Rajgaddi — Ahilyabai's Durbar & Palace Museum

Tucked inside the riverside Rajwada — the fort-palace complex the Holkars call Ahilya Wada — the Rajgaddi is the preserved durbar hall that turns Maheshwar's grand old capital into a walk-through memory of its most revered ruler.

• Rani Ahilyabai Holkar (by tradition 1725–1795) made Maheshwar her seat of government around the 1760s, governing the Malwa domain from these Narmada-facing quarters, and this small palace museum keeps that court alive.
• At its heart stands the queen's gaddi, the low cushioned throne-seat from which she is remembered to have held audience, often shown with a seated likeness of Ahilyabai draped in white, an oil lamp kept burning nearby in her honour.
• The rooms around the throne read like a personal cabinet of a working monarch.
• Visitors typically see her palanquin (palki) used for processions and river visits, ceremonial and household weapons, brass and copper vessels, textiles woven in the town's celebrated Maheshwari tradition, portraits, and everyday effects that survived in the family's keeping.
• The displays are modest and unshowy — fitting for a ruler famous for austerity, temple-building and public works — and the intimacy of the low-ceilinged chambers is part of the appeal.
• Interpretation is limited, so a local guide or a little prior reading rewards the visit.
• The Rajgaddi is best folded into a wider wander through the Rajwada and down its stone steps to the Ahilya Ghat, where the Narmada slides past domed cenotaphs and the town's weavers still work their looms.
• Photography is usually welcome in the courtyards; check current rules for the interior.
• Reach Maheshwar by road from Indore (about 90 km) or as a day trip from Omkareshwar (roughly 65 km).
• For food, keep it simple and pure-vegetarian: Maheshwar's bazaar and the lanes near the fort gate hold unpretentious pure-veg thali bhojanalayas serving Nimari–Malwa fare — dal-bafla with ghee, seasonal sabzi, and steamed rice — alongside morning poha-jalebi counters and sabudana-khichdi stalls popular with pilgrims.
• Ask for the pure-veg thali houses near Ahilya Ghat rather than chasing a brand name.