There is a museum situated in a castle in Rajasthan which has 89 volumes of handwritten diaries by the Thakur of an estate which are the longest ever series of diaries been written in the world.
This man with mission was Amar Singh, the Thakur of Kanota who also served as the Commander of the erstwhile Jaipur State Force.
He wrote diaries for 44 years between 1898 and 1942 except for one day when he had fallen from his horse.
He chronicled his life memoirs each day for 44 years except one day when he met with an accident after falling from a horse and made a world record for writing longest diaries ever.
These diaries, preserved at Kanota museum, 15 kilometre from Jaipur on Agra highway, are something pleasant to look at in the internet era when handwritten diaries seem to be a thing of distant past.
In fact, this museum looks very different from the museums of royals who generally showcase arms and ammunition on its walls to speak of their bravery tales. However, this museum looks like a temple of knowledge accommodating a vast collection of books dating back to the 19th century.
This museum also has a library which after starting as a study room grew into a personal library as and when the collection of books started expanding, with the ever growing reading habit of Amar Singh.
The diaries accommodate the waterman-penned entries comprising the 89 volumes of Amar Singh’s writing, which come along with detailed observations on affairs related to diverse issues including social, political, military and family. These diaries also give an insight into the lavish lives of the princely states during the British Raj.
