One of those stepwells was used to great effect in Tarsem’s movie The Fall (which is a glorious visual feast where clever cinematography did things that you would expect to be CGI)
I'm traveling to India in a few weeks and The Fall is basically my itinerary. After seeing the movie, this was one of the first place I googled because I didn't immediately get what this was for. It should have been obvious, but my preconceptions of deserts/arid places is based on the middle east, where (AFAIK) there are no step wells.
These are beautiful been to many of them myself and in the old days could jump in them as the water was clean, 40 years ago. I don’t think they are important for current government, who are too busy worrying about mythical characters to muzzle freedom of expression and speech (want to behead an actresss). They want a temple at the cost of history and culture, even if that means destroying Taj Mahal. This step wells are too below the radar to be saved unless there is a temple or some idol of ram, hanuman or other Hindu deity in them.
Let us please keep the weasel-words and politics out of HN.
"I don’t think they are important for current government, who are too busy worrying about mythical characters to muzzle freedom of expression and speech (want to behead an actresss)
You have intentionally phrased that to read as though the govt. wants to behead an actress.
Haha, If that is the case, lets put an Idol nearby there too!
Actually, place 4 idols in each corner of these step-wells and say the water was once holy as held on some made up historical evidence by some local archaeologists themselves. I know, I know this is the low people have to hit for. But hey! to get good work done, its ok for a bad action against a bad guy!
In flocks the world's second largest population and the Water is magically pure.
People will see through this ploy if not immediately, then later. But, would the religious fanatics listen by that time?
It will thrive. Either with archeological or religious interests from thereon.
I think an ideal suggestion on paper is for United Nations and Indian govt. to declare it a heritage site. This is also the ripe chance to use Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (Clean India Mission) since it is in full swing.
I am a Hyderabadi and you are correct. I have applied numerous requests only to be neglected and see my Charminar fall piece by piece...until I asked TV and media attention to focus. It was peppered with how muslims are neglected to the core of their history and religion. That save felt like resurrection to my soul.
I understood, that day, that every action revolves around money. And how do you get that? Do some religious appeal and it pretty much works by itself even though it might neither be the necessary nor sufficient factor always.
Should I write a letter to the state and central government and involve the media since it is attention whore and ready to sling mud at the running governments? Will this work? Let's see.
There is one remarkable picture of a step well from India, taken by the master photographer Edward Burtynsky. A low res version can be found on this page: http://lenscratch.com/2016/04/edward-burtynsky-2/
Wow, that is one magnificent picture. The dark rigid structures in the bottom left combined with the sheer force of the white water on the right. And then you look further and see all the interesting details. Well done.
If you get a chance to see his photos in print, I highly recommend it. They are usually big prints (A1 or twice A1) and leave a strong impression on the viewer.
I'm not sure how I got to my mid 30's and had never heard of stepwells until I played Civ 6, but these things are amazing. I'd love to see one in person some day.
I've been to the Adalaj Vav (stepwell) near Ahmedabad. Its distinctive architecture is a fusion of Hindu, Jain and Islamic styles. There is an interesting legend behind this. See http://jatinchhabra.com/adalaj-vav-stepwell-gujarat/
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1. Udaipur, Rajasthan (everything about this city is beautiful)
2. Orchha, particularly the "chattris" next to the river.
3. Khajuraho (the temples are stunning in the right weather)
It is a shame, really, that you chose to use HN to try to score some cheap shots which anyone would see are wrong.
"I don’t think they are important for current government, who are too busy worrying about mythical characters to muzzle freedom of expression and speech (want to behead an actresss)
You have intentionally phrased that to read as though the govt. wants to behead an actress.
Actually, place 4 idols in each corner of these step-wells and say the water was once holy as held on some made up historical evidence by some local archaeologists themselves. I know, I know this is the low people have to hit for. But hey! to get good work done, its ok for a bad action against a bad guy!
In flocks the world's second largest population and the Water is magically pure.
People will see through this ploy if not immediately, then later. But, would the religious fanatics listen by that time?
It will thrive. Either with archeological or religious interests from thereon.
I think an ideal suggestion on paper is for United Nations and Indian govt. to declare it a heritage site. This is also the ripe chance to use Swachh Bharat Abhiyan (Clean India Mission) since it is in full swing.
I am a Hyderabadi and you are correct. I have applied numerous requests only to be neglected and see my Charminar fall piece by piece...until I asked TV and media attention to focus. It was peppered with how muslims are neglected to the core of their history and religion. That save felt like resurrection to my soul.
I understood, that day, that every action revolves around money. And how do you get that? Do some religious appeal and it pretty much works by itself even though it might neither be the necessary nor sufficient factor always.
Should I write a letter to the state and central government and involve the media since it is attention whore and ready to sling mud at the running governments? Will this work? Let's see.
(No affiliation, I just love his work)
http://lenscratch.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/02/Burtynsky_W...
Most Stepwells are found in Rajasthan and some in Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat too.
https://www.archdaily.com/878527/the-astonishing-vanishing-s...
I've been to the Adalaj Vav (stepwell) near Ahmedabad. Its distinctive architecture is a fusion of Hindu, Jain and Islamic styles. There is an interesting legend behind this. See http://jatinchhabra.com/adalaj-vav-stepwell-gujarat/