Naldurg Fort, Maharashtra, India
Traversing back into Maharashtra from Telangana and Karnataka, the road dipped to reveal a hillock with massive fortifications stretching for miles. I stopped on the kerb to Google the location and it said Naldurg. The non-familiarity of the name piqued my curiosity, and I explored it. Off-roading into a trench, I reached the entrance without a clue about what lay inside.
Named after Nalraja, the king who built Basavakalyan fort, there is no evidence except for scattered remnants from that era to prove so. Bahmani kings constructed the fortifications spread for one and a half miles from AD 1351 to AD 1480. The Adilshahi rulers did more additions. The fort location en route Solapur from Bijapur-Bidar made it a strategic investment. Medieval architecture and engineering techniques from the period are signature styles of this citadel.
An impregnable fortress
The basaltic rock on which the ground fort of Naldurg stands is impregnable. The ravines on the west and south surround this knoll. Towards the east and north, the Bori river gives protection. Using these natural barriers, the entrance to the fort is at the west with evidence of a moat (now a trench) around it. Sections of the embankment still have rivets suggesting a drawbridge.
Seven doorways guard this fort, but the primary gate itself is an arrangement of three doors placed in a plough formation and called Halmukh Darwaza (Plough-mouthed Gate). Two massive towers with battlements guard the first of these.
The axial alignment is for strategic warfare. There are compact spaces between the gates to trap the enemy and stop their progress before they reach Hubegul, the innermost wooden door built to withstand fire and elephant attacks.
Bastions of the fort
The fortification walls around are double layered with lower outer elevation and higher inner bastions. There are multiple bastions throughout the fort walls on all sides. They come in various sizes and shapes – rectangular, polygonal, but most are semi circular. Important ones are Paranda Burj, Nau-Burj, Sangram Burj, and Upuli Burj. Some of these have a circular platform mounted with canons.
The Nau-Burj is a not-to-be-missed feature of Naldurg. On the southern outer wall, it has 9 small semi-circular bastions in one large structure. It is further strengthened by two smaller bastions on the sides and a firing platform on the inner fortification wall.
Upuli Burj
The enormous Upuli Burj, standing 22 metres tall, guards the Northern side. We can climb it through 77 steep steps. Built by Sultan Ali Adil Shah of Bijapur in AD 1558, its namesake stands in the fort of Bijapur too. A gigantic cannon, Magar Toph (Crocodile Cannon) is on the top of this bastion.
A short flight of stairs underneath leads to a small circular viewing room. Caricatures by irresponsible tourists have defaced the intricate carvings that are still visible to the discerning eye.
Spectacular views of the countryside and the Bori river are a delight to watch from this height, as are the inner structures of the fort.
