of the 300-year old
Bawali Rajbari, with
corinthian pillars – has been renovated for use as a hotel. During the
Mughal Period, the
vaishnavite wealthy Mondals of the
Mahishya community, who hailed from
Nadia, established the
Bawali Raj, in this area adjacent to
Sundarbans. Originally Roys, Shovaram, the grandson of Basudev Roy (who lived between the end of 16th century and the early 17th century), was awarded the title—Mondal. Shovaram’s grandson, Rajaram, was a commander-in-chief (senapati) in Mughal army and suppressed a peasant revolt, and as a reward for his bravery, the Raja granted him ownership of 50 villages that included Bawali and
Budge Budge. Rajaram’s grandson Haradhan, who became a trading partner of the
East India Company, and his sons built many temples in Bawali turning the nondescript villages into a "temple town". At the invite of
Robert Clive, some members of Mondal family moved to
Tollygunge, Calcutta. They built houses and temples including a part of
Kalighat Kali Temple and also the
Choto Rasbari by the side of
Adi Ganga. Mondals had matrimonial relationship with
Rani Rashmoni's family and historians suggest that the architectural style of Rani Rashmoni's
Dakshineswar Kali Temple was inspired by the Navaratna style of Radhakanta temples of Mondal family. ==Geography==