pass through the station daily. It was establish ...

it is open to all, with free entry and no photography charges, from 11 am till 6 pm on all days except Monday.

Gallery

File:Genealogy of Ghalib.jpg, Genealogy of Ghalib as displayed at the Ghalib ki Haveli, Old Delhi File:Renovated roof Ghalib ki Haveli.JPG, Renovated roof Ghalib ki Haveli File:A closeup of a page from Ghalib's Diwan.JPG, A page from Ghalib's Diwan reading "Ye na thi hamari qismat..." File:Postal stamp in memory of Ghalib.JPG, Postal stamp in memory of Ghalib, Government of Pakistan File:A book that belonged to Ghalib.JPG, At Ghalib ki Haveli File:Ghalib's favourite pastime.jpg, Ghalib's favourite pastime File:A visual projection of Ghalib.JPG, A visual projection of Ghalib during his leisure time File:A couplet on the walls.JPG, A couplet on the wall

References