GaganBawda Fort

The Maratha rulers used to live in the western part of the Indian peninsula. They were able to retain their identity by fighting with invaders such as the Portuguese pirates, the all powerful Mughal emperors and the Adilshai rulers through several centuries in the past. Apart from their inborn combat capabilities, they were also able to take advantage of their natural resources like the Sahyadri range of mountains, which served as the physical backbone of the region. They constructed forts and strongholds in most crags and crevices of this friendly mountain range. The legendary Maratha warrior Shivaji Maharaj is known to have built around 100 forts at strategic locations on the Sahyadri Mountains. He lived the greater part of his life in war ravaged forts. Some of these forts command fascinating views of green valleys and rolling hills, and almost all of them carry a lot of history as you can imagine.

Take for example the GaganBawda fort. Located around 55 kilometers from Kolhapur in Maharashtra, and at a considerable height in the Sahyadri Mountains, the GaganBawda fort was built by Raja Bhoj-II of the Shilahara dynasty in 1990. But in 1209, Singhan Yadav defeated Raja Bhoj in a major battle and captured it. However, subsequently, when the Bahamani dynasty got alienated, the GaganBawda fort went to the Adilshahi rulers. But till its demolition by the British in 1844, the fort never lost its value among the Maratha living nearby.

A trip to the GaganBawda fort is worth it. Sure enough there are better and more important forts in the state. But add to it the natural beauty surrounding the place and what you get is a fantastic deal. Visit the GaganBawda fort any weekend. You will like it.

How to reach: There are plenty of trains to Kolhapur. You can take any one of them to reach the city. Kolhapur has an airport too. The city is well connected by state and private buses as well. You should book a taxi from the airport, station or your hotel to reach the fort, which is about an hour away.

There aren’t good hotels in GaganBawda fort, resorts in GaganBawda fort or cottages in GaganBawda fort. It is best that you stay in Kolhapur and visit the fort from there.