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Scandal Point, Shimla

One of the many tourist attractions in Shimla is supposed to be the Scandal Point where the Maharajah of Patiala is supposed to have misbehaved with the daughter of Lord Kitchener, British Commander-in-Chief. The British government in India banished the Maharajah, of course.  He went and built a palace in Chail.   The historical fact seems to be that Bhupinder Singh who built the palace in Chail was just one year old when the scandal broke out.  Well, were the Singhs so potent that their one year-old royal offspring could proffer an amorous kiss on the lips of a young woman?  Better still, elope with her (as one of the gossips - I mean, tourist guides, explains!)

History is not any better than this, most of the time.  And I'm speaking about the history of just a century ago.  

I went to the Scandal Point in Shimla and got the picture below. Perhaps, history haunts the place even today!  This can happen only in India :)
Scandal Point

It looks like a haunted house.  And it is situated in the heart of the Shimla town's most favourite Mall Road where that road meets the Ridge.  The property is under legal dispute, I learnt.  But people make stories.  

 Children were playing on one side of the building, however.  When those children learn the history written by scholars, they will learn to throw stones at the building. 

 Throwing stones is good.  In fact, it is a ritual in many religions.  It is as therapeutic as fabricating history or writing stories. 

 People love to make stories.  People love to create scandals. 

This post is an intermission in my Shimla Series.  

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Comments

  1. Issac WritesJune 12, 2014 at 12:48 PM

    Sir...always there is a pinch of sarcasm in your writings and i love that..:-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tomichan MatheikalJune 12, 2014 at 6:42 PM

      Isaac, there's a beast within me which breaks out of the chains I've designed - sometimes at least :)

      Delete
  2. Ritesh AgarwalJune 13, 2014 at 4:31 PM

    Your scathing remarks towards the end added more power to this powerfully beautiful post. I always wanted to see Scandal Point. Heard a lot abt it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Tomichan MatheikalJune 13, 2014 at 6:44 PM

      It's not what you see in Scandal Point that will inspire you but the stories themselves. What's to be seen lies a little away!

      Delete
  3. Dimpy RoyOctober 30, 2015 at 3:18 PM

    This comment has been removed by the author.

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    Shimla is a beautiful destination.
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