Khanderao market is a palatial commercial building located on Chamaraja Road in

Vadodara Vadodara (), also known as Baroda, is a city situated on the banks of the Vishwamitri River in the Indian state of Gujarat. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Vadodara district. The city is named for its abundance of banyan ...

Gujarat Gujarat () is a States of India, state along the Western India, western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the List of states and union territories ...

, in western

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. It was erected by

Maharaja Sayajirao Gaekwad III Sayajirao Gaekwad III (born as Shrimant Gopalrao Gaekwad; 11 March 1863 – 6 February 1939) was the Maharaja of Baroda State from 1875 to 1939, and is remembered for reforming much of his state during his rule. He belonged to the royal ...

in 1906–07 as a gift to the city municipality to mark the silver jubilee of his administration. The offices of the

Vadodara Municipal Corporation Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC) established in July 1950 under the Bombay Provincial Corporation Act, 1949, is responsible for the civic infrastructure and administration of the city of Vadodara. Vadodara Municipal Corporation has been f ...

are located here.

History

The market was built by

in 1906–07 and named after his predecessor and his adoptive father Khanderao Gaekwad,

Maharaja of Baroda Baroda State was a kingdom within the Maratha Confederacy and later a princely state in present-day Gujarat. It was ruled by the Gaekwad dynasty from its formation in 1721 until its Instrument of Accession, accession to the newly formed Domini ...

(1856–1870). It was presented by him as a gift to the city municipality to mark the silver jubilee of his administration. It was built at the cost of about . The offices of the

are located here. Fresh vegetable and flower market is also located in the back garden.

Architecture

The market was designed in

Indo-Saracenic style Indo-Saracenic architecture (also known as Indo-Gothic, Mughal-Gothic, Neo-Mughal) was a revivalist architectural style mostly used by British architects in India in the later 19th century, especially in public and government buildings in the B ...

by English architect Robert Chisholm before his return to England. The two-storey building has two bays connected by an overhead passage with a large central dome rising to the height of 86 feet. Both bays are 70 feet long and 34 feet wide with a cloister around it. It is constructed from bricks and mortar and clad with Dhrangdhra stones. The 16 stalls on ground floor of the main building are occupied by municipal offices while other stalls on two sides are used by 192 shops. The open courtyard between these two sides is 181 feet long and 156 feet wide and has a central junction. The main gate takes inspiration from the gate of Dabhoi Fort while to domes are inspired by

Hindu temple A Hindu temple, also known as Mandir, Devasthanam, Pura, or Kovil, is a sacred place where Hindus worship and show their devotion to Hindu deities, deities through worship, sacrifice, and prayers. It is considered the house of the god to who ...

and arches are influenced by Islamic architecture. The perforated stone screens are similar to that of

Agra Agra ( ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is the ...

. The statue of Khanderao in the courtyard was sculpted by

Vinayak Pandurang Karmarkar Vinayak Pandurang Karmarkar (विनायक पांडुरंग करमरकर) (1891–1967), popularly known as Nanasaheb Karmarkar was an Indian artist, famous for his sculptures. He is best known for his statues of Chhatrapat ...

and was inaugurated by Sayajirao Gaekwad III on 23 December 1935.

References

Buildings and structures in Vadodara Baroda State Retail markets in India Indo-Saracenic Revival architecture Tourist attractions in Vadodara Buildings and structures completed in 1907 {{Vadodara topics