This online exhibition on the occasion of the 56th Foundation Day of Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation (MMCF) celebrates the transformation of the City Palace of Udaipur which was once the royal residence of the Mewar dynasty but now has turned into a dynamic cultural institution that serves as the center of excellence.
It tells us how a historic palace became a living museum, embodying MMCF's mission to preserve heritage while it accessible for the visitors, giving platform to local artist and people for representation and empowering them, and preserving of the heritage of the City of Udaipur.
In 1969, His Late Highness Maharana Bhagwat Singh Mewar of Udaipur established the Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation, a public charitable trust, on the principles of trusteeship, the foundational base of the 1500 years old House of Mewar.
The ornamented arch of a gateway is a Toran. It is testimony to the successful completion of an act of Dan i.e. philanthrophy performed by the Maharana of Mewar. A Shiv-ling was placed on top of the Toran to invoke divine blessings. The lighted lamp in the centre symbolizes removal of darkness.
Maharana Mewar Foundation Annual Awards were instituted in 1980-81 to recognize college and school students from Udaipur for their academic and sporting achievements. The scope and spectrum of the Awards has been steadily widening ever, and today the Annual Awards ceremony honours international and national scholars for their work of permanent value to society.
From 2005, MMCF initiated the Architectural Conservation beginning with the Architectural Planning and Conservation Grants supported by the Getty Foundation, USA, followed by the second phase in 2008-2009.
The first phase (November 2005–July 2007) developed a Primary Conservation Master Plan for the City Palace, including photogrammetric and measured drawings and the execution of emergency conservation works. Subsequent phases focused on the conservation of key architectural elements such as Nakkar Khana ki Chatri (2007), Ghadiyal ki Chatri (2007), and other historic sections within the palace complex.
The restored rooms of the Bhagwat Prakash Gallery were converted into exhibition spaces for the museum's first curated exhibition, held on 15th March 2009, titled 'Long Exposure: The Camera at Udaipur, 1857–1957'. It presented a photographic overview of the reigns of five successive Maharanas of Mewar, captured through the lens of the camera. The display also featured cameras and photographic equipment from the same period.
The upgradation and modernisation of the Zenana Mahal at the City Palace, formed part of a larger conservation and reuse plan for the entire City Palace Museum. This phase (November 2008–July 2009) included the preparation of an Environment Management Plan, Interpretation and Museum Use Plan, Lighting Plan, and Risk Management Plan, along with an intermediate-level Cultural Heritage Tourism Plan. The Ministry of Culture, Government of India, sanctioned financial assistance to the City Palace Museum in 2011–12 under the scheme "Setting up, Promotion, and Strengthening of Regional and Local Museums" for the development of museum infrastructure.
The City Palace Museum, Udaipur, has its own digital documentation cell that records artefacts both physically and digitally. To manage its collections, the museum adopted The Museum System (TMS) in 2015, one of the world's leading collection management software. It is the first museum in India to implement TMS and now successfully manages records of over 35,000 artifacts from its collection.
Conservation is a process that ensures the safety and longevity of artifacts. To maintain and treat its collections, the City Palace Museum established its own conservation laboratory. Plans for the laboratory were conceptualized in 2015–16, structural restoration began in 2017, and it became fully functional in January 2018.
The City Palace Museum, Udaipur, with its 10 permanent exhibitions, is also committed to research, scholarship, and cultural expression. To engage wider audiences, it has organised and collaborated on numerous exhibitions and loaned objects to institutions worldwide, including Smithsonian's National Museum of Asian Art and Cleveland Museum of Art for A Splendid Land: Paintings from Royal Udaipur; Victoria and Albert Museum, London; Museum Rietberg, Zurich; Pinacothèque de Paris in 2014 and Maharaja Fatehsingh Museum, Vadodara, India in 2024.
To promote education and learning among visitors and diverse target audiences, The City Palace Museum, Udaipur, regularly organises events and educational workshops. Notably, Metals in Mewar: From Bronze to Steel was organised in 2022. In collaboration with various institutions, the museum has also hosted major conferences such as the UNESCO conference in 2022, Museum Association of India conference in 2022, Indian Association for the Study of Conservation of Cultural Property Conference in 2024, and a workshop with the Rajasthan Bhasha Academy in 2025.
Today, MMCF takes initiatives to provide museum visits and education about Mewar's history and dynasty to underprivileged audiences through complimentary guided tours. This initiative particularly targets children who are differently-abled or from economically challenged backgrounds, ensuring that no one is left behind in learning and education.
As of now, The City Palace Museum has hosted 34 students for its internship and training program since 2021. Of these, 23 students were from Indian institutes, including the Indian Institute of Heritage and the University of Delhi, while the remaining 11 students were international, from universities such as the University of Oxford, University of Miami, Princeton University (USA), Institute of Fine Arts, New York University, University of Amsterdam, and École du Louvre, Paris.
The City Palace Museum, Udaipur, launched a video documentary series in 2025 titled 'Through the Voices of Udaipur', an initiative that records and preserves the oral heritage, crafts, and traditions of Mewar for future generations. Since its launch, seven video documentaries have been released, and many more episodes featuring craftspeople, local residents and their memories, and community histories have been recorded. The series also extends the reach of Udaipur's cultural heritage from a small city to audiences around the world, connecting local voices to an international platform.
On the occasion of the 56th founding day of our Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation (MMCF), I am honoured to commemorate the vision of my illustrious grandfather, our Founder-Chairman and Managing Trustee HlH Maharana Bhagwat Singh Mewar (r. 1955 – 1984 CE) and my father, HlH Maharana Arvind Singh Mewar (r. 1984 – 2025 CE). MMCF, a sustainable example of center of excellence, has grown as a 'temple of inspiration' dedicated to nation-building tasks, generating employment through tourism-led activities, education and philanthropic programs since 1969. As a result of their collective pioneering efforts, the city of Udaipur has emerged on the global map of tourism, giving the state of Rajasthan a new progressive identity, besides several additional benefits…
Lakshyaraj Singh Mewar
77th Custodian of the House of Mewar
Chairman and Managing Trustee
Maharana Bhagwat Singh Mewar of Udaipur announcing the foundation of Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation
Maharana Bhagwat Singh Mewar of Udaipur addressing the dignitaries in front of Shambhu Niwas Palace at Basant Chowk
Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation Emblem
Initial Ticket for Museum Mardana Mahal and Zanana Mahal
Maharana Bhagwat Singh Mewar of Udaipur lighting the lamp of the 1st Annual Award Ceremony in 1980
Shriji Huzur Dr. Lakshyaraj Singh Mewar of Udaipur giving Maharana Raj Singh Award to NCC Student
Ghadiyal ki Chatri after Restoration
Poster for the Exhibition
Orientation Plan of The City Palace Museum, Udaipur
Conservation Laboratory
Salehkhana Gallery: Arms and Armoury Exhibition of The City Palace Museum, Udaipur
Glimpse from Indian Association for the Study of Conservation of Cultural Property conference, 2024
Shriji Huzur Dr. Lakshyaraj Singh Mewar of Udaipur engaging with children 
Ms. Katherine Andrews, our curatorial intern conducting an educational workshop with MMPS students
Ms. Sejal Tandon, our conservation intern working of museum artefact
Cover Image of 'Through the Voices of Udaipur'
