Raj Dinakar Kelkar Museum

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Sight Address : Raj Dinakar Kelkar Museum is situated at 1377-78, Natu Baug, Pune 411002, India. Edit

Detail InformationEdit

Raj Dinakar Kelkar Museum is in Pune, Maharashtra. The museum has nearly around 20,000 collections of objects paintings, handicrafts, armour-suits, musical instruments and many other objects of art and artifacts collected from all over the world. The building has been designed in a Rajasthani-style, but the galleries give a clear depiction of the life and culture of the Marathas. Dinkar Kelkar spent almost 60 years traveling and purchasing objects from the remote areas and towns of India. Dividing into 36 sections, the collections are confined mostly to everyday life like pots, lamps, containers, nutcrackers, pen stands. ‘Mastani Mahal’ is regarded to be the masterpiece to this museum, which was erected here in its original form. Articles belonging to Mughal and Maratha periods that dates back to 17th century are displayed at Raja Dinkar Kelkar Museum. Musical instruments, metalwork, exquisite chitrakathi paintings and a unique lock collection are the other attractions of the museum.

HistoryEdit

Raja Dinkar Kelkar started collecting exhibits around 1920 and one by one, section by section he raised the collections to around 15,000 objects of great attraction till the year 1960. He was very much fond of showing these exhibits to his friends and visitors in the same way as he wanted them to grasp his poems. Gradually the collection became a point of great attraction even to the visitors abroad. Dr. Kelkar could then easily win the minds of the authorities of the local bodies and of the State Govt. as well as of private institutions all over India, who came forward to help him to further collect the exhibits and convert the collection into a Regional Museum for Western India. It was to the credit of Shri. Y.B. Chavan , the then Chief Minister of Maharashtra and Shri. P.J. Chinmulgund, the then Education Secretary of the State Govt. that the one man collection could take the shape of a real Museum. In fact the names of such institutions, state – authorities and luminaries who contributed towards the building of this Museum are too many to be enumerated here. As a result of this public appreciation Dr. Kelkar decided in the year 1962 to hand -over his collection to the Dept. of Archaeology, Govt. of Maharashtra for developing it as a Regional Museum with better display and maintenance of its exhibits.

Must SeeEdit

Popular.

Visiting TimeEdit

9.30 am – 5.30 pm (open all days)

Closed OnEdit

N.A.

Best Season to VisitEdit

October to March.

Best Time To VisitEdit

Morning , Afternoon.

Time Required for SightseeingEdit

1 to 2 hours.

Ticket Required : Yes Edit

Individual National Adult Rs. : Rs.20

Kids Rs. : Rs.200

Individual Foreigner Adult Rs. : Rs.20

Kids Rs. : Rs.200

Still Photo Camera Rs. : N.A.

Video Camera Rs. : N.A.

Guide Required : No Edit

Approximate cost: N.A.

Dress Code (If Any) : No Edit

Dress Require: N.A.

Restaurants NearbyAdd / Edit

How to ReachEdit

Taxi : Taxis are easily available from railway station, airport, and different point of city to reach these destination. Contact no. for taxi of Mumbai – Pune 020-26135784 and Pune-Mumbai 020-26145365.

Bus : Pune has three bus stands: Pune train station stand for Mumbai, Goa, Belgaum, Kolhapur,Mahabaleshwar and Lonavla; Shivaji Nagar bus stand for Aurangabad, hmedabad and Nasik; and Swargate bus stand for Sinhagad, Benga-luru and Mangalore. Deluxe buses shuttle from the train-station bus stand to Dadar (Mumbai)every hour (Rs.260, four hours). Pune Station (Asiad) : 020-26122591 ; Pune Station (S.T. Stand) : 020-2616218 ; Shivaji Nagar Guest House (VIP) : 020-25536104 ; Shivaji Nagar Stand : 020-25536970 ; Swargate Depot : 020-24442968 ; Swargate Stand : 020-24441591/020-24449980.

Train : Pune railway station is the main railway head of Pune. It is located on HH Prince Aga Khan Rd, Sangamvadi. Good rail networks connect Pune with all other rail junctions in India. The Pune Suburban Railway connects Pune to Lonavala, a small town en-route to Mumbai. There is only one line with seventeen stations, Here The Pune Suburban Railway connects Pune to Lonavala, a small town en-route to Mumbai. There is only one line with seventeen stations; a second monorail line is under consideration by the government. Here is a list of all the stations, east to west. Pune City ; Shivaji Nagar ; Khadki Dapodi (CME Museum); Kasarwadi (Air Vents & Glass Factory); Pimpri (Pimpri Plant, TATA Plant); Chinchwad (Bride Industries Ltd)Akurdi (Force Motors Plant, Bajaj Tempo); Dehu Rd (Army AOC & ASC 512 Base repair Depots); Begdewadi (Loco Sheds); Ghorawadi; Talegaon (Muhammad Ali Rd, CRPF); Wadgaon (PWD bungalow); Kanhe; Kamshet; Malwali. Arr./Dep. (Recorded) : 133 ; Enquiry : 020-26126575 ; General : 139 ; Reservation : 132.

Air : Pune airport is located about 10 km away from the heart of the city, in the Lohagaon area. Taxi charge from airport to city is only Rs 200. Regular, direct flights are available from Pune to many cities in India. The cities Delhi, Chennai, Bangalore and Mumbai are all air connected to Pune. International travelers can get connecting flight from Mumbai International Airport. Air India – Airport 1800-227-722/020-26683210/020-26683211

Others : Auto-rickshaws : There is also a huge army of three wheeled rickshaws. There are some prepaid rickshaw stands at Shivajinagar, Swargate Bus Depot and Lohegaon Airport. From here autorickshaw is easily available to reach these sight.

Things to CarryEdit

Carry light cotton clothing, sunscreem, sun glasses, plenty of water and camera.

Safety / WarningEdit

While traveling from Pune to Mumbai beware of touts who induce you into cheaper travel. Rather take the Asiad buses from the regular stand at the Pune station or the crowded luxury buses which are safer options.
The auto rickshaw drivers can overcharge so ask them for meter readings and follow the rules of the meter while making payments.
The city is heavily polluted in crowded junctions so avoid traveling in rush hours.
Do not trust strangers while traveling and avoid traveling out late at night in lonely areas, though Pune is relatively a safe city, and the crime rate is low.