Maharana Pratap's descendant Arvind Singh Mewar dies. Who was he?
The 81-year-old member of the erstwhile royal family of Mewar had been under treatment at his residence in Udaipur's City Palace.
Arvind Singh Mewar, a descendant of legendary Rajput king Maharana Pratap and the chairman of the HRH group of hotels, died on Sunday in Rajasthan's Udaipur after being ill for a long time.
The 81-year-old member of the erstwhile royal family of Mewar had been under treatment at his residence in Udaipur's City Palace.
Arvind is survived by his wife Vijayraj Kumari, son Lakshyaraj Singh Mewar and daughters Bhargavi Kumari Mewar and Padmaja Kumari Parmar.
The royal descendant's funeral is set to take place on Monday, a news agency PTI report said, adding that in view of his passing, the Udaipur City Palace will remain closed for tourists on both Sunday and Monday.
Who was Arvind Singh Mewar?
Arvind Singh Mewar was the youngest son of Bhagwant Singh Mewar and Sushila Kumar. He had an elder sibling Mahendra Singh Mewar, who passed away in November last year.
Arvind was educated at Ajmer's prestigious Mayo College, where he also found his love for cricket and polo.
After his schooling, Arvind returned to Udaipur and completed his Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree, studying English literature, economics, and political science at the Maharana Bhupal College, founded and named after his grandfather Maharana Bhupal Singhji.
Arvind made his debut in the Ranji Trophy tournament in December 1961 against Vidarbha at a match that was played at the Bhopal Nobles' College ground. He had an active cricketing career through the 1960s and 1970s.
Further, Arvind went on to take a business course at the Metropolitan College in Albans, United Kingdom. Following this, he pursued hotel management studies in the United States.
His love for polo followed him till the UK, where he formed the 'The Udaipur Cup' at the Cambridge and Newmarket Polo Club.
For many years after this, Arvind Singh Mewar lived and worked in Chicago, gaining experience in the hospitality industry and becoming familiar with how first-class international hotels are run.
All these experiences enabled him to bring up the HRH group of hotels.
Later, in Udaipur as well, Mewar Polo was formed as a polo team with professional players, handpicked and specially trained for Indian tournaments. The team even won the President's Cup after defeating the 61st Cavalry players in 1991.
Other than sports and business, Arvind Singh Mewar was also an avid pilot and flew several solo flights across India in a microlight aircraft.
Family and conflicts
Notably, after Arvind's father Bhagwant Singh Mewar passed away in 1984, him and his family got embroiled in conflicts over leadership of the house and property disputes.
The issue's origin was the will of Bhagwant Singh, who wrote his property to Arvind through a trust, naming him as his successor. He disinherited his elder son Mahendra Singh Mewar because he had filed a lawsuit against him.
After Bhagwant Singh's death, Arvind had to assume the leadership role of the house. At the same time, his elder brother Mahendra was crowned as the titular head of the family.
After Mahendra's death last year, his son Vishvaraj Singh Mewar, who is also a BJP MLA, was made the titular head of the family. Then a controversy broke out when Vishvaraj was not allowed to enter the City Palace by his cousin brother, Arvind's son Lakshyaraj, to complete the rituals.
But the deadlock ended after Vishvaraj was allowed to enter the Palace to visit 'dhuni' (sacred fire) to offer prayers to the deity.
Awards and accolades
Additionally, Arvind Singh Mewar was also the 76th Custodian of the House of Mewar and the Chairman and Managing Trustee of Maharana of Mewar Charitable Foundation.
Arvind also won several awards and accolades, recognising his contribution and involvement in the promotion of tourism in the country.
Among the many awards that he has received are: The Lifetime Achievement Award 2015 of the 5th Annual Readers' Travel Awards by Conde Nast Traveller, VIII Annual Gala WT Institution Award 2012 for 'Contribution to Universal Culture' at the General Assembly of the UN headquarters in New York.
He was also honoured with the 'Royal of the Year' award by Hello Magazine in its Hall of Fame awards in November 2011.
Arvind Singh Mewar was also an active member of the prestigious World Travel and Tourism Council (WTTC).
