Taj Mahal Palace

Brief Information

Taj Mahal Palace emerged as a hotel intended to surpass the hotels Jamsetji Tata had seen in Europe and America. A site was chosen for it by the Arabian Sea on Apollo Bunder, and the building itself was constructed in the Indo-Saracenic style. What matters here is not only the hotel's status, but the way early 20th-century luxury became part of the architecture: stone finishes, chandeliers, a ballroom, and early electric lighting were conceived as a demonstration of modernity.

Later, the building changed, but it did not disappear behind renovations. In the 1970s, a modern tower was added to it, so the hotel reads as a combination of the old palace-like block and a later extension. After the 2008 attack, the dome and side wing were damaged; the 2010 restoration makes these parts not merely decoration, but traces of a building that survived a rupture in its own history.

What to Notice First

It is worth comparing three groups of details. The first is the ballroom: for it, Tata commissioned ten openwork metal columns from Gustave Eiffel. This detail changes the scale of perception: inside an Indian hotel of the early 20th century is hidden the engineering work of a master associated with European metal architecture.

The second group consists of signs of the original luxury: semi-precious stones in the finishes, handmade carpets, crystal chandeliers, and electric lighting. They show that the hotel was conceived as both a technically modern and ceremonial place. The third is the comparison between the old wing of Taj Mahal Palace and the added Taj Mahal Tower: one is associated with the retro appearance of the rooms, the other with the 1970s expansion. The dome and side wing are worth keeping in mind as parts damaged in 2008 and then restored.