Ajanta, Ellora and Aurangabad

I am a traveler with a sketchpad. An architect by profession, I like to travel to unveil the spirit of place, in the search of what is called The Genius Loci ...

My Ajanta, Ellora and Aurangabad trip was a weekend trip to indulge in seeing some rock cut caves and medieval forts. I quietly retired with my camera and sketchpad to inherit a lingering nostalgia of some ancient and medieval architecture in Deccan India. It was a three day long trip and what made it memorable was the choice of places itself. One feels absolutely overwhelmed once they are in Ajanta caves, which are set across a horse shoe shaped valley and beneath lies a gorgeous seasonal landscape of indigenous nature. At the edge one stands to behold the beauty of a mesmerizing valley, a bright blue sky and then one enters the threshold of the caves into the world of most ancient wall paintings. There are few moments which can't be captured on a photo-reel and even if one does, they feel its like corrupting those moments, something very similar I felt at Ajanta. Ellora, in short, was a rock concert. The architecture which took almost three generations to manifest in its sheer form, is nothing less than poetry woven together to create a music. Its gorgeous, its sublime and it made me feel overwhelming and ecstatic. Aurangabad has what the local people boast of as mini Taj from Deccan.The monument is called Bibi Ka Maqbara. It was built by Aurangzeb for his wife. Its done in lime plaster and is a vertically stretched form of Taj Mahal at Agra. What stands interesting about the mini Taj of Deccan is its setting in the indigenous landscape which is not like the usual manicured garden by Archeological Survey of India. This spirit of unparalleled beauty is what I have tried to capture in the black and white photography and doodle sketching. But I am not sure if I have been successful in attempting so...

All in all this trip is recommended for culture, photography and architecture lovers...