Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All India Jodhpur Mahila Baag Jhalra

Mahila Baag Jhalra

Hidden in the shadow of a rocky fortress is one concubine’s long-forgotten legacy.

Jodhpur, India

Added By
Victoria Lautman
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
Mahila Baag Jhalra   Victoria Lautman
Mahila Baag Jhalra   Victoria Lautman
Mahila Baag Jhalra   Victoria Lautman
Mahila Baag Jhalra   Victoria Lautman
Near Mahila Baag Jhalra   Victoria Lautman
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Tourists flock to Jodhpur to see the astonishing Mehrangarh Fort, a 15th-century bastion that looms over the city like a watchful parent. It’s enormous, perched on a hunk of rock that’s always in view. But just a stone’s throw away, another of Jodhpur’s monuments has a much lower profile, quite literally: The 18th-century Mahila Baag Jhalra, a subterranean stepwell that’s so unobtrusive it’s almost impossible to see, even when you’re standing a few feet away.

The lovely, multi-layered and multi-hued structure appears in no guidebook, on any tour, or in hardly anyone’s consciousness. But it wasn’t always that way. Stepwells were sophisticated water-harvesting structures built throughout India starting around 600 CE.  There were thousands of them, each providing continual, year-round access to water that fluctuated dramatically between the dry and the rainy seasons. Long flights of steps could reach the ground water at its lowest, and as water rose during monsoons, the steps would submerge, sometimes entirely. This nifty, efficient system continued for over a millennium, gradually waning by the 19th century.

Despite their past prominence, stepwells fell completely off history’s grid and today, most are entirely unknown, even within India. Modern water pumps and plumbing rendered these unique subterranean marvels obsolete, and now the vast majority are decrepit, anonymous, often filthy, and generally heartbreaking. Some are well-maintained by the government and attract tourists, but not the graceful Mahila Baag. It lies utterly forlorn just outside the old walls of Jodhpur next to a noisy road, crammed between shops and dwellings, obscured by motorcycles and electrical lines. Passersby are oblivious, and it’s nearly unimaginable that Mahila Baag Jhalra was originally embedded in an elegant garden (baag).

The visual chaos and din only add to the excitement of discovery when standing along the edge of this unexpected treasure. A dazzling array of pyramidal stairs is disorienting, as is the experience of looking down into architecture, not up at it as usual. It’s even more disorienting to start the descent, as though entering a drawing by M.C. Escher. You must pick your way carefully among the befuddling combinations of stairs. Paying attention is crucial.

The stepwell is allegedly named for Mayla, a beautiful and wealthy concubine who is said to have commissioned it. Through the centuries, Mayla evolved into Mahila, which means “lady” in Hindi, and compared to the brutal-looking fort, this diminutive, inconspicuous structure seems especially dainty. It’s a multi-hued layer cake of stone, built from the pink sandstone seen in so many of Rajasthan’s monuments. There are small pavilions at each corner that were shady retreats in scorching summers when cooling off by the water’s edge must have been appealing. Now, the water is clogged with trash, even though hardy fish can be seen swimming under the surface.

Luckily, there’s much to be hopeful for in Jodhpur these days. For hundreds of years the city was renowned for its advanced water harvesting systems, which Mahila Baag Jhalra was part of. Now, the city has again become a hotbed of conservation efforts, with stepwells and other water bodies being revitalized all over the city. Mayla’s garden retreat may yet have its day.

Victoria Lautman is an arts and culture journalist with a focus on India. Her book, The Vanishing Stepwells of India, was published in 2017 by Merrell (London). Follow her @victorialautman.

Related Tags

Stepwells Wells Architecture Subterranean Subterranean Sites
Atlas Obscura Adventures

Delhi and Rajasthan: Colors of India

Discover Colorful Rajasthan: From Delhi to Jaipur and Beyond.

Book Now

Community Contributors

Added By

Victoria Lautman

Edited By

Meg

  • Meg

Published

April 2, 2018

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Mahila Baag Jhalra
Near Mahila Bag School, Gulab Sagar
Jodhpur
India
26.296556, 73.025278
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Ghanta Ghar

Jodhpur, India

miles away

Rajaram Meghwal Burial Place

Jodhpur, India

miles away

Mehrangarh Fort

Jodhpur, India

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Jodhpur

Jodhpur

India

Places 5

Nearby Places

Ghanta Ghar

Jodhpur, India

miles away

Rajaram Meghwal Burial Place

Jodhpur, India

miles away

Mehrangarh Fort

Jodhpur, India

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Jodhpur

Jodhpur

India

Places 5

Related Places

  • Agrasen ki Baoli

    New Delhi, India

    Agrasen ki Baoli

    A startling, centuries-old subterranean marvel hides in plain sight.

  • P-1 Level 1.

    Athens, Greece

    Klafthmonos Square Parking Structure Fortification Walls

    Preserved portions of Athens's ancient defenses are on display in a subterranean parking garage.

  • Garden Santa Fe.

    Mexico City, Mexico

    Garden Santa Fe

    The underground mall's skylights look like they could be part of a spaceship.

  • The primary tunnel.

    Traverse City, Michigan

    Tunnels of Traverse City State Hospital

    A subterranean world of tunnels links several buildings of this rare 19th-century asylum.

  • Narlai, India

    Narlai Stepwell

    Designed to serve primarily the Maharaja, this is an interesting variation on the traditional stepped well.

  • Mandu, India

    Ujala Baoli

    This magical and eccentric stepwell is a hidden treasure within the ancient fort city of Mandu.

  • Neemrana baori.

    Neemrana, India

    Neemrana Baori

    This abandoned stepwell is one of the largest, deepest, and certainly one of the creepiest in India.

  • Adalaj stepwell.

    Adalaj, India

    Adalaj Ni Vav

    A deeply beautiful 15th-century stepwell with a tragic story.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.