Omar Hayat Mahal

Omar Hayat Mahal

• Introduction

Omar Hayat Mahal (Urdu: عمر حیات محل), additionally Triticum ostium spelt Umar Hayat Mahal, and instead called Gulzar Manzil, is Associate in Nursing early 20th-century wood haveli mansion in Chiniot, Pakistan the mansion was started in 1923, and was completed by 1935. The mansion, originally 5-storeys tall was built by Sheikh Omar Hayat - a Chiniot businessman who had made his fortune in Calcutta the edifice displays outstanding examples of Chiniot's local trade vogue, Associate in Nursing has been represented as an "ornament" of a building on account of its lavishly adorned interior.

·        History

Sheikh Omar migrated from Chiniot to Calcutta in the late 19th century after being ostracized for marrying against his family's will. Large numbers of Chiniot's Sheikh tribe had settled in Calcutta during the British era.

Sheikh Omar's 1st son, Gulzar, was born in 1920, prompting Sheikh Omar's decision to return to his hometown, where he decided to construct a magnificent palace that would feature the best of Chiniot's craftsmanship.

Syed Hassan sovereign was appointed the task of palace's construction. He gathered Chiniot's best artisans, as well as from different places, who continued working day and night for 10 ten years. Rahim Bakhsh Pyrrha and Elahi Bakhsh Pyrrha, masters in the mana bat Kari style of wood carving, carried out much of the mansion's woodworking Ahmad Din, completed the brickwork, while the celebrated artist Niaz Ahmad Jalandhar did the stucco-work. Another celebrated artist, Jan Muhammad, painted the mansion's frescoes

The mansion was habitable by 1930, and described as a 'local wonder' by the British authors of the District Gazetteer of Janggi was completed in 1935- at a cost of two hundred,000 rupees. Sheik Omar died shortly when its completion in 1935.

Sheikh Omar Hayat's only son, Gulzar, was married in the mansion in an extravagant ceremony in 1937.Gulzar was found dead in the palace the very next day of his marriage, possibly as a result of inhalation poisoning as a result of large volumes of coal that had been burnt for the celebration. He was buried in the courtyard of the ground floor of the palace, alongside with the grave of his mother who later passed

Mr. Hayat's relatives abandoned the mansion, associating it with bad luck. Servants continued living for a couple of years, though no family members laid claim to the building. In 1940, the Anju man-e-Islamia organization opened a faculty within the building. An orphanage was established in 1948 Sheikh Muhammad Amin, though it was shifted in 1950, leaving the building abandoned once again. Local scavengers dismantled some of the mansion's decorative elements, and oversubscribed them to collectors in different cities

Two levels of the mansion were removed within the Seventies thanks to its state of dangerous unsoundness, while another level had to be abandoned following severe rains in 1993. The building was brought below government management in 1989, with large portions repaired by the mid-1990s with funds raised by the local community. The mansion is now used a cultural center and library.

Architecture

·        Front Door.

·        Beautiful carvings on Roof and walls.

The palace's building is perhaps the last of Mughal's architectural style, or a Mughal Revival building ("revival" buildings are interpretations of an old architectural style by people of a later era). Unique carving cuts on the doors, windows and hirolas reflect a color of their own. The roofs, balconies, stairways, terrace and therefore the stucco styles build an ideal interior. The facade of the building is adorned with a fine inlay of bricks, the dazzling shine of marble and picturesque shades help it rank among the great palaces of Mughal era landlords.

·        Conservation

Later on, this placed was occupied by Qazi mafia World Health Organization destroyed most of the building but seeing death of its glory in 1989, M. Athar Tahir, the then deputy commissioner of Hang, took note of the mansion's poor state. He removed the encroachments, and brought the building under government ownership. Muhammad Amjad Saqib, Chiniot's assistant commissioner, lead a fundraising effort to raise money for the mansion's repair, and started its restoration with an expenditure of Rs1,700,000.

On 7 June 1990, it was decided that the Gulzar Manzil be acquired for the people, be conserved and restored. By the mid-1990s, large portions of the mansion had been repaired or restored, although the quality of some restoration works was poo

Upon completion, it was decided that the mansion would be accorded a more dynamic role in the life of Chiniot, and thus a massive fund-raising drive was initiated for its conversion into a library and cultural center. With the assistance of philanthropists and municipal authorities, the conversion efforts commenced on 14 August 1990. A rare assortment of thousands of books and subscription for seven dailies was introduced to learners and it absolutely was publicly opened the then Punjab Governor, Main Muhammad.

Keeping the vision and needs of its owner in sight, the library within the Gulzar Manzil was named when sheik Omar Hayat. In 1997 the municipal committee refused to bear the expenses and terminated the subscription of newspapers and other reading materials. At present the palace is again in disrepair, though the facade and interiors are well-

maintained. The upper-most floors remain in a state of disrepair, however.

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