Swaraj Bhawan

Swaraj Bhawan is the old family mansion of the Nehrus in Prayagraj, where Indira Gandhi, the only woman to serve as India's prime minister, was born. It was first known as Anand Bhawan: the lawyer Motilal Nehru, father of Jawaharlal Nehru, had enlarged a modest bungalow into a grand residence. In 1930 he handed it over to the nation as the new base of the Congress, and it took the name Swaraj Bhawan, house of self-rule.

Before independence many national leaders stayed here and debated the country's future in its rooms. Now a museum, the house has pillared verandahs, tall ceilings, family photographs, and furnishings that Motilal Nehru collected in Europe, including Venetian glass and Persian tapestries. Arts and crafts classes for children are held here, and a light and sound show in the evening tells the story of the building. The later Anand Bhawan stands a short walk away.