Lakshman Sagar
“Do you want to see a jackal’s den?”
It’s not the first thing you expect to hear at a luxury resort. “What?” I stutter.
“Look straight ahead.”
I’m at Lakshman Sagar, in the middle of nowhere and this brand of luxury is clearly different.
It was a hike to my room and they have no qualms about it. There was no fussy lobby, and no easy buggy ride. Walking sticks and torches are their comfort equivalent.
Built by its namesake Lakshman Singh, the Thakur of Raipur as a hunting lodge in the 19th century; in 2010, the property was converted into a boutique hotel with the help of hospitality brand Sewara. Indeed, on the hill across from cottage number 12, mine for the next two days, is the home of a jackal, and I’ll be both excited to spot it and relieved if I don’t.
Two of my favourite sustainable architects Revathi and Vasant Kamath, brought Lakshman Sagar back to life. They restored a haveli and a colonnaded veranda that once served as the zenana and mardana (women's and men’s quarters respectively) but are now gender-inclusive and contemporized by a fresh lick of paint, pastel chiks and billowing pink curtains.
They also built two clusters of cottages to accommodate guests on the banks of the lake along the natural topography, responding to the views, sunlight, trees, wind and drainage patterns as they gave each cottage its own identity. The materials they used were sourced from the vicinity. Slate, sun dried mud bricks, sandstone and Bidasan marble, acacia and eucalyptus logs were used for foundations, walls, roof slabs, door and window frames, flooring and beams.
The cottages camouflage into the surroundings so from my terrace, I barely notice the one over from me. But it's hard to ignore the inviting private plunge pool, and two charpais made for stargazing. Sunset comes first though. I run up the rickety spiral staircase of the hotel observatory to down a cold glass of basil lemonade and watch the blazing ball disappear into the horizon.
Lakshman Sagar is a subscribers-only story. Click here to view.
