Bidar is
a district of Karnataka state in
northern India. The historic city of Bidar is
the administrative centre of the district. The district is located in the
northeastern corner of the state, near the borders with Andhra Pradesh to the east and Maharashtra to the north and west. Gulbarga district lies to the south.Bidar is
120 km from Andhra Pradesh's
capital Hyderabad.
Till 1956, Bidar was part of Hyderabad State.
Bidar
city is known for its Bidri handicraft products. Manjira River is one of the main rivers
supplying drinking water to Bidar .
History
The first Rashtrakuta capital was Mayurkhandi in
the present day Bidar district. The regal capital was later moved to Manyakheta in the present day Gulbarga district by Amoghavarsha I.
Kalyani
(today called Basavakalyan after Basaveshwara) in Bidar district was the capital
of Western Chalukyas,
who were also called Kalyani Chalukyas after their capital. The Kalachuris continued with Kalyani as their
capital.
Later,
Bidar was ruled in succession by the vassals to Sevuna
Yadavas of Devagiri, Kakatiyas of Warangal, Allauddin Khilji and Muhammad bin Tughluq.
The
generals of Muhammad Bin Tughlaq who were nominated as viceroys of the newly
conquered Deccan region broke up and formed the Bahmani Sultanate under Allauddin Hasan
Gangu Bahman Shah.
The
Bahmani capital was shifted from Kalburgi or Kalubaruge(pronounced as Gulbarga and subsequently renamed Ahsanabad by
the Muslim newcomers) to Bidar (renamed Muhammadabad by the
Bahmanis) in 1425. Bidar remained the capital until the Sultanate's breakup
after 1518. It then became the center of the Barid Shahis, one of the five independent
sultanates known as the Deccan sultanates. These were the successor
states to the Bahmani kingdom.
The Bidar Sultanate was absorbed by the Bijapur Sultanate to the west in 1619, which
was in turn included into their Deccan province by the Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb during his viceroyship of Deccan
in 1656. After the death of Aurangazeb, Asaf Jah I, the Mughal Subehdar of the Deccan
province, became independent and assumed the title Nizam-ul-mulk,
with the whole of the province under the Nizam's sovereign control. This status
remained unchanged until Operation Polo, when the Nizam's territory was
merged to the Republic of India.
With the
reorganization of states in 1956 along linguistic lines, Bidar was deemed a Kannada speaking area, and became a part of
unified Mysore state which
later was renamed Karnataka.
Bidar,
Gulbarga, Yadgir, Raichur and Koppal are collectively referred to as Hyderabad
Karnataka. Bellary, though ceded to the British in 1800 AD, is also
grouped together with these areas.
Geography
The fort,
the town and the district are all affixed with the name Bidar. The town and the
fort are located on the edge of an oblong shaped plateau, which measures 22
miles (35 km) in length and 12 miles (19 km) in width at its
broadest, encompassing a total area of 12 square miles (31 km2).
The ancient capital Kalyani of the
second Kalyani
dynasty is situated about 40 miles (64 km) to the west of
Bidar.
River
system
The Bidar
town and the surrounding terrain in the district are drained by the Karanja
river, a tributary of Manjra
River, which in turn is a major tributary of the Godavari River.
Structure
With the
establishment of the Bahmani Kingdom in the Deccan from 1347, the architectural styles of the Persian architecture of Iran made impressive and lasting impacts, which are seen
in the Bidar Fort. The mosques, arches, gardens and the palaces were built
within and also outside the fort in the Bidar town. Some of the important
structures built are elaborated.
The
influence of Persian culture was distinct in Bidar in the Deccan, during fifteenth
and sixteenth centuries.
The fort
The Bidar
fort, constructed on the edge of the plateau, has a haphazard quadrangular
layout plan of 0.75 miles (1.21 km) in length and 0.5 miles (0.80 km)
breadth. The peripheral length of the fort walls measure 4,500 yards
(4,100 m). The walls, bastions, gates and barbicans of Bidar, though in
ruins, are well preserved and considered as some of the most stylish in India.
It is surrounded by a triple moat.
There are
seven gates in the fort. The dominant main gate exhibits Persian style
architecture. The ‘Gumbad Darwaza’ depicts arches with stilted size, also in
Persian style. The ‘Sherza Darwaza’ of Bidar Fort, the second gate of entry,
depicts two images of tigers carved on its fascia; according to Shia belief,
the tiger decorations are indicative of Ali who was also known as Asadullah-Al
Ghalib that assured protection to the building from enemy
attack. The other gates are the Fateh Gate on the south (has octagonal
towers and drawbridge); the Talghat Gate in the east; the Delhi Gate and the
Mandu Gate. The prominent bastion at the entry is known as the ’Munda Burj’
with guns positioned on it.
It is
said that the Bahmani Sultanate claimed lineage of the Sasanians and the motifs on their buildings,
particularly the crowns of the arches that they built depicted a crescent and
occasionally a disk that was closely reminiscent of the crowns of the Sassanian
emperors.
Madrasa
or Islamic school
The
Madrasa or the Islamic school was built by Khwaza Mahmud Gawan, the Persian
scholar, the General and the Prime Minister in the court of Mohamad Shah III.
Mahmud Gawan was a native of Gillan in Iran. It has been built in distinct Persian architectural
style. Gawan had invited architects and engineers from Persia and other middle east countries to build the edifices
in the fort (this is inferred from a collection of letters under the title
"Riyad al-Insha" written by Gawan to build his madrasa). The madrasa
has its parallel in the Madrasa of Kharghid near Meshhed. The madrasa is a three storied building
with a quadrangular plan with towering minarets; it is unlike the Indian
minarets in that the first and second floors have balconies that project from
the main structure and have curvilinear forms without any bracket support. The fascia has a strip of coloured chevron tile
work on the parapet in a cusped pattern, in typical Persian style. The bulbous
domes are, however, in the Timurind style. In 1696, the madrasa was
damaged by lightning. When it was housed the cavary barracks and powder
magazine, it was subject to more damage. Even in the present ruined state, the
madaras looks an impressive edicifce.
Mosques
Bidar has
two prominent mosques – the spacious 'Jami Masjid' (the "Great
Mosque") and the 'Solah Khamba Masjid' (16 pillared mosque) with a notable
dome built on a 16-sided drum.
Jami
Masjid, a large mosque, is without minarets or prominent domes. The mosque
though simple in design but has a symmetrical plan with well organized
constituent parts.
Solah
Khamba Mosque in the fort was built in 1327. Its long prayer hall has nineteen
passageways; each passage is five compartments deep. In plan, the mosque
measures 295 feet (90 m) x 77 feet (23 m). The main prayer hall is
supported by 18 piers; the other areas of the mosque are supported by 60 round
piers. All the piers support a roof which has 84 domes. The domes are flat with
features of pendentives. Massive
circular columns supporting the structure are fashioned with leafy motifs at
the top. The Mihrab (prayer niche) located on the rear
wall is enclosed by a cusped arch. The bays form a large chamber in the
entrance. Squinches support the
dome with braces designed as elephant trunks. The outer arcade lacks any
original features, the parapet of pierced interlocking battlements were a later
addition. The main dome has flattish shape and is supported on a circular drum,
which is embellished with relief of trefoil crenellations.
Palaces
The Gagan
Mahal (Public Audience Hall)or palace in Persian architectural style has glazed
mosaics and has an approach with arresting black granite steps interlaid with
red sandstone. It has stilted arches. There are two
outlines on each of the eastern and northern facades. Persian emblems of the Lion along
with the raising Sun in the background flank the arches on
both sides. They are all in mosaic of beautiful coloured tiles.The Rangin Mahal
(Painted Palace) built by Ali Barid Shah has impressive arabesque designs
with display of the art of Quranic calligraphy. The zenana palace depicts bright painted murals. Other impressive structures seen, also built in
exquisite Persian style, are the Lal Bagh, the Takhat Mahal (the throne room),
the 70 feet (21 m) Chaubara and the Watch Tower.
Beyond
the fort's limits, on the east, domed tombs of eight Bahmanī kings are located,
while to the west lies the royal necropolis of the Barīd sultans.
Handicraft of Bidar
Bidriware, popularly known as "A Magic in
Black and Silver" is a delicate metal ware containing silver and gold
inlaid on iron. It is a very popular art form of over 800 year vintage art form
of Persia promoted in Bidar with specific link
to the foundation soils contained in the forts precincts. This art is exported
to other countries. Zinc and copper are the basic metals used to make this handicraft.
The design patterns are inlaid on pure silver wire or thin sheets. They are
normally "damascened (ornamented with wavy lines) in floral and geometric
designs".
Another
important ingredient in making this handicraft, made by highly skilled labour, is the
soil from the basement of ancient buildings inside the Bidar Fort. It is
claimed that this soil gives a lustrous black colour to the Bidriware because
such soil has not been exposed to rain or sunlight for centuries. In view of
high skill and special materials used in its manufacture it is possible to make
it only as a handicraft.
Tourism
Bidar has
lots of historical monuments from the Bahmani era. The structure of the great
Mahmud Gawan Arabic University is reminiscent of the rich architecture of the
Bahmani era. The Bidar Fort situated
next to the city is one of the biggest forts in India.
Places of interest
- Hazrath
Shamsuddin Abul Fatah Shaik Mohammed Multani R.A(Al-Maroof Multani
Bashah),Bidar. Shamsuddin Quadri Shrine popularly known as multani
Badshah.
- Dargah
Syed Shah Burhanuddin Khaleelullah Kirmani But Shikan (R.A),Bidar at
Choukhandi. The popular barid shahi tombs and a Jail made by the British
before independence.
- Guru
Nanak Jhira Gurudwara,
- Sri Mailar Mallanna temple :
Mailar or Khanapur is situated around 15 km from Bidar on Bidar-Udgir
Road. It is believed that Mallasur and Mankasur are two brother demons,
after getting blessing from lord Bharmha, they started killing and
torturing Innocent people in and around Mailar, by hearing devotees plea
Lord Shiva incarnated in Mailar and killed
mankasur and forgave mallasur. The god Mallanna or Khandoba or Mailar
Linga is believed as Lord Shiva`s Ugra Roopa.
The temple is very famous in the north karnataka and every year temple
attract millions of devotees from Karnataka, Maharashtra and Andhra pradesh
- Narasimha
Zharna (Lord Narasimha Temple), Papnash (Shiva Temple)
- Bidar
fort at Bidar, the great Friday mosque at Bidar, Nayee kamaan (fell down –
being built)
- Madarsa
(university) of Mahmmed Gawan
- Choubara
(watch tower)at Bidar, several dargahs (mausoleums) of local Islamic saints
- Basveshvara
Temple
- Barid
shahi garden
- Manik
Prabhu Temple. Situated 53 km away from the city of Bidar, Manik
Prabhu Temple is a unique architectural beauty and a major spiritual and
religious centre. The Manik Prabhu temple is built over a Sanjeevani
Samaadhi of a Saint- Shri Sadguru Manik Prabhu Maharaj and his spiritual
stature and holy presence is still maintained by his 6th successor Shri
Sadguru Dnyanraj Manik Prabhu Maharaj. The temple attracts both Hindu and
Muslim devotees. The temple administration is carried out by Shri Manik
Prabhu Samsthan which runs a number of social and charitable institutions
since 140 years.
- Tomb
of Mahmmed Gawan
- Kalyani
shariff, 12th Century Cave
- Kalyan
shariff, Kalyan Fort
- Bidri
Art Materials at Old City
- Saint
Paul's Methodist Church
- Molige
Marayya's Cave temple Molkera
- Papnash
Temple. It is believed that Lord Sri Rama, on the way to Ayodhya from
Lanka after defeating Ravana, visited this place and that resulted in the
temple which would wash off his act of killing Ravana who is a Shiva
Bhakt.
- Basava
Kalyan. This city is place of Basveshwar and has lot of information and
holy places about Basveshwara.
- Bidar
Fort. The fort was one the largest and strongest forts in India. It was
built in 15th century.
- Gurudwara.
Gurdwara Nanak Jhira Sahib is a Sikh historical shrine. One of the most
popular south Indian historical gurudwara's amongst the Sikh community all
over the India.
- Amareshwar
Temple, Aurad was built in the 10th century. There are two Gaja Laxmis at
the entrance of the temple and a platform of Chandrashile i.e. Tortoise
stone for saluting Lord Amareshwara by putting both of our knees on it.
The system of Gaja Laxmi and Chandrashile was found in the 10th century
architecture.
Access
Bidar is well connected by road, rail and air links. Bidar town is
situated about 740 kilometres (460 mi) north of Bangalore India on NH 7),
116 kilometres (72 mi) northeast of Gulbarga and 130 kilometres
(81 mi) (NH 9 from Bangalore Via Gulbarga and Bellary Nearest airport is the BIDAR Airport
and also BIAL, BANGALORE. Bidar Fort is only 115 km from Miyapur,
Hyderabad.
Bidar Fort
Courtesy: Wikipedia
