Orchha

Orchha, on the banks of the Betwa river in the Bundelkhand region of Madhya Pradesh, is one of India's most atmospheric and underrated heritage towns — a Bundela Rajput capital founded in the early 16th century by Rudra Pratap Singh and then, remarkably, left largely untouched by later development, so that its 16th- and 17th-century palaces, temples, and cenotaphs still rise above a small riverside town much as they did 400 years ago. The walled palace complex on the river island is the centrepiece: the Jahangir Mahal, a magnificent symmetrical palace of domes, arched balconies, and corner towers built to honour a visit by the Mughal emperor Jahangir, and the older Raja Mahal, whose inner chambers retain vivid Bundela murals of court and religious scenes. The town's most beloved temple is the Ram Raja Temple — one of the very few temples in India where Lord Rama is worshipped as a reigning king rather than as a deity, complete with a daily guard of honour and an armed salute, born of a legend in which an idol installed temporarily in the palace refused to be moved. The towering Chaturbhuj Temple and the Lakshminarayan Temple (with some of the finest surviving Bundela wall paintings) complete the sacred circuit. Along the right bank of the Betwa stand the Chhatris of Orchha — fourteen graceful sandstone cenotaphs raised as memorials to the Bundela kings, their spires reflected in the river at sunset in one of central India's most photographed views. The Betwa also offers gentle river rafting and the Kanchana Ghat sunset. The Phool Bagh garden, cooled by an ingenious Sawan-Bhadon fountain system, and the nightly sound-and-light show at the palace complex round out a visit. For vegetarian travellers, Orchha serves Bundeli vegetarian fare — poha-jalebi, kachori, dal-bafla (the Malwa-Bundelkhand cousin of dal-baati), and simple riverside thali at the cafes facing the cenotaphs. October to March is the comfortable season; Orchha pairs naturally with Khajuraho and Gwalior.