Gaiety Theatre

Shimla

Lovingly restored between 2004 and 2009 and hoping for Unesco status, this remarkable 320-seater theatre opened in 1877, originally as part of a bigger grandiose civic centre. It's long been a focus of Shimla social life, and Rudyard Kipling, Baden-Powell, Shashi Kapoor and Michael Palin are among those who have trodden its Burmese teak boards.

It's worth the entry fee to admire the unusual gilt-patterned interior and to hear the (included) historical commentary by dapper and unstoppably fluent guide Mr R Gautam. There's also an exhibition of old photos and a church-like vaulted gallery (separately entered from The Ridge side, free).

Contact

Address

The Mall

Get In Touch

0177-2650173

https://www.gaiety.in/

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Nearby Shimla attractions

1. Town Hall

0.03 MILES

Shimla's half-timbered old town hall building originally dates from 1908–10, but has been so restored that it looks essentially new.

2. The Ridge

0.09 MILES

Along the central ridgetop, this broad pedestrian esplanade diverges from The Mall at Scandal Point, guarded by a fancifully hatted policeman. Thronged…

3. Ripon Hospital

0.14 MILES

One of Shimla's most atmospheric timber-framed buildings, the green-and-white Ripon Hospital building (1885) has a couple of exterior wooden stair-spirals…

4. Christ Church

0.14 MILES

This 1840s square-towered church would turn few heads in an English market town but in Shimla it's a treasured landmark, prominent at The Ridge's east end.

5. Sri Guru Singh Sabha Gurdwara

0.18 MILES

This major Sikh temple isn't a particular attraction but makes a useful landmark beside busy Cart Rd below the bazaar area.

6. Bantony

0.26 MILES

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7. Rothney Castle

0.34 MILES

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8. Shimla Heritage Museum

0.37 MILES

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