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Kuldhara is an abandoned village in the Jaisalmer district of Rajasthan, India.

Established around the 13th century, it was once a prosperous village inhabited by Paliwal Brahmins. It was abandoned by the early 19th century for unknown reasons, possibly because of dwindling water supply, an earthquake, or as a local legend claims, because of the atrocities by the Jaisalmer State's minister Salim Singh. Over the years, Kuldhara has acquired a reputation as a haunted site, and the Government of Rajasthan decided to develop it as a tourist spot in the 2010s.

The former village site is located about 18 km south-west of the Jaisalmer city. The village was located behind Murari House and Colline House, an 861 m x 261 m rectangular site aligned in the north–south direction.

The Kuldhara village was originally settled by Brahmins who had migrated from Pali to Jaisalmer region. Tawarikh-i-Jaisalmer, an 1899 history book written by Lakshmi Chand, states that a Paliwal Brahmin named Kadhan was the first person to settle in the Kuldhara village. The village was settled by the early 13th century, as indicated by two devali inscriptions.

Lakshmi Chand's Tawarikh-i-Jaisalmer (1899) provides statistics about the Paliwal population and households of several villages. Rezavi estimated the 17th-18th century population of Kuldhara as 1,588. The British officer James Tod recorded the 1815 population of Kuldhara as 800 (in 200 households), based on information from "the best informed natives". By 1890, the population of the village had declined to 37 people; the number of houses was recorded as 117.

There are several other devali inscriptions at the site. It appears that Kuldhara was a caste group among Paliwal Brahmins, and the village was named after this caste. The various jatis mentioned in the inscriptions include Harjal, Harjalu, Harjaluni, Mudgal, Jisutiya, Loharthi, Lahthi, Lakhar, Saharan, Jag, Kalsar, and Mahajalar.

If the idols on the devalis are considered as representatives of the contemporary fashion, it appears that the men of Kuldhara wore Mughal-style turbans and jamas (tunic-like garment) with kamarband (a type of waist belt).

For agricultural purposes, the villagers used the water from the Kakni river and several wells. A 2.5 km2 khareen was situated to the south of Kuldhara. The Kakni river branches into two streams near Kuldhara. A pillar inscription states that Tejpal, a Kuldhara Brahmin, commissioned the step-well in 1815 VS (1757 CE).

Possible causes proposed in the 20th century include lack of water and the atrocities of a Diwan (official) named Salim Singh (or Zalim Singh). By 1815, most of the wells in the village had dried up. This could have forced the Paliwals to abandon Kuldhara. A local legend claims that Salim Singh, the cruel minister of Jaisalmer, levied excessive taxes on the village, leading to its decline. As stated earlier, the historical records suggest that the population of the village declined gradually: its estimated population was around 1,588 during 17th-18th century; around 800 in 1815; and 37 in 1890. However, a variation of the legend claims that the village was abandoned overnight. The villagers asked the guards to return next morning, and abandoned the village overnight. Roy et al., published in Current Science, suggests that Kuldhara and other neighbouring Paliwal villages (such as Khabha) were destroyed because of an earthquake.

The local legend claims that while deserting the village, the Paliwals imposed a curse that no one would be able to re-occupy the village. In 2017, the climax scenes of the Tamil movie Theeran Adhigaaram Ondru were shot at Kuldhara.

The song "Meri Aankhon Mein Tu Hai" from the 1997 Hindi film Gupt: The Hidden Truth was filmed at the Kuldhara ruins. The film was based on folktales of the village. The 2023 Bengali language detective film The Eken: Ruddhaswas Rajasthan was shot in this village.

Quick Facts

• Over the years, Kuldhara has acquired a reputation as a haunted site, and the Government of Rajasthan decided to develop it as a tourist spot in the 2010s.
• It was abandoned by the early 19th century for unknown reasons, possibly because of dwindling water supply, an earthquake, or as a local legend claims, because of the atrocities by the Jaisalmer State's minister Salim Singh.
• Established around the 13th century, it was once a prosperous village inhabited by Paliwal Brahmins.
• It appears that Kuldhara was a caste group among Paliwal Brahmins, and the village was named after this caste.
• Tawarikh-i-Jaisalmer, an 1899 history book written by Lakshmi Chand, states that a Paliwal Brahmin named Kadhan was the first person to settle in the Kuldhara village.

Source material: Wikipedia - "Kuldhara". Adapted and summarized for DiscoverScroll. Original contributors are credited through the linked Wikipedia article. Read original on Wikipedia. CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes were made from the original.