Diwali 2018 at Statue of Unity, Gujarat

Diwali 2018 was a little unusual this time. Instead of the usual sweets-crackers-gifts extravaganza, my family and I decided to do something completely different for this year’s Festival of Lights. We celebrated the triumph of good over evil with a leisurely viisit to the Statue of Unity in the western Indian state of Gujarat (incidentally, also the richest state in India and the home state of India’s current Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi).

I wanted my two kids to learn more about India’s culture and history – beyond what they are forced to ingest through dry history textbooks, poor dears! – and my husband and I hit upon the idea of the statue visit.

Initially I had criticised the Indian government’s rationale behind spending (wasting) crores of rupees on building what they see as a superficial symbol of India’s supposed unity. That, the money could have been better spent on addressing the country’s more critical social, financial or infrastructural needs. I was wrong. After visiting the statue I personally felt that the statue is not just a statue, superficial or otherwise. To me, the SoU signifies India’s growing strength on the world stage and is also an excellent representation of the country’s historic, cultural and spiritual values. Don’t take my word for it though – go and see it for yourself!

About the Statue of Unity (SoU)

The statue is dedicated to the memory of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, the freedom fighter who is sometimes known as the ‘architect of modern India’ but more commonly identified as the ‘Iron Man’, a term he was honoured with way before it was epitomised by Marvel and Robert Downey Jr!

Standing tall at a massive height of 182 metres, the Statue of Unity is the world’s tallest public statue; almost double the height of New York’s Statue of Liberty and almost five times as tall as the iconic effigy of Christ the Redeemer that watches over Rio de Janeiro (Brazil).

The monument and its viewing area are divided into 5 zones, of which 3 are accessible to the public. These zones contain a viewing gallery (absolute must-see!!), a museum, a memorial garden and an exhibition area. There is also a tent city for accommodation.

The entry site is open from 9 AM to 5 PM every day, except Mondays, when the SoU and its surrounds are closed for maintenance and repairs.

Location details

The SoU is located on a river island near the Sardar Sarovar Dam on the Narmada River. The monument occupies a couple of hectares and is surrounded by an artificial lake.

The closest town is Kevadiya, which itself is about 100 kilometres southeast of the city of Vadodara (aka Baroda).

Tickets

Tickets to visit the SoU are very reasonably priced. They are of 2 types: entry tickets and observation deck tickets. Here are the details of each:

We tried to book our tickets online through the official site SoU tickets but the transaction failed and we bought the tickets at the physical ticket window.

How to get to the Statue of Unity

Gujarat has a very well-developed network of roads and railways so it is possible to reach the Statue of Unity from almost any part of the state.

My family and I travelled from Baroda (which happens to be my husband’s home town!) by car. The trip took us about 2 hours on superb roads.

The first board that we encountered had different foreign languages written which was impressive and I could read 3 of them which made me happy 🙂

We reached a check point where the guard told us to park our car. The SoU Hop on Hop Off bus picked us up at a check point where we parked our car.

The Hop on Hop off Bus has three stops – Statue of Unity( where the main statue is located), Valley of flowers and Dam. It also stops at tent city which is an accomodation within the statue of unity area.

However we didnt get down at valley of flowers as the guide told us that it wasnt the blooming season and it was too sweltering to walk without getting any reward 🙂

We were at SoU by 10 AM and once the bus dropped us off, we had the entire day to visit the observation deck and explore the gallery and museum. We started walking towards the statue. There are walkators in case you dont want to walk in that heat!

There is a exhibition and a replica model of head 1:5 of the statue. There was a huge queue to go up to observation deck. Nevertheless we waited.

After waiting for an hour it was our turn in the elevator. The views from above were quite pleasing to the eye. You could see the sardar sarovar dam from the top.

My kids absolutely loved the experience. After exploring the statue from within, it was time to explore from outside ;). The best part is there are escalators everywhere so that even senior citizens and children are able to enjoy to the fullest.

You come to know the enormity when you actually see those huge toes!!!

The hop on hop bus takes you around a circuit loop which passes by the lake and canal of sardar sarovar project.

When we were getting ready to go back to Baroda, I was unsurprised to hear the clamours going on in my mind ‘Prati, I have to come again to visit valley of flowers please please please!’ J

Majestic, awe-inspiring and very, very impressive, the Statue of Unity is a must-see for every Indian and for every tourist. Go check it out!

I’d love to hear about your experiences. Drop me a note below!