Anand Bhawan

Anand Bhawan comprises a pair of picturesque mansions, called Anand Bhawan and Swaraj Bhawan, set in parklands. As this estate was the residence of Motilal Nehru, his son Jawaharlal Nehru and granddaughter Indira Gandhi, it now forms a museum memorial with memorabilia related to the Nehru family. This estate was bought by the lawyer, Motilal Nehru in the early 1900s. The building was renovated and its interiors appointed with Mahogany and teak furniture, tapestries, Venetian glassware and Dresden china bought by Motilal Nehru during his trips abroad. It was called Anand Bhavan, house of happiness. This house became a hotbed for political leaders and activists as Motilal Nehru was a prominent member of the Indian National Congress Party. He and his son, Jawaharlal Nehru, were actively involved with Mahatma Gandhi’s Civil Disobedience Movement. Motilal dedicated the original building, renamed Swaraj Bhawan, to the nation on 9 April 1930, and it remained the headquarters of the Indian National Congress for many years, and a new two storey house called Anand Bhawan was built from 1927 to become the residence with pillared verandahs and high-ceilinged rooms. The complex was donated by Indira Gandhi to the nation in 1970. It has been turned into a museum exhibiting books, personal effects and photos of Motilal Nehru, Jawaharlal Nehru and Indira Gandhi, who was married here in 1942. The campus also has the Jawahar Planetarium and the Jawahar Bal Bhavan, which runs classes for children.