The Shaukat Mahal and Sadar Manzil displays a combination of Asian and Western styles of architecture which makes this building stand out in the crowd of the traditional Islamic architecture of Bhopal. The Shaukat Mahal and Sadar Manzil is situated at the entrance to the Chowk area in the heart of the city. The Shaukat Mahal and Sadar Manzil are two architectural curiosities of Bhopal. The Mahal is a blend of both oriental and occidental styles of architecture. The Mahal is supposed to have been designed by a decadent Frenchman who claimed to be a descendant of the Bourbon Dynasty of France. The building is very different from the rest of the Islamic architecture in the vicinity. The Shaukat Mahal is flanked by the Sadar Manzil which served as a Hall of Public Audience during the princely period. This brick-red building has an ostentatious appearance, and the gardens that surround the palace makes the Manzil look as pretty as a postcard.
Shaukat Mahal is architecturally something of an oddity amongst the Islamic themed monuments in the walled city. It is rather western in its design, given by a Frenchman who was supposedly descended from the Bourbons of France. It combines Gothic influences with a Post Renaissance sensibility, and this combined with Islamic features offers quite a unique picture. You may also pay a little visit to the Sadar Manzil, once the Hall of Public Audience of the erstwhile rulers of Bhopal, now head office of the municipal corporation.
How to reach Shaukat Mahal and Sadar Manzil -
The Shaukat Mahal and Sadar Manzil is located at the entrance of the Chowk area, in the center of the city. It is easily reached by all modes of transport inside the city.