Virasat-e-Khalsa


Virasat-e-Khalsa is a museum of Sikhism, located in the holy town, Anandpur Sahib, near Chandigarh, the capital of the state of Punjab, India. The museum celebrates 500 years of the Sikh history and the 300th anniversary of the birth of Khalsa, based on the scriptures written by the tenth and last human guru, Guru Gobind Singh Ji. It serves to attract tourists and pilgrims. This results in a consultation between religion and emerging need in the building environment. One side it promotes hand crafts to locals as well as nurturing a sense of heritage, besides it recalls to infinity by the volumetric interference of existing skyline is another phase of a visible Urbanism dilemma.

Structure

There are two complexes at each side of a ravine, connected by a ceremonial bridge:
The buildings are constructed of poured-in-place concrete; some beams and columns remain exposed, though a great deal of the structures will be clad in a local honey-colored stone. The rooftops are stainless steel-clad and exhibit a double curvature: they gather and reflect the sky while a series of dams in the ravine create pools that reflect the entire complex at night.

Visitor numbers

Visitor numbers have broken records as the museum has been recognised as the most visited museum in the Indian subcontinent. The footfall for a single day on March 20th 2019 was the most ever recorded for a museum in India.
Over 10 million people have visited since its inception 8 years ago.

Photographs