Chail was the summer capital of the former princely state of Patiala.
- Chail came into being in the late nineteenth century when it’s handsome and dashing Maharaja Bhupender Singh was banished from Shimla, the summer capital of British India for a dalliance with the British Commander –in-Chief’s daughter.
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Tourist Attraction :
- Chail was selected by the Maharaja and began building his summer palace here.
- But an ill omen seemed to hang over the construction area.
- Local legend has it that the moment anything was built, it would collapse over night.
- Dozens of snakes would appear from nowhere and attack the labourers.
- Then Bhupinder Singh had a dream. A sage appeared before him and declared that the site the Maharaja had chosen was where he had meditated till he was taken by the earth, and his peace should not be disturbed.
- The Maharaja had the sage’s blessing to build on any other spot. Bhupinder Singh moved to another site and at the original spot – which is about a kilometre from the Palace Hotel – he had a temple built to the sage.
- Here the stone embodiment of the sage may still be seen along with the iron tongs and trident. The shrine is known as the Sidh Baba Ka Mandir and is revered by many who claim that the sage has the power to grant boons.
- Meanwhile Bhupinder Singh had another site levelled out and a splended mansion was built and sumptuously furnished.
- And at 2226 m, a good hundered meters above Shimla’s average height, Bhupinder Singh’s summer capital was prepared to taken on the British one at equal terms.
Labels: Chail, Himachal Pradesh
