Neermahal (''Twijilikma Nuyung''; lit. "Water Palace") is a former royal palace built by Maharaja of

Tripura Kingdom The Twipra Kingdom (Sanskrit: Tripura, Anglicized: Tippera) was one of the largest historical kingdoms of the Tripuri people in Northeast India. Geography The present political areas which were part of the Twipra Kingdom are: * Barak Valley ...

'' Bir Bikram Kishore Manikya bahadur'' of the erstwhile Kingdom of Tripura, India in the middle of the lake Twijilikma (Now known as Rudrasagar) in the 1930s. It is situated in

Melaghar Melaghar is a small town located in the India, Indian States and territories of India, state of Tripura and a Municipal Council in Sipahijala district, situated about 50 km (approx. 30 miles) from the capital Agartala. It is a neighbour to ...

, 53 kilometers away from Agartala, the capital of

Tripura Tripura (, Bengali: ) is a state in Northeast India. The third-smallest state in the country, it covers ; and the seventh-least populous state with a population of 36.71 lakh ( 3.67 million). It is bordered by Assam and Mizoram to the ea ...

. The palace is situated in the middle of Rudrasagar Lake and assimilates

Hindu Hindus (; ) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pages 35–37 Historically, the term has also been used as a geographical, cultural, and later religious identifier for ...

architectural style.

History

The palace was built in the 1930s.

Architecture

The palace is the largest of its kind 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 ...

and the only one in Eastern India. It is so huge, it cannot be fit into a single picture frame on the standard camera until you are at a distance of approximately 800 metres from the entrance. There are only two water palaces in India, the other one being the

Jal Mahal Jal Mahal (meaning "Water Palace") is a palace in the middle of the Man Sagar Lake in Jaipur city, the capital of the state of Rajasthan, India. The palace was originally constructed in 1699; the building and the lake around it were later r ...

Rajasthan Rajasthan (; lit. 'Land of Kings') is a state in northern India. It covers or 10.4 per cent of India's total geographical area. It is the largest Indian state by area and the seventh largest by population. It is on India's northwestern s ...

. However, the latter is significantly smaller in size than Neermahal. Known as the ‘lake palace’ of Tripura, Neer-Mahal was constructed as a summer residence. It was Maharaja Bir Bikram Kishore Manikya Debbarma's idea to build a palace amidst the splendid Rudrasagar lake and in 1921 he accredited the British company Martin and Burns to construct the palace for him. The company took nine years to complete the palace. Maharaja Bir Bikram Kishore Manikya Debbarma belonged to the ‘

Manikya Dynasty The Manikya dynasty was the ruling house of the Twipra Kingdom and later the princely Tripura State, what is now the Indian state of Tripura. Ruling since the early 15th century, the dynasty at its height controlled a large swathe of the north- ...

’ which is supposed to be the second longest remaining dynasty in the world today. The palace is the establishment of the Maharaja’s great taste and his fascinating idea of blending Medieval Hindu and Muslim traditions and cultures. The palace is divided into two parts. The western side of the palace is known as Andar Mahal. It was made for the royal family. The eastern side is an open-air theatre where drama, theatre, dance and other cultural events were organized for the enjoyment of Maharajas and their royal families. The palace has 24 rooms in total. Neer-Mahal has two stairways inside leading down to a landing on the water of Rudrasagar Lake. Maharajas used to go to the palace by hand powered boat from ‘Rajghat’. On the ceiling, the palace houses one of the most beautiful terrace gardens of India, though poor maintenance and lack of exposure to tourists has led to the depletion of beauty and splendor.

References

External links

* {{coord, 23, 29, 43, N, 91, 19, 12, E, region:IN_type:landmark_source:kolossus-frwiki, display=title Palaces in Tripura Sipahijala district