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{{Short description|Mosque and tomb complex in Gujarat, India}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}}
{{Use Indian English|date=June 2018}}
{{Infobox religious building
| building_name =Sarkhej Roza
| infobox_width =
| image =Sarkhej.JPG
| caption =Ganj Baksh's tomb within the complex
| image_size =
| alt =
| map_type =India Ahmedabad##India Gujarat
| map_size =300px
| map_caption =Location in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, India
| location =[[Ahmedabad]]
| coordinates = {{coord|22.992136|72.504573|region:IN|display=inline,title}}
| religious_affiliation = [[Islam]]
| rite =
| region =
| state =[[Gujarat]]
| province =
| territory =
| prefecture =
| sector =
| district =[[Ahmedabad district]]
| cercle =
| municipality =[[Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation]]
| consecration_year =
| status =
| functional_status =Active
| heritage_designation =ASI National Monument of Importance No. N-GJ-48 to 54
| leadership =
| architecture =yes
| architect =[[Azam and Muazzam Khan]]
| architecture_type =Tombs and mosque
| architecture_style =[[Indo-Saracenic]]
| founded_by =
| funded_by =[[Gujarat Sultanate]] rulers
| general_contractor =
| facade_direction =
| groundbreaking =1445
| year_completed =1451
| construction_cost =
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| website = http://www.sarkhejroza.org
}}

'''Sarkhej Roza''' is a mosque and tomb complex located in the village of [[Makarba]], 7 km south-west of [[Ahmedabad]] in [[Gujarat]] state, India.

Although there are many ''rozas''<ref>Narhari K. 1909- Bhatt, Gujarat, 1972</ref> across Gujarat, the Sarkhej Roza is the most revered. Sarkhej was once a prominent centre of [[Sufi]] culture in the country, where influential Sufi saint Shaikh Ahmed Ganj Baksh lived. It was on the saint's suggestion that Sultan [[Ahmed Shah I|Ahmed Shah]] set up his capital on the banks of the [[Sabarmati]], a few miles away from [[Sarkhej]].

==Monuments==
[[File:Plan of Sarkhej Roza Ahmedabad1.jpg|thumb|300px|Plan of Sarkhej Roza|left]]
The architecture of the complex is credited to Azam and Muazzam Khan; two Persian brothers who are buried in the [[Azam and Mauzzam Khan's Tomb|tomb near Vasna, Ahmedabad]]. The complex was originally spread over 72 acres, surrounded by elaborate gardens on all sides. Over time, human settlements came around it, eating into the gardens and reducing the area to 34 acres.{{citation needed|date=May 2015}}

Shaikh Ahmed Khattu Ganj Bakhsh of [[Anhilwad Patan]], the friend and adviser of [[Ahmad Shah I]], retired to Sarkhej in his later life and died here in 1445. In his honour a tomb, begun in 1445 by [[Muhammad Shah II]], was, in 1451, finished by his son Qutbuddin [[Ahmad Shah II]]. The next Sultan [[Mahmud Begada]] was fond of the place and expanded the complex greatly. He dug a large Sarkhej lake, surrounded it with cut stone steps, built on its south-west corner a splendid palace, and finally, opposite to the Ganj Baksh's tomb, raised a mausoleum for himself and his family, where he, his son [[Muzaffar Shah II]], his great grandson Mahmud Shah III and his queen Rajbai are buried.

Entering the covered eastern gateway on the north bank of the Sarkhej lake, the building to the right with a handsome stone pavilion in front of it, is the mausoleum of Shaikh Ahmed Khattu Ganj Bakhsh. This, the largest of its kind in Gujarat, has along its whole length its sides filled with stone trellis work, and inside, round the tomb, has a beautifully cut open metal screen. Across the courtyard on the left are two mausoleums with a connecting porch, the east mausoleum containing the tombs of Mahmud Begada, and of his son Saltan Muzaffar II, and the west, the tomb of Rajabai, Muzaffar's queen. Beyond the Ganj Bakhsh mausoleum is a courtyard, covering more than an acre of ground, surrounded by cloisters, with a mosque only slightly smaller than the [[Jama Mosque, Ahmedabad|Jama mosque]]. The want of minarets and the shallowness of its caves rather mar the outside effect. But inside 'it is the perfection of simple grace unrivaled in India except by the Moti mosque at Agra.' Looking across the lake the ruined buildings at the south-west corner are Mahmud Begada's palace and harem. The Sarkhej lake covers 17 acres. Oblong in shape, it is surrounded by flights of stone steps, and has a most richly decorated supply sluice.

Besides the chief group of remains, the country round is studded with mosques and other old buildings. A little to the south of the lake is a small ugly whitewashed tomb, the burial place of Baba Ali Sher, a saint held in higher respect even than Ganj Bakhsh. Close by are the remains of Fatehwadi or Victory Garden, laid out in 1584 by [[Abdul Rahim Khan-I-Khana]] (1583-1590) to mark his defeat of [[Muzaffar Shah III]], the last of the [[Gujarat Sultanate]]. In the 17th century Sarkhej was so famous for its indigo that in 1620 the Dutch established a factory in the village.<ref>{{cite book|title=Gazetteer of the Bombay Presidency: Ahmedabad|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=DLUBAAAAYAAJ|year=1879|publisher=Government Central Press|pages=291–292}} {{PD-notice}}</ref><ref>Subodh Kapoor, Indian Encyclopaedia, Volume 1</ref>

==Architecture==
[[File:Queen's tomb.jpg|thumb|"The gallery that opens into the Tombs of the Queens" (15th century) at Sarkhej Roza, Ahmedabad]]
[[File:Outlet of Sarkhej Roza Tank Ahmedabad 1855.jpg|thumb|Outlet of Sarkhej Roza Tank, 1855]]

Like many monuments built during that period, the Sarkhej Roza fused both non-Indian and Indian principles of architecture. While the ringed domes, the profusion of [[Column|pillars]] and [[brackets]] can be claimed to follow the Islamic west Asian genre (even though they can also be found in Indian architecture itself since much before), much of the ornamentation and [[Motif (textile arts)|motifs]] have Indian Hindu designs. Most of the buildings do not have arches and depend on pierced stone [[Trellis (architecture)|trellis]]es for stability. In its architecture, Sarkhej Roza is an example of the early Islamic architectural culture of the region, which fused Islamic stylistic influences from [[Persia]] with Indian Hindu and [[Jain]] features to form a composite [[Indo-Saracenic]] architectural style.<ref>Bharadwaj.S,DNA,Ahmedabad,11 May 2008</ref> The mosque, with its courtyard, creates a religious milieu; the royal connection is made through the tombs and palaces; the great tank, platforms and pavilions were used by the common man.

The complex is called "Acropolis of Ahmedabad", due to 20th century architect [[Le Corbusier]]'s comparison of this complex's design to the [[Acropolis of Athens]].<ref name="toi">{{cite news| url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2009-11-21/ahmedabad/28079416_1_ahmedabad-museum-acropolis| archive-url=https://archive.today/20130701061029/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2009-11-21/ahmedabad/28079416_1_ahmedabad-museum-acropolis| url-status=dead| archive-date=1 July 2013| title=When Corbu compared Ahmedabad to Acropolis| work=[[The Times of India]]|date=21 November 2009| accessdate=6 June 2013| last=Vashi|first=Ashish| location=[[Ahmedabad]]}}</ref>

==In popular culture==
Some scenes of 2016 Hindi film [[Raees (2017 film)|Raees]] was shot in Sarkhej Roza.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/hindi/bollywood/news/ASI-stops-Shah-Rukh-Khans-Raees-shoot-in-Ahmedabad/articleshow/50975134.cms|title=ASI stops Shah Rukh Khan's 'Raees' shoot in Ahmedabad|work=The Times of India|access-date=24 October 2017}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|url=http://www.tribuneindia.com/video/srk-s-raees-shoot-halted-by-asi/13849.html|title=SRK's 'Raees' shoot halted by ASI|work=The Tribune | location=India|access-date=28 June 2018 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.bollywoodhungama.com/movies/features/type/view/id/9727|title=Raees|website=Bollywood Hungama|language=en-US|access-date=24 October 2017}}</ref>

==References==
{{Commons category|Sarkhej Roza}}
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [http://www.sarkhejroza.org/ Sarkhej Roza official web site]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20110721163445/http://www.mughalarchitecture.in/ Jali Work in Mughal Architecture]

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:History of Gujarat]]
[[Category:Mosques in Gujarat]]
[[Category:Tourist attractions in Ahmedabad]]
[[Category:Mausoleums in Gujarat]]
[[Category:Religious buildings and structures in Ahmedabad]]
[[Category:Archaeological sites in Gujarat]]
[[Category:Indo-Saracenic Revival architecture]]
[[Category:Monuments of National Importance in Gujarat]]

Sarkhej Roza - Revision history

KurtisDelapena9: enhance intro as per guidelines and added references

imported>Tassedethe: v2.04 - Repaired 1 link to disambiguation page - (You can help) - Raees (film)