jharokha

English

Alternative forms

• jharoka

Noun

jharokha (plural jharokhas)

1. (architecture) A type of enclosed overhanging balcony in Indian architecture.
   • 1993, William Dalrymple, City of Djinns, Penguin, published 2004, page 56:

     The gatehouse survives still as a witness to this grandeur: with its Dholpur sandstone façade, its delicate jharokha balconies and its fine fish-tail mouldings it is still a magnificent sight.

   • 1996, Richard Maxwell Eaton, The Rise of Islam and the Bengal Frontier, 1204-1760, page 160:

     In Dhaka, Islam Khan built a scaled-down replica of Jahangir's imperial court, complete with a jharokhā.

   • 1997, Kiran Nagarkar, Cuckold, HarperCollins, published 2013, page 84:

     They watch him from their jharokhas when he leaves the Atithi Palace in smartly tailored white clothes, bottlegreen or pink sash around his waist and a fancy saafa on his head.

   • 2011, Achyut Yagnik, Ahmedabad: From Royal city to Megacity:

     Apart from residential buildings, jharokhas were incorporated into temples, mosques, Jain derasars or temples and step-wells, where they served as ornamentation to a building's elevation, functioned as shaded openings to let in air and light, and provided seating spaces on their ledges for a view of the world outside.