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You probably haven’t even heard of these 10 most popular museums in India

  • <p>At number 10 is Gandhi Smriti that served as the home of the Mahatma while he was in Delhi and also the place where he was assassinated. The museum is a dedicated to Bapu’s work, his philosophy and indeed his life.<br>Photograph: Wilson Loo Kok Wee/Creative Commons </p>
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    10. Gandhi Smriti, New Delhi

    At number 10 is Gandhi Smriti that served as the home of the Mahatma while he was in Delhi and also the place where he was assassinated. The museum is a dedicated to Bapu’s work, his philosophy and indeed his life.
    Photograph: Wilson Loo Kok Wee/Creative Commons

  • <p>The palace-turned-museum boasts of over a hundred rooms that showcase the costumes and art of the region. On display are two peacocks made out of pieces of coloured glass and a well-preserved Mewar painting on the walls of the Queen’s Chamber. <br>Photograph: Suhas Dutta/Flickr </p>
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    9. Bagore Ki Haveli, Udaipur

    The palace-turned-museum boasts of over a hundred rooms that showcase the costumes and art of the region. On display are two peacocks made out of pieces of coloured glass and a well-preserved Mewar painting on the walls of the Queen’s Chamber.
    Photograph: Suhas Dutta/Flickr

  • <p>This museum that houses priceless paintings and antiques was once a palace. Today, it has 20 display galleries and close to 5,000 antiques of which a fifth are on display to the public. Besides paintings, weapons, old maps and rare books, the Hazarduari Palace Museum also features personal furniture and belongings of the erstwhile nawabs including a chandelier that is said to be the second largest in the world after one in Buckingham Palace and two pairs of mirrors that are placed in a manner that protected the nawab from potential assassins.<br>Photograph: Banibrata Mandal/Creative Commons </p>
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    8. Hazarduari Palace Museum, Murshidabad

    This museum that houses priceless paintings and antiques was once a palace. Today, it has 20 display galleries and close to 5,000 antiques of which a fifth are on display to the public. Besides paintings, weapons, old maps and rare books, the Hazarduari Palace Museum also features personal furniture and belongings of the erstwhile nawabs including a chandelier that is said to be the second largest in the world after one in Buckingham Palace and two pairs of mirrors that are placed in a manner that protected the nawab from potential assassins.
    Photograph: Banibrata Mandal/Creative Commons

  • <p>Dedicated to Sai Baba, the Dixit Wada Museum displays the items that the saint used as well as knick-knacks such as gramophone records and water tumblers.<br>Photograph courtesy: Sai Baba Sansathan Trust </p>
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    7. Dixit Wada Museum, Shirdi

    Dedicated to Sai Baba, the Dixit Wada Museum displays the items that the saint used as well as knick-knacks such as gramophone records and water tumblers.
    Photograph courtesy: Sai Baba Sansathan Trust

  • <p>The (almost) 100,000 square feet area that houses the Heritage Transport Museum documents the evolution of transport in India. With a wide range of displays, the museum is a reminder of how far we’ve come, both literally and figuratively.<br>Photograph courtesy: Heritage Transport Museum </p>
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    6. Heritage Transport Museum, Taoru

    The (almost) 100,000 square feet area that houses the Heritage Transport Museum documents the evolution of transport in India. With a wide range of displays, the museum is a reminder of how far we’ve come, both literally and figuratively.
    Photograph courtesy: Heritage Transport Museum

  • <p>By some estimates there are as many as 46 Scheduled Tribes in Madhya Pradesh alone. Gond, Saharia, Korko, Baiga are just a handful of these. The Madhya Pradesh Tribal Museum, located in Bhopal offers a fascinating insights into the various tribes of the state. <br>Photograph courtesy: Madhya Pradesh Tribal Museum </p>
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    5. Madhya Pradesh Tribal Museum, Bhopal

    By some estimates there are as many as 46 Scheduled Tribes in Madhya Pradesh alone. Gond, Saharia, Korko, Baiga are just a handful of these. The Madhya Pradesh Tribal Museum, located in Bhopal offers a fascinating insights into the various tribes of the state.
    Photograph courtesy: Madhya Pradesh Tribal Museum

  • <p>Sadhu Vaswani’s life and times are documented in Pune’s Darshan Museum. The museum is also a centre for learning and promoting the philosopher’s teachings. <br>Photograph courtesy: Darshan Museum, Pune </p>
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    4. Darshan Museum, Pune

    Sadhu Vaswani’s life and times are documented in Pune’s Darshan Museum. The museum is also a centre for learning and promoting the philosopher’s teachings.
    Photograph courtesy: Darshan Museum, Pune

  • <p>Kolkata’s Victoria Memorial Hall is the only major museum in Tripadvisor’s list of top rated museums in India. Built in the memory of Queen Victoria in 1906, the museum doesn’t just boast of a vast collection of artefacts but also a 64-acre garden that hugs the stunning building.<br>Photograph: Binh Huynh/Flickr </p>
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    3. Victoria Memorial Hall, Kolkata

    Kolkata’s Victoria Memorial Hall is the only major museum in Tripadvisor’s list of top rated museums in India. Built in the memory of Queen Victoria in 1906, the museum doesn’t just boast of a vast collection of artefacts but also a 64-acre garden that hugs the stunning building.
    Photograph: Binh Huynh/Flickr

  • <p>The serene Buddha statue that stands before the Hall of Fame in Leh has a solemn message below it: “It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you, not by angels or by demons, heaven or hell.” Leh’s Hall of Fame is the hard work of the Indian Army that constructed it as a memorial to the many soldiers lost in battle against Pakistan. Sure there is enough memorabilia to keep war historians busy for days but the most poignant one is the final letter from an officer to his mother just before he attained martyrdom. <br>Photograph: Pranav Bhasin/Flickr </p>
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    2. Hall of Fame, Leh

    The serene Buddha statue that stands before the Hall of Fame in Leh has a solemn message below it: “It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you, not by angels or by demons, heaven or hell.” Leh’s Hall of Fame is the hard work of the Indian Army that constructed it as a memorial to the many soldiers lost in battle against Pakistan. Sure there is enough memorabilia to keep war historians busy for days but the most poignant one is the final letter from an officer to his mother just before he attained martyrdom.
    Photograph: Pranav Bhasin/Flickr

  • <p>If military history is your calling, Yodhasthal in Bhopal is the place for you to be. Located in the Bhopal Military Station, the museum doesn’t just showcase a range of arms and ammunitions but also has stories of the various wars and battles that India fought and won.<br>Photograph: Shreya Dwivedi/Creative Commons </p>
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    1. Yodhasthal, Bhopal

    If military history is your calling, Yodhasthal in Bhopal is the place for you to be. Located in the Bhopal Military Station, the museum doesn’t just showcase a range of arms and ammunitions but also has stories of the various wars and battles that India fought and won.
    Photograph: Shreya Dwivedi/Creative Commons

<p>At number 10 is Gandhi Smriti that served as the home of the Mahatma while he was in Delhi and also the place where he was assassinated. The museum is a dedicated to Bapu’s work, his philosophy and indeed his life.<br>Photograph: Wilson Loo Kok Wee/Creative Commons </p>
<p>The palace-turned-museum boasts of over a hundred rooms that showcase the costumes and art of the region. On display are two peacocks made out of pieces of coloured glass and a well-preserved Mewar painting on the walls of the Queen’s Chamber. <br>Photograph: Suhas Dutta/Flickr </p>
<p>This museum that houses priceless paintings and antiques was once a palace. Today, it has 20 display galleries and close to 5,000 antiques of which a fifth are on display to the public. Besides paintings, weapons, old maps and rare books, the Hazarduari Palace Museum also features personal furniture and belongings of the erstwhile nawabs including a chandelier that is said to be the second largest in the world after one in Buckingham Palace and two pairs of mirrors that are placed in a manner that protected the nawab from potential assassins.<br>Photograph: Banibrata Mandal/Creative Commons </p>
<p>Dedicated to Sai Baba, the Dixit Wada Museum displays the items that the saint used as well as knick-knacks such as gramophone records and water tumblers.<br>Photograph courtesy: Sai Baba Sansathan Trust </p>
<p>The (almost) 100,000 square feet area that houses the Heritage Transport Museum documents the evolution of transport in India. With a wide range of displays, the museum is a reminder of how far we’ve come, both literally and figuratively.<br>Photograph courtesy: Heritage Transport Museum </p>
<p>By some estimates there are as many as 46 Scheduled Tribes in Madhya Pradesh alone. Gond, Saharia, Korko, Baiga are just a handful of these. The Madhya Pradesh Tribal Museum, located in Bhopal offers a fascinating insights into the various tribes of the state. <br>Photograph courtesy: Madhya Pradesh Tribal Museum </p>
<p>Sadhu Vaswani’s life and times are documented in Pune’s Darshan Museum. The museum is also a centre for learning and promoting the philosopher’s teachings. <br>Photograph courtesy: Darshan Museum, Pune </p>
<p>Kolkata’s Victoria Memorial Hall is the only major museum in Tripadvisor’s list of top rated museums in India. Built in the memory of Queen Victoria in 1906, the museum doesn’t just boast of a vast collection of artefacts but also a 64-acre garden that hugs the stunning building.<br>Photograph: Binh Huynh/Flickr </p>
<p>The serene Buddha statue that stands before the Hall of Fame in Leh has a solemn message below it: “It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you, not by angels or by demons, heaven or hell.” Leh’s Hall of Fame is the hard work of the Indian Army that constructed it as a memorial to the many soldiers lost in battle against Pakistan. Sure there is enough memorabilia to keep war historians busy for days but the most poignant one is the final letter from an officer to his mother just before he attained martyrdom. <br>Photograph: Pranav Bhasin/Flickr </p>
<p>If military history is your calling, Yodhasthal in Bhopal is the place for you to be. Located in the Bhopal Military Station, the museum doesn’t just showcase a range of arms and ammunitions but also has stories of the various wars and battles that India fought and won.<br>Photograph: Shreya Dwivedi/Creative Commons </p>
The Xennial

Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, Hyderabad’s Salarjung and National Museum in Delhi don’t figure anywhere in Tripadvisor’s list of the top museums in India. Find out which museums Indian tourists have been visiting the most in 2018.