BLOG




Below are the latest articles from my BLOG. For full list, please visit vikramjits.wordpress.com.

Smadhi of Maharaja Jassa Singh Ramgarhia

An effort to locate the lost memorial of the brave Sikh king, Maharaja Jassa Singh Ramgharia by Gurdev Singh Rooprai
11 Jan 2020

Lohri – The Harvest Festival

Lohri is celebrated across globe, but with different names. A small attempt to introduce the phenomenon, and why Punjabis celebrate it.
13 Jan 2019

108 – The Magic Number

The number 108 is considered holy by most religions. Here's a brief account of its scientific significance.
26 Aug 2018

Athar-us-Sanadid by Sir Syed

It is said, that history is written by the victors. This makes the role of Historians doubtful. However, there are cases where certain facts are available and mentioned by multiple authors/travellers, yet, some historians fail to interpret them correctly. When I started studying Delhi’s monuments, I was told to read Athar-us-Sanadid by Sir Syed Ahmed […]
25 Aug 2017

Ramayana

A short article about different versions of Ramayan from different parts of the continent.
19 Jul 2017

Secret Mehrauli Baoli

Hidden under the Dargah of Khwaja Kaki in Mehrauli, this Baoli is lost in time.
27 Feb 2017

India’s Uncle Sam

Sam Bahadur Manekshaw, the Field Marshall, who challenged not only his enemies, but his own administration for the betterment of his country and men.
19 Oct 2016

Third house of Indian Parliament

Parliament of India was designed for 3 houses, but only Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha survived. What happened to 3rd house?
29 Jul 2016

Jim Corbett, Hunter who saved tigers

  THIS ARTICLE APPEARED IN NRI ACHIEVERS’ JULY-2016 EDITION   This month, we celebrate the birthday of a fearless hunter, who turned into a saviour for tigers in India. I came across this story while I was sitting on the shore of Kosi River of Uttarakhand. Few days back, I went to Namah Resorts in […]
08 Jul 2016

We are/were ‘1’

PHOOLWALON KI SAIR SAIR-I-GULFAROSHA.N When Mughal conquered India, they adopted the Indian lifestyle and respected religion of locals. From Akbar offering Chhatar to Hindu temples and donating land for Golden Temple of Sikhs, each Mughal emperor was involved in some or other interfaith activity. The communal unity was at its peak with many Jain, Hindu […]
07 May 2016

Lost Heritage: Sikh legacy in Pakistan

17th December 2015: I got a call from S. Gurpreet Singh Anand called me and invite me over tea. I was excited to meet him as he had just put me in touch with Janab Faqir Syed Saifuddin of Fakir Khana Museum of Lahore. Faqir sahib comes from the legendary family of Faqir Azizuddin, the […]
10 Jan 2016

Bateshwar: Temples of Dacoits

Bateshwar, Morena, Madhya Pradesh is a hidden complex of 200 beautiful temples, looked after by dacoits, and restored by a dedicated Muslim archaeologist.
06 Dec 2015

The Presidential Palace of India

The “Rashtrapati Bhawan” has several secrets hidden under its facade, with some amazing facts tending to surface to surprise you. Right from its regal metal gates to the opulent residence cum office of the President of India, it has quite a few magical stories buried in it. For example, in the middle of the road […]
22 Nov 2015

The Armenian Tawaif

In modern day, word ‘Tawaif’ is associated with prostitution. However, Tawaifs were originally respected members of the feudal society of India and considered as an authority on etiquettes. Tawaifs are also known as Kanjaris in North India. They were the courtesans in Mughal era, who were expert in music and dance. They were the elite […]
02 Oct 2015

Bhuli Bhatiyari ka Mahal

Bhooli Bhatiyari ka Mahal is considered to be the most Haunted Place in Delhi. Here's an account of what it is, and how much haunting can it be...
15 Apr 2015

Bhagat Singh, Martyr Vs. Reformer

Last 23rd March, all social media walls were flooded with patriotic messages, praising Bhagat Singh, who was hanged on this date for the murder of a British Officer. People have been flaunting T-Shirts with Bhagat Singh’s photograph printed on it and many have sported a Bhagat Singh sticker on their car bumpers. Many other changed […]
20 Mar 2015

The Ancient Clock–Jantar Mantar

On one fine day of 1719 AD, the courtiers of Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah were having a heated argument about how to accurately calculate the auspicious date and time for Emperor’s travel plans. While they were fighting with each other, one member of the Mughal Durbar was sitting quietly, thinking, why don’t we have an […]
28 Feb 2015

Mirza Najaf Khan Baloch

That night of 1736, a family with royal blood in their veins, ran into the forest to save the remaining members from brutal invasion of Nader Shah. Some of them survived and continued living in the Balochistan province, which now falls in Pakistan. Some say, this family was from the Safvid Dynasty of Persia. God […]
27 Jan 2015

The Radcliffe Award

This award, given to India in the form of “Radcliffe Line”, was the most bloody and painful gift ever. The Prime Minister Clement Attlee of the United Kingdom stood in London Parliament on 20th February 1947 and announced: British Government would grant full self-government to British India by June 1948 at the latest, The future […]
07 Jan 2015

Taj, the foreign connection

This article is part of my Taj Mahal Series On 17th June 1631, as Arjumand Banu Begum, aka Mumtaz Mahal, the most favourite wife and Empress Consort of the Mughal Emperor Badshah A’la Azad Abul Muzaffar Shahab ud-Din Mohammad Khurram, aka Shah Jahan died, the Mughal Court started planning for the grand burial of the […]
17 Nov 2014

The Auction of Taj Mahal

This article is part of my Taj Mahal Series “Henceforth, let the inhabitants of the world be divided into two classes – Them as has seen the Taj Mahal; and them as hasn’t.” – Edward Lear In my series of articles on Taj Mahal, I am going to introduce you to an interesting episode of […]
24 Oct 2014

Samosa…

Is Samosa connected to Samos, the birth place of Pythagoras, who gave the concept of 3D-Triangle. Read out...
21 Oct 2014

Diwali, beyond Lord Rama

Diwali is know to be celebrated due to return of Lord Rama. But there's much more to this story...
02 Oct 2014

God’s Hexagram

Hexagram, or the six pointed star is a common symbol and popular by the name of Megan David or the Star of David. It is a considered to be a Jewish symbol and can be seen in the Flag of Israel. History tells that in Judaism, the symbol first appeared in a Synagogue of Israel […]
02 Jul 2014

Swastika, in common culture

When famous Bollywood actor Amir Khan said ‘All is Well’, I was wondering, how come such a beautiful and powerful line was not discovered earlier. Then one day, when I was explaining the symbols on mosques and temples to some college students, I pondered over the name “Swastika”. A little more research and I found […]
08 May 2014

Festival of Colours, Water, Sticks & Swords–Holi

From Akitu to Sham el-Nessim and from May Day to Easter, entire world celebrates spring. Scientifically, this season is one of the most important seasons because the axis of Earth is increased relative to Sun, which causes the length of daylight to increase and the days become warmer. The snow begins to melt and water […]
16 Mar 2014

The Messalina of the Punjab

Queen Valeria Messalina, Empress Consort of Roman Empire was the notoriously famous wife of Emperor Claudius. British compared the Queen of Punjab with her. Although the queen of Punjab and the Queen of Rome had nothing in common, the informal title given by the British exhibited, how they trapped the Queen and tried to spoil […]
11 Feb 2014

A Forgotten Battle for Independence

When India got independence on 15th August 1947, everyone thanked the great leaders of the country, who fought throughout their lives for this day. On one hand, people were rejoicing with extreme happiness, and on other hand, they were remembering those, whom they lost in this 100 years long battle for independence. The first major […]
03 Feb 2014

Hey Ram!

We were about to complete 6 months of India’s Independence from the British, when entire world heard the sound of three bullets being fired in a posh bungalow of Albuquerque Road in Lutyen’s Delhi. This house, built by a millionaire from Marwari Maheshwari family, Ghanshyam Das Birla, was those days being used as residence by […]
05 Jan 2014

The Grand Trunk Road

We’re marchin’ on relief over Injia’s sunny plains, A little front o’ Christmas-time an’ just be’ind the Rains; Ho! get away you bullock-man, you’ve ‘eard the bugle blowed, There’s a regiment a-comin’ down the Grand Trunk Road; – Rudyard Kipling Thousands of years ago, when the earliest known human civilizations decided to explore far far […]
18 Aug 2013