My Top Ten Museums : 4 - Maharana Pratap Museum, Haldighati
We stay in Rajasthan, for the 4th museum.
4) MaharanaPratap Museum, Haldighati
Located some 40 kms from Udaipur, this is an oddball of a museum in that it does not recount history through the display of hoary objects. Visitors assemble at the entrance after buying their tickets and are then taken in batches on a guided tour of the museum. What you get to see are a series of models and tableaus that depict the life and times of Rana Pratap. The pièce de résistance comes at the end in the form a short AV presentation on the Battle of Haldighati. Though it lasted for merely a day, the casualties were humongous. As many as 20,000 lives were lost on both sides. The battle of Haldighati was fought for neither land nor wealth, but for self-esteem and pride. Neither was it for religion, as ironically, Rana Pratap’s army was led by a Muslim general and Akbar’s army by a Hindu general. It was the first time Guerrilla tactics were employed. Nobody won or lost this battle, but at the end of that fateful day in June 1576, the blood of 20,000 people had transformed the plain into “Rakt Talai” (blood pool). The battle stands immortalised in our folklore for the sacrifice of Chetak, Rana Pratap’s horse, which died after steering him away to safety.
Located some 40 kms from Udaipur, this is an oddball of a museum in that it does not recount history through the display of hoary objects. Visitors assemble at the entrance after buying their tickets and are then taken in batches on a guided tour of the museum. What you get to see are a series of models and tableaus that depict the life and times of Rana Pratap. The pièce de résistance comes at the end in the form a short AV presentation on the Battle of Haldighati. Though it lasted for merely a day, the casualties were humongous. As many as 20,000 lives were lost on both sides. The battle of Haldighati was fought for neither land nor wealth, but for self-esteem and pride. Neither was it for religion, as ironically, Rana Pratap’s army was led by a Muslim general and Akbar’s army by a Hindu general. It was the first time Guerrilla tactics were employed. Nobody won or lost this battle, but at the end of that fateful day in June 1576, the blood of 20,000 people had transformed the plain into “Rakt Talai” (blood pool). The battle stands immortalised in our folklore for the sacrifice of Chetak, Rana Pratap’s horse, which died after steering him away to safety.
The museum is the result of the passion of Mohan Shrimali, a farmer turned teacher. He has painstakingly put it together without a single paisa from the government.
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