Old Jaipur pictures are a big draw for Jaipur lovers. Jaipur is one of the most photographed cities in the world with many travelers visiting the pink city and capturing it with pictures. Online photo portals have many Jaipur images and photos. This affirms the fact that the pink city is very popular among travelers.
Recently, Sergei, a YouTuber, posted a couple of pictures of Jaipur clicked by his uncle’s India trip. The pictures were captured by his uncle during the 1971 India trip. From a cursory glance many of these pictures give an impression of Jaipur in the early 1980s.
Old Jaipur City Pictures from 1970s
From these photos of Jaipur, the world from the early 1970s seems so different with hardly any traffic, empty Jaipur streets barring people. Some of the popular themes in these pictures are street life, Jaipur city markets or bazaars, and people. In a few pictures one can also spot popular landmarks like Hawa Mahal, Old Jaipur Vidhaan Sabha or Sawai Man Singh Town Hall. I’m sharing these Jaipur pictures for people to see and enjoy.
Old Jaipur City Market
Jaipur Old City has attracted travelers from across the world and is one of the most visited places in Jaipur. With its buzzing bazaars and a variety of shops, travelers just cannot resist all that it offers. In this old picture of Jaipur city, all one can see here are pedestrians, camel carts, cycles, and pedal rickshaws. In stark contrast, today’s pictures will be full of bikes, cars, buses, and e-rickshaws. This photo of the old Jaipur city market is priceless. Read: Why you must explore the old Jaipur markets?
Hawa Mahal
Hawa Mahal is one of the most photographed tourist attractions in Jaipur. If you want to know why, read this blog- Why I recommend visiting Hawa Mahal? This photo of Hawa Mahal Jaipur shows a completely different world. Right now, the scenes around Hawa Mahal are all about traffic snarls and chaos.
Read the Hawa Mahal Travel Guide
Johari Bazaar in Jaipur
Johari Bazaar is one of the most popular old Jaipur city markets. The wares in the Johari Bazaar shops continue to charm travellers and tourists alike; shopping in Jaipur is a big attraction. Here is an old picture of Johari Bazaar Jaipur from 1970s.
Sirehdyodi Bazaar
Sirehdyodi Bazaar is one of the most visited places in Jaipur due to Hawa Mahal. Here is an old photo of Sirehdyodi Bazar, Jaipur.
Jaipur City Palace Peacock Gate
The four gates of City Palace Jaipur are well-known; they feature on the most Instagrammable places in Jaipur. Read: 5 Most Instagram Worthy Places in Jaipur. The Peacock gate is the most popular one symbolizing the monsoon season. Here is an old picture of Peacock Gate from City Palace Jaipur. Also seen in the picture is a guard from Jaipur City Palace in traditional white Achakan and bright red turban or Safa.
Read: Jaipur City Palace Guide
Amer Fort Jaleb Chowk
Amer Fort Jaleb Chowk has changed quite a lot over the years. Here is an old picture of Jaleb Chowk in Amer Fort Jaipur from the 1970s.
Read Amer Fort Guide
Amer Fort Elephant ride
Elephant ride is one of the most sought after things to do in at Amer Fort Jaipur. This old picture of the elephant ride at Amer Fort from the 1970s also proves its popularity back then, too. I have already highlighted the flipside of elephant rides in Jaipur and how PETA is trying hard to stop elephant rides. Unfortunately, they have not been very successful, until now. Read my most recent in-depth post – Elephant Village in Jaipur and also Elephant ride in Amer Fort
Amer Fort Sheesh Mahal – The Mirror Hall
Sheesh Mahal has been accessible for travelers for years. This old picture of Sheesh Mahal in the Amer Fort from the 1970s proves this point. Currently, Sheesh Mahal can only be viewed from a distance and the barricade ensures this. Sheesh Mahal looks incredibly beautiful.
Read more about Sheesh Mahal in Amer Fort Guide
Amer Fort and Maota Lake
It is hard to imagine Amer Fort without Maota lake. It is an integral part of the structure. For the uninitiated, the Maota lake water fed the water requirement of Amer Fort. Read more about the Amer Fort Water System, Amer Fort Heritage Water Walk. This picture of Amer Fort with Maota Lake from the 1970s just proves the point.
Amer Fort with Elephant Ride
Elephants and Amer Fort share a strong bond. I’m not sure since when the elephant rides in Amer Fort have been operating. This old picture of Amer Fort with elephants from the 1970s affirms the fact that the rides have been operational for more than half a century.
Read: Elephant Rides in Amer Fort

Old Jaipur Bazaar with shops
This old picture of Jaipur Bazaar from the 1970s depict how much the world has changed. Old wooden shutters have given way to new rolling shutters. One can still find people donning similar clothes in the old markets of the walled city.
Jaipur City Market and Bazaar with rickshaw pullers and cyclists

Cycles were the most common form of transport in Jaipur during the early 1970s. Not many people possessed cars in Jaipur. The above picture aligns well with the same. The cycle rickshaws in Jaipur have now vanished; they have been replaced by e-rickshaws, electric powered rickshaws; imported Chinese kits assembled locally. Manual labour has been replaced by electric powered motors over a span of 5 decades.
Man Singh Town Hall in Jaipur Old City
Jaipur city looks drastically different today in comparison to the old picture. In the background one can see the old town hall or Sawai Man Singh Town Hall. I have already written a complete post on Sawai Man Singh Town Hall also called Purani Vidhan Sabha. Check it out: Sawai Man Singh Town Hall | Heritage in ignorance
Jaipur Traffic Police
Probably, only the senior residents of the pink city can recall this uniform of Jaipur traffic police. I have never seen Jaipur traffic police wearing shorts, in person, ever. The only connection I can make is from old sketches of Indian police during colonial days.
Jaipur girls at Amer Fort Wall

This picture of Jaipur girls is one of my favourites along with the Jaipur traffic police. It is a candid picture and these young girls are happy and excited to be captured in a picture. The patterns and prints of their dresses are reminiscent of the period. The protective wall of Amer is iconic with its design and terracotta colour. You can read more about the great wall of Amer in this blog: Why loss of the great wall of Amer is inevitable?
I’m sure these old Jaipur pictures must have been an interesting find for you. Do check out more old pictures of Jaipur in this blog Vintage pictures of Jaipur
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These are very beautiful photos of a time when there were fewer cars in India.
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Great pictures! Now the roadside buildings would have changed.
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You will be surprised how many are still standing tall. Have you ever been to Jaipur?
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Lovely post. Thank you for sharing! Visited Jaipur in 2014 – big change!
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Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Hope you enjoyed your trip to Jaipur.
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Our trip was amazing thanks. Such a cool city and very easy to navigate around.
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That’s good to hear, John. Where are you based?
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I can certainly see why Jaipur is one of the photographed cities in the world. It is beautiful. Thanks for sharing it with all of us, Arv!
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It is. Thanks 🙂
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I was very interested to see these old photos, especially the ones of Hawa Mahal as I remember the challenge of trying to cross the road there – it was so busy compared to these peaceful scenes!
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Well said. It is chaotic in that area. Did you visit Jaipur recently?
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In 2015, so not very recently, but much more so than these photos show!
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Thanks for sharing this, Sarah 🙂
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