Moment Man Builds Replica of Taj Mahal as a Gift for His Wife, Spending Up to Rp3.8 Billion

Dream - This is the story of an entrepreneur in India who built a replica of the Taj Mahal as a gift for his wife. The construction cost about US$260,000 or equivalent to Rp3.88 billion.

He is Anand Prakash Chouksey, a 52-year-old man who built a "monument of love" in the city of Burhanpur in the state of Madhya Pradesh in central India.

"It is a gift for my wife, but also for the city and its people," said Chouksey, as quoted from BBC.

From the outside, the building does resemble the Taj Mahal, but the interior is a house. Although the Taj Mahal is the main inspiration, Chouksey said that the interior design is not entirely Islamic but infused with contemporary influences, as seen from the choice of sofas and curtains.

Chouksey said that many people visit, walk in front of his house, and even take pre-wedding photos.

However, not all visitors are allowed inside the house because, after all, it is their residence.

Many admire the lush interior of the house, with intricate floral motifs adorning the walls and marble floors, as well as the canopy window grilles.

The house consists of two main bedrooms located on two separate floors. There is also a library and a meditation room. The living room showcases marble columns, curved stairs, and gold-plated ceilings.

Building this replica of the famous monument took three years, and they also visited the city of Agra, where the Taj Mahal is located. So Chouksey and his wife could study various aspects of the mausoleum (a large and grand tomb building).

"We also used many 3D images of the Taj Mahal on the internet to build it ourselves," added Chouksey. 

Chouksey is not the first person inspired by the beauty of the Taj Mahal. In 2013, a retired government official in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh also built a replica of the Taj Mahal in memory of his wife.

Taj Mahal is a 17th-century mausoleum in the city of Agra, built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his queen Mumtaz, who died while giving birth to their 14th child.

Taj Mahal is one of the largest tourist attractions in India, featuring stunning marble interiors and famous intricate latticework.

Before the pandemic, Taj Mahal attracted as many as 70,000 visitors daily, including celebrities and officials.