The Delhi Gate of Shaniwar Wada

This series of photos are from The Delhi Gate of Shaniwar Wada, in the city of Pune. Pune is home to one of the largest universities in the world in terms of matriculation, and thus is sort of a technical center of India. It has been described as the Oxford of the East. A lot of the customer support phone calls routed to India are answered by folks living in Pune. The huge growth of this, and many other technical industries has ballooned Pune's population in the last five years.



Shaniwar Wada was the seat of Peshwa rulers until 1818 when the Peshwas surrendered to British. Ten years later, an unexplained fire gutted the buildings, and all that remains are their stone plinths and the perimeter fortification wall. Shaniwar is Marathi for Saturday. A [wada] is Marathi for a group of houses together in a complex, not necessarily royal, though this one was. The Shaniwar Wada palace complex contained the magnificent and stately mansions built by the Peshwas, as their residences. Today it is a popular tourist attraction in the heart of Pune. [wikipedia]