ITACHUNA RAJBARI
Located about 70 kms away from Kolkata “Itachuna” also known as “Bargee Danga” is a remote tourist spot near Khanyan, Hooghly, West Bengal. The feel of rural Bengal & the natural greenery throughout will steal your heart & soothe your eyes. The “Itachuna Rajbari” established by Kundan family, the earlier zamindars of Itachuna, originated from Maratha was built in 1766. originally Maratha ‘Bargee’, with the title of Kundan, who later transformed to Bengali “Kundu”.
The Govt. of India’s policy of abolishing the Raj-culture hampered further thrive of the Rajbari. The palace has been transformed into a heritage property. The Heritage Homestay is one initiative towards the village tourism of West Bengal. You can feel the royal zamindari ambience through the andarmahal (inner apartments), bahirmahal (out house), naachghor (dance theatre), natmondir (temple), kacharighor (office building of zamindar) and pushkorini (pond).
This vintage homestay has multiple royal categories of rooms & also mud huts. The rooms have quite giant double bed/single bed as well as spacious attached washroom.
The contemporary Bengali cuisine here is really excellent. On arrival the hotel welcomes their guests with traditional welcome drink (sharbat) & batasha (sweet sugar drop). For lunch & dinner 5 types of thali (mutton, chicken, fish, egg and vegetarian) are available. A thali usually consists rice, luchi (deep-fried flatbread), shukto (usually a dry curry made of bitter gourd, ridge gourd & brinjal), muger Dal (Petite Yellow Lentils), alu phulkopi bhaja (potato cauliflower fry), alu posto (potato with poppy seeds), mutton/chicken/fish/egg/veg curry and chatni (relish of East Indian origin,compounded of both sweet and sour ingredients, like fruits and herbs, with spices and other seasoning). The presentation & hospitality was worth mentioning.
It is a private property surrounded by plants, trees & water bodies. You can experience the real aura of the palace with a guided tour on request. Day outings & events can be booked. Lots of optional activities like fishing, bar-b-que, bonfire, night walk in the village etc. can be arranged. An authentic Bengali musical programme called “Baul” can be arranged on request. Evening Aarati at the temples takes place every day.To get up close & personal with nature & the ambience of the Rajbari, flute is played every evening.
The Itachuna Rajbai is quite famous for being the shooting location of many Hindi and Bengali films the most notable of which is Lootera, starring Ranveer Singh & Sonakshi Sinha. This weekend destination is a great escape from your busy routine and your odd schedule. If you are looking out for a nice place to spend time with your family & explore nature the Itachuna Rajbari is just miles away.
