About Khas Mahal:
Built by Shah Jehan between 1631-40, ‘Khas Mahal’ or ‘Aramgah-i-Muqaddar’ has river on the one side and Anguri Bagh on the other. Built for the two favorite daughters of Shah Jehan, Jahanara and Roshanara, it has a beautiful tank in front with fountains, white marble pavilions and open courts. The central hall or baradari and the adjoining colonnade or portico is almost of same size. The arched recesses of the main hall lead to the side rooms. The richly ornamented ceilings of the palace are flat and the complex has stylishly carved and molded brackets. The niches in the walls are believed to have contained portraits of Mughal emperors while the iron rings in the roof of the central hall were meant for the chandeliers. It is believed that Jahanara lived in the northern one of the two almost identical pavilions separated from the central hall by a high marble wall. These red sand stone pavilions have been plastered with white shell plaster and have skilful gold work in its mural paintings. The interiors are profusely ornamented in floral and geometrical patterns from the dados to the ceiling. Gold and blue, the royal colors, have been abundantly used here and still their traces are visible on the walls.
General Information about Khas Mahal:
Location: Agra
State: Uttar Pradesh
Capital: Lucknow
Language: Hindi, English
Temperature: Max 42˚C, Min 27˚C (summer), Max 26˚C, Min 14˚C (winter)
Best Season: October to February
How to Reach Khas Mahal:
By Air:
Agra airport is 7 km from the city centre and 3 km from Idgah bus stand and is connected by domestic flights from major Indian cities. There are daily round trip flights from Delhi to Agra, Khajuraho, and Varanasi, with a return to Delhi. It takes only about 40 minutes from Delhi to Agra.
By Road:
Agra is about 204 km from Delhi, the capital of India. There is an excellent national highway connecting Delhi and Agra and it is only a 4 hours drive from Delhi. There are many luxury taxis and buses that drive to Agra everyday. Idgah and Agra Fort are the main bus stands of Agra from where anybody can catch buses to and from or Delhi, Jaipur, Mathura and Fatehpur-Sikri.
By Rail:
Agra is well connected by rail to Delhi, Varanasi and cities of Rajasthan. The main railway station is the Agra Cantonment station. There are many trains connecting Delhi and Agra like Shatabdi, Rajdhani, Taj Express and luxury trains like the Palace on Wheels.