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House of Mewar

The state of Mewar was founded in 568 AD, and the origins of Mewar dynasty trace back from the Sun God, Surya. The institution of the ‘Maharana’ came into existence in the 6th century and in the 8th century, Harit Rashi—the guru (spiritual guide) of one of the founding fathers of the House of Mewar, Bappa Rawal—laid down cardinal rules for the governance of the state. The guru was an extremely wise man, and his vision was that of a state governed by a custodian answerable to God’s laws.

Thus was born the concept of ‘kingship as trusteeship’. This means the ruler will administrate the State of Mewar as a dewan (prime minister) and not as a king. Thanks to this, succeeding heads of the family of Mewar have always fulfilled the sacred position as the trustee of Shree Eklingnath ji, a manifestation of Lord Shiva who is regarded as the ‘Eternal Ruler of Mewar’.

Interestingly, the House of Mewar represents the longest serving, unbroken custodianship in the world. A custodianship that transcends all boundaries of kingship, democracy and everything in between. Another interesting fact is that even as the heads of most princely states of India were called Maharaja (meaning great king), the rulers of few states, like Udaipur (Mewar), were addressed as Maharana. It basically has the same meaning, but is just a means of distinguishing the Maharanas’ superiority over other rulers.

In the 21st century, the House of Mewar is represented by its 76th custodian Shriji Arvind Singh Mewar. The mantle of custodian devolved upon Arvind Singh Mewar in 1984. With India’s independence from the British rule in 1947, the office of the custodian had necessitated reinventions. The original status of the custodian, as provided in the Constitution of India, ceased to exist. The challenge, therefore, for Shriji was to bring the different identities of inheritance under one umbrella. And he did this by creating ‘Eternal Mewar’, which provides the vision for the 21st century. Now, Eternal Mewar covers all the activities of the House of Mewar and it has also emerged as a unique heritage brand exemplifying hospitality, preservation of living heritage, philanthropy, education, sports and spirituality amongst other things.

Shriji Arvind Singh Mewar of Udaipur, India, is a multifaceted personality—from being an aviator to an hotelier—and is respected for his strategic thinking, business acumen and ethical conduct. He can be credited for turning Udaipur into one of the most desired destinations on the global tourist map. Shriji (as he is reverentially and traditionally addressed) is also one of the pioneers of heritage tourism in India, having founded the HRH Group of hotels in 1989. The first heritage property converted into a hotel by his family was the Lake Palace in 1963, followed by Shikarbadi in 1976 and Shiv Niwas Palace in 1982. Today, there are nine properties under the flagship of HRH Group of Hotels.

Shriji has also been very supportive of historical research, art and painting, music and dance, education and journalism and has been honouring the finest contributors in these fields through the Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation (MMCF) awards. Shriji has not just been responsible for the restoration of palaces and monuments but also cars, lakes, photographs, paintings, and written historical accounts, traditional events and functions, etc.

On 5 June 2012, Shriji Arvind Singh Mewar became the first man from India to represent MMCF, an awardee of the Women Together Award for ‘Contribution to Universal Culture of the United Nations’. He is also the only Maharana or Maharaja participating in the special Maharaja Cars feature at the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance.

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