Neel Ratna

Acrylics on Canvas
Size: 24 by 36 inches (unframed)
Ready to hang
 
This painting is inspired from Arab ke Sarai at the Humayun's tomb, Delhi. As the story goes, the wife of Emperor Humayun, Hamid Banu Begum, brought 300 Arabs from her pilgrimage to Mecca and settled them in Delhi. She built a caravan serai for them, now popular by the name Árab ke Sarai". This serai is sandwiched between Isa Khan's tomb and Humayun's tomb enclosure, inside the world heritage site of Humayun's tomb complex. There are several arcaded chambers that functioned as shops, but what excites most is that it has two wells leading to the tank, thus making it a baoli. The stepwell of Arab ke Sarai has its own unique architecture. Being part of the UNESCO World Heritage Complex, this baoli is well kept and has water, which is not being used currently.