A Vision India 2020 Experience: Brijrama Palace, Varanasi

We spent six days in August 2018 at Brijrama Palace, a heritage hotel in Varanasi, and loved every moment of it. With me were my elderly parents. I am an experienced traveler. Thus, this review and its tone of effusive affection come from the heart, a rare level of endorsement that I don’t give out that easily.

Upon arrival, we were greeted warmly by the hotel’s airport team. And from then on, the entire team showered upon us continuous personalized attention, utmost hospitality, and pampering.

The approach to Brijrama is tricky and spectacular. We were picked up by a car from the airport, and then transferred to a boat. The boat ride to the palace is a stunning introduction to Varanasi. If this is your first time, you’d be instantly captivated. If you’ve been there before, you know what I am talking about.

We were there in the monsoon, and the river water level was high. As a result, the hotel’s elevator from the ghat wasn’t working. So, we had to climb a large flight of stairs up to the lobby. This, for my eighty-year old father and my 77-year old mother was a bit challenging, but they were troupers, and the hotel staff helped every step of the way, every time we had to navigate these steps. Akash, our boat captain, in particular, was charming, knowledgeable and immensely caring throughout the stay. Be sure to befriend him if you go. He’s a treasure. And if you have difficulty climbing that many stairs, ask whether the elevator is functional. If it is, this will be a lot easier to tackle, especially for elderly people.

The palace itself has undergone years of restoration work to arrive at its current state of sublime beauty. From walls, to ceilings, to furniture, to fabrics, to art, to sculptures, every detail is thought through with extreme aesthetic intuition. Taste is rare, and when I see it, I savor it. We soaked in beauty for six days, endlessly marveling at small details. An antique vina (musical instrument) here. A mural there.

The smiles and pranam greetings from Aisharya, Himangana, and all the others at the reception sprinkled throughout our stay was a constant delight. And in the dining room, Surojit, Shan, Azim, Vaishnavi, Rahul and others recommended dishes, brought the various chefs to meet us, told us stories, and befriended us with great authenticity. It was truly moving. The food is excellent, albeit entirely vegetarian. The Indian food is great, and so is the Chinese. We only had one continental meal, which, I’d say, was the weakest in execution.

Our rooms on the second floor were comfortable and lovely. The verandahs, the three terraces with wonderful river views, the various sitting areas throughout the palace were each both comfortable and aesthetically superb. Boats passing by. River life at the Darbhanga Ghat. People bathing. Pilgrims in worship.

One of the great surprises of the trip was five nights of excellent Kathak recitals by dancers like Mandvi and Seema whom we enjoyed both watching and meeting. Both my mother and I studied Kathak, and this was just too much of serendipitous level of resonance. The performances took place in an inner courtyard of the palace, and I cannot say more about how much we enjoyed them. The accompanying musicians were also excellent. Mandvi, in particular, we got to know a bit. She’s a high potential young dancer with great dynamism both in her footwork, and in her pirouettes, two important aspects of a Kathak dancer. In addition to the evening dance recitals, the hotel also has a flutist playing in the morning. It is very beautiful.

The hotel offers its own complimentary boat service to see the Ganga Arati each evening. It’s a spectacular experience. Don’t miss it. Akash made sure we were well taken care of.

Of course, the Viswanath Temple is a big deal for visitors to Varanasi, especially Indians. This is an extremely tricky navigation. Do NOT attempt it without a guide (called panda) and the hotel arranges it.

The hotel also arranges guides for Heritage walks. I took one. The city was extraordinarily dirty, full of shit (cow, dog, human) on the ground. However, if you can see past all that, you discover a city with thousands of years of history and legend. Kashi is mentioned in the Mahabharata, the Indian epic thousands of years old. Pitamaha Bhishma had kidnapped Kashi Raj’s daughters Amba, Ambika, Ambalika. It is, thus, older than the Indus Valley civilization, technically. My guide was Shashank. Extremely knowledgeable and passionate about his city. However, if you are easily disgusted, I recommend that you don’t venture into this experience of walking through town. Narendra Modi is trying to clean up the city. Let us wait and see if that effort materializes.

We had another guided city tour by car to several temples, Ramnagar Fort and Sarnath. Ramnagar is in terrible condition. You should skip it, and I hope some heritage hotel group takes it over soon. It’s a wonderful location and property that is in the wrong hands of the royal family. Sarnath is wonderful, moving and old. Lord Buddha delivered his first sermon here. We had two terrific guides shepherding us through this day: driver Rakesh and guide Sanjay at Sarnath. Rakesh works for the hotel, and is fantastic. He exposed us to the regular temple experiences, but also to the best lassi in the world at Ramnagar, a charming restaurant where we had a thali lunch, and to Sanjay, his buddy, who brought Sarnath alive for us. Loved them both.

The hotel has a lovely boutique where they sell scarves, sarees, and other souvenirs. Benarasi silk is famous. You should take a look. I bought a lot of gifts. And here, we met a most wonderful man, Ravi Babu, who gave us one of the most special and meaningful experiences of the visit. Our family (from Kolkata) had an ancestral house in Varanasi that was donated to Bharat Sevasram a long time back. This house was subsequently sold to a private owner. The house has a distinguishing feature: a small, private temple with three shiva lingas. We had some directions. I had seen the house in 2004 when I visited. It was in ruins at the time. However, I had only limited confidence in my ability to find this place again amidst the maze of countless Varanasi alleys. My parents really wanted to see it. Ravi Babu took the trouble to research where the property was, and took us there, showed us around, and also took us shopping in Viswanath Gulli for paan masala and other goodies. He also shepherded my parents patiently, precisely, and efficiently through the precarious experience that is walking through Varanasi streets. To Ravi Babu, we want to convey our heartfelt thanks.

In 2010, my book Vision India 2020 was published. In it, I articulated my vision for various entrepreneurial opportunities in India. The book has a chapter on Heritage Hotels. Brijrama Palace is an alive and kicking embodiment of that vision, and I am thrilled to bits to have found it. These six days will remain a wonderful souvenir for the three of us, and a fitting celebration of my father’s 80th year.