DNA Jaipur 10th Anniversary: Jaipur is where the world comes to India, says Sanjoy K Roy

Jaipur, a city that conjures up tales of love and betrayal, chivalry and sacrifice, of royal processions and regal weddings! Driving in through the city gates of Amber, you are instantly immersed in another era. Sumptuous palaces, majestic forts and temple spires rise above the city as its guardian, surveying the ever-changing landscape from their lofty heights.

Much has changed in the past decade. The trek up to Amber Fort is now smooth. The elephants have their newly refurbished home and the fort itself has been relit, its vast courtyards restored and fabulous lights illuminate the night sky and reinstate the brilliance of the fort’s many gates and pavilions!

Ten years ago, the city had hosted its very first Jaipur Literature Festival. None of us knew then that in a decade it would grow to become the largest literary festival in the world, attracting over 500,000 footfalls over 5 days and capturing the imagination of a global populace of literature-lovers.

Earlier known for the magnificent Amber Fort, home to the erstwhile rulers of Jaipur and a symbol of power and wealth, today Jaipur is synonymous with its many cultural offerings that have been created successfully in the wake of the Jaipur Literature Festival.

The sleepy JKK (Jawahar Kala Kendra) with the cloying smell of cheap disinfectant has transformed itself into a vibrant hub of the visual arts for North India. The Nahargarh Fort is host to India’s contemporary installations and designs. The city’s many railway stations are representative of traditional art from across Rajasthan, each themed to match the story it has set out to tell. The Rajasthan Heritage Week showcases our country’s many textile traditions and the Museum of Legacy brings together the best of India’s traditional (tribal) art. The Masala Chowk at the Albert Museum grounds has created a sense of plenty.

No more are visitors to Jaipur only given an option to travel to Chowki Dhani or visit the bustling bazars and partake of sweets and savouries at LMB (Lakshmi Mishtaan Bhandaar). There is a dizzying array of choice; travel books are bursting at the seams under Jaipur’s “Things to do” sections! The city today is on most people’s bucket list. Dream weddings and celebrations of life events jostle for memory space with those wishing to set up businesses in gems and jewellery or software and technology!

I find entrepreneurs, jewellers, innovators and creators the world over who consider Jaipur home! The city that lives between centuries is a happy amalgamation of the ancient and the modern. A booming night life, gourmet restaurants, malls and high-rise luxury apartments have brought alive a city that went to bed after offering prayers to its benefactor – Lord Ganesh!

I remember in 2010, the head of international affairs in Chicago’s mayoral office asking me where we had got the name Jaipur (in Jaipur Literature Festival) from and had it been named after the perfume? In less than a decade, cities across the world are vying to bring JLF to their citizens! For them, colour and hospitality, romance and beauty are synonymous with Jaipur and most people have heard about its many wonders.

Today, sitting on the front lawns of the Diggi Palace during the literature festival you can travel the world, learn about its many histories, philosophies, economies and ways of life without having to even leave your chair! Jaipur is where the world comes to India and India presents its best to the world! What better city than this to enfold in its intense embrace the best that India has to offer? 

From Oprah Winfrey to The Dalai Lama, from Nobel laureates Wole Soyinka to Sir V S Naipaul, all have flocked to the Pink City of Jaipur and been charmed by the magnificence and warmth, the color and passion of Rajasthan!

The author is MD, Teamwork Arts & producer Jaipur Literature Festival