Basavakalyan Fort earlier known as Kalyani is considered one of the oldest cities in Southern part of India. There is considerable amount of history attached to it. The city runs close to the National Highway 9 which connects Hyderabad to Mumbai. It is one of the most imposing forts in the town; since the town is small there are hardly any major roads. The fort was the central place of activity for the western Chalukya Empire. It was built by King Nalaraja in the 10th century. During its time, the empire was spread to almost half of India.

History

Basavakalyan was mentioned by Guru Charitra, a history which dates back to almost 3000 years. This place was known by the name Kalyan before independence. Its present name is given in memory of Vishwaguru Basavana, after independence and states were divided on linguistic basis. This fort was ruled by Yadavas of Devagiri, Kalachuris, Western Chalukyas, Bijapur Sultanate, Bidar Sultanate, Bahamani Sultanate and Hyderabad Nizams.

After the 12th century the fort went on a decline since it was ultimately absorbed by various rulers in their perspective empires. The fort still shows signs of different dynasties, as all of them made some modifications to it in one way or the other. This fort was the capital of western Chalukya dynasty from 1050 to 1195. Kalyana was made the capital by Someshwara in an effort to differentiate from Badami Chalukyas. During the rule of Chalukyas, Jainism flourished a lot. There are a large number of Jaina images on the walls of the forts constructed by Chalukya kings. Mallil Kafur attacked the fort in 1310 at the time of his southern invasion.

Architecture

The majority of the places that the fort houses are now in ruins, the only maintained structure that can be found here is the courtyard of the mosque as an Urdu school runs here. Canon is the other famous structure inside the fort which is famously called by local people as “Kadak Bijili Thopu”. It is worth visiting this place, even though it is modest in size. The citadel is a good place to spend some time in case you are searching for a peaceful place, unfortunately it is not in a good shape and not many people come here. A true historian can find a lot of worthy things if he spends some time at citadel.

The fort is strategically built in a camouflaged setting for the purpose of good defense, until the enemy is close enough it is not discernible. The types of architecture can be found in forts built in Deccan. In the Basavakalyan or Kalyan fort, the defense mechanism of the fort was based on large boulders which are inter-connected scattered on the hills with thick and strong walls. There are three concentric irregular fort walls in the fort. Among the seven gates of the fort, five are in good condition.

Best Time to Visit

This fort is in Deccan region of India, so the weather here is typically the same throughout the year. The temperature here is more on the warmer side, but pleasantly warm. Therefore, this place can be visited at any time of the year.

How to Reach

This place is well connected by road, rail and air. The easiest mode is to National Highway 9 which connects Mumbai to Hyderabad, the fort is nearly half way from both the sides. The closes international airport to this place is Bangalore airport.