gwalior - jai vilas palace

the grotesque and embarrassing longing of the royalty to belong to a group they could never is on lavish display at the jai vilas palace in gwalior. with the astonishing bad taste of the nouveau riche in glorious abandonment to the appearance of splendor the pleasures are often gaudy, cheap and gorgeous in a camp way. objects are collected for their novelty value, gifts from obsequious servants, vanities to pander to the expectations of the conqueror. the raspberry red chandelier, the glass (crystal?)fountain, the fake stained glass, the penile grandfather’s clock, the glass railing, the indoor swimming pool with a diving platform, the rather obscene sculpture in piss yellow light in a glass case of the swan raping leda, the two way mirrored picture frames- the list is endless and fabulous. it is rather poignant as these objects stay on display for locals from the nearby village come to admire the wealth of their rulers and pay their respects to their benefactor madhavrao scindia.