“Freedom lies in being bold.”
Robert Frost
Looking Beyond the Portuguese in Goa
Goa makes everyone think of Portuguese history in an instant, the churches and locality names reinforcing that thought. Maharashtra looks at Goa’s history differently. There is a patriotic tinge to it of how the Marathas resisted the invaders. And if interested, these stories are far more colourful than Fontainhas!
Far off from the Portuguese influenced regions around Panaji, close to the current Karnataka border, are where the stories of rebellious nationalism originate. In Valpoi and Sakhali, the centre of revolts against the usurpers from Portugal. The Nanuz (or Nanus) Fort in Valpoi, Sattari district and the fort of Dipaji Rane in Sakhali are the two historic landmarks in north-east Goa one must know about.
Nanuz Fort
With the quest of looking beyond the Portuguese in Goa and learning about Nanuz fort in mind, the need to discover it better for my readers became strong. 55 km and an hour and a half later from Sinquerim, where my lodgings were, I reached a dead-end into the family plantation of one Patil. My Google map showed the destination is ‘reached’. The grand old matriarch asked me to jump across the ruins of the wall and follow my nose.
My nose took me across dense betel-nut plantations straight to the Mahadayi (Mhadei) river. Except for ruined broken walls amid thick overgrowth, no sign of any historical monument existed. A small hillock on close inspection made me discover one big pillar. The only remnant of the mighty Nanuz fort. This brickwork pillar sits atop a few steps with a plaque on it that reads ‘Locale do Forte de Nanuz’.
The Ranes of Sakhali
A bit of history here should help. Built by The Great Maratha king Shivaji in the 17th century, Nanuz fort remained a bastion of the Ranes until the mid-19th century. Theirs was a love-hate relationship with the Portuguese and the Nanuz Fort witnessed many of the rebellions and warfares between 1740 AD and 1912 AD.
From Nanuz Fort, Sanquelim (or Sakhali, meaning chain) is roughly half an hour away, the majestic temple of Vitthal – Rakhumai looming large on the banks of the Valvanti river. This is the forefront of Maharaja Dipaji Rane’s ancestral home and fort.
The Ranes migrated from Rajasthan 600 years ago, and the temple stands testimony to their adaption of the local culture. Reconstructed in 1942 AD, in the Nagari style of architecture, the deities have remained untouched. The inner areas are resplendent and befitting to the kingly stature of the Ranes.
The Palace and Fort of Maharaja Dipaji Rane
Just behind the temple is the ancestral home of the erstwhile royals and a temple of the family deity, Tulja Bhavani. Opposite this smaller temple, an old gateway leads to the smaller homes of the Rane household.
Ahead, a promenade on the Valvanti river is a peaceful place to spend a quiet evening. A platform above the promenade has small temples. An interesting discovery on the promenade is under this platform. It has small caverns, each having a painting of the saints of Maharashtra, with no clarity on their importance.
What makes Sattari famous is Dipaji Ranes’s contribution to the Goan freedom struggle. A hero in his own right, a visit to these places helps us look beyond the Portuguese, and find pride in our own.
