Musafir

It is somehow a surprising fact of Indian History that dynasties which were, at one time the greatest and path breakers have vanished in oblivion just like that. Even the places that had seen those days cease to be recognized. The Fort in Malkhed is one of such places from which the Rashtrakutas ruled.

The Rashtrakuta Empire ruled large parts of the Indian Subcontinent between the sixth and tenth Century A.D. However, their history can be traced till the 13th Century. The origin of this dynasty is a controversial topic, however, the Rashtrakutas of Manyakheta (our Malkhed) can be accurately traced by numerous contemporaneous inscriptions referring them. In fact many rulers, claimed to be Rashtrakutas at one point in time and ruled in parallel, parts of India. The crux of the empire extended from the Cauvery River in the South to the south of river Narmada on the North. At their peak, they were the only South Indian empire who conquered regions as far as Kannauj as well as extreme South. How can we forget the largest monolithic temple of the world, the Kailas Temple of Ellora? This was commissioned and built during the reign of Krishna I. Apart from multiple constructions in Ellora, Rashtrakutas contributed to Elephanta Caves and Cave Temples in Padatkal (Karnataka).

Malkhed became the capital city of Rashtrakutas during the rule of Amoghavarsha I. This place was also the capital city of the Western Chalukyas till the end of 10th Century. Today, it is a barren land with traces of the brutally demolished glory. I came to know about this fort during my research before travelling and wanted to explore. I hired a vehicle to travel to Malkhed. 40 kilometers of bad roads, one hour of anticipation and a first visual of a huge bastion, I was extremely excited. Walls connect to the bastion and from outside, it looked like a brick structure with a coated layer. But on a close observation, it turned out to be crude stones placed one upon the other.

The entrance is massive with two large bastions on either side. There is a narrow design on the top of each bastion. Interestingly, this is also made of stone and fitted into the construction. Gaps in the stone structure are visible now and are in a very bad shape with no maintenance. You can find a construction outside the entrance to the right which is recent but built off the stones inside the fort. As I moved inside I passed through one more gateway with smaller bastions on either side. This gateway has a small parapet with similar stone design as we had seen on the bastions of the main entrance. There is a small house inside this gateway being used by a Muslim family.

Once I passed through this house and turn right and walk through first visuals of the buildings appeared. I was astonished to see that they were all totally demolished with not even minimum maintenance. The entire walkway is filled with rubble and stone. If you keenly observe, you can find walls on either side covered in bushes now. Such is the pathetic situation inside. You will find broken structures here and there. There is no way I could understand what kind of structures they were and what was their significance. I walked almost 300 meters further when I saw a small domed structure with an entrance at a distance. There is a flight of steps to reach this structure. The top of the entrance, made of brick and mortar is broken in the middle and can collapse any day. The entrance apparently was well decorated with minute carvings but none of it is clear.

Inside is a small domed mantapa with a broken parapet, decorated though. I carefully went inside. As expected, many parts of this structure are broken and lying here and there. There are three arches through which one can enter inside. The building is supported by 8 pillars within and three internal arches of the same style. The dome is decorated with an octagonal design. Finding that I do not have anything to see inside this mantapa, I proceed further to another small construction in this vicinity.

Once I got near the other construction, I understood that it was a Jaina basadi. We always knew that Rashtrakutas as great patrons of the Jain religion. However, this is the only indication that I found inside the fort. This is a typical basadi with simple design. The posterior part of the basadi, the sanctum was reconstructed in recent times. By the looks it is difficult to identify the idol inside, but by the simplicity I am assuming it to be Adinatha or Shantinatha who were the foremost Tirthankaras. Also, the later Tirthankaras had typical identifiers which are not present in this one.

There is a further road to the side of this basadi and I walked. It was a short but tiresome walk uphill. Further down, I came across a domed building again which I could not understand its importance. Considering the pitiable condition in which this place is, it is high time the authorities strive to do a face lift of the entire place and who knows, there might be unknowns waiting to be explored.

When Amoghavarsha started ruling from Malkhed, he was already old and became a follower of the Digambara sect of Jainism. This could be a reason why the defenses of this fort look very weak. Even though the rulers were peace lovers, they frequently ventured into provoked battles and continued their legacy for the next 250 years without being defeated.

Manyakheta was plundered sometime after 1050 A.D and the dynasty was taken over the Chalukyas of Kalyani.

It has been a great experience writing about Bidar, which I think am the only person in recent times to have written extensively. Even though tracing down the Bahmani kingdom through its inception in Gulbarga to its final days in Bidar was tedious, I feel extremely happy and honored to introduce the last living descendants.

As you visit the Tomb of Ahmed Shah Wali Bahmani, you will find a simple looking man sitting guard inside. There is no such arrangement for the others. They are either locked or left open. I started talking to the person about the time and ages of the construction and I was taken aback. However, the pitiable conditions under which he is living, but he is still “His Royal Highness, Sultan Khaleel Shah Bahmani”, of the 12th generation.

I was awestruck knowing this. I am face to face with a descendent of one of the most famous dynasties of the Deccan. I started talking to him more and he offered to take me to his house. Behind the tombs is a narrow muddy road which leads to a small village. Looking at his home, I wondered what Ahmed Shah Wali could have thought seeing the member of his family staying at such a pitiable place. It is a small four room brick building with tiled roof.

“Everything has gone away with time” he sadly noted. The house he is living was given by the government after his family was evicted from the tomb premises. His family consists of his wife, four daughters and a son. In all these years he gathered information about his ancestors and can recognize them through paintings. He has also preserved a few coins minted by his ancestors. He has a good collection of armory like swords and daggers. He is not the only one of the dynasty. His brothers visit the place some times and they too are in the same economically backward condition, he said. He had refused to return the armory and coins to ASI fearing that his identity with the dynasty will be lost forever.

With the Bahmani dynasty introduced, I bid good bye to the land of Bidar and move on.

The name Takth Mahal is modern, for it is not mentioned in contemporary history, although the magnificence of the royal palace built by Ahmed-Shah-Wali at Bidar is extolled by Sayyid Ali Tabataba in his work entitled, Burhan-i-Maathir. The author mentions a palace and a forecourt but does not mention the name of the palace. It may be interesting to quote that this book gives certain features of the building, such as its arches and towers, and its blue tiles. The name Takth Mahal was apparently given by the literati of Bidar who had read accounts of Ferishta, who did not find a more appropriate edifice among the ruins of the Bahmani buildings which could be associated with the throne. The audience hall where the throne was actually placed did not meet the descriptions written by the above mentioned writers. The plan of the so-called Takth Mahal, however, agrees to them, and should not be confused with the Public Audience hall.

I cannot write much about this place owing to the fact that I am doubtful about the authenticity of the photographs I had taken. I am not sure if they belong to the Takth Mahal. However, I will end with a description of the throne. This throne was gifted to Sultan Tughlak Shah by Telinga (Andhra Kings) ambassadors as part of a peace treaty. Ferishta quotes eye witnesses that the throne was nine feet long and three feet broad. It was made of ebony covered with plates of pure gold, and set with precious stones of immense value. The throne had the flexibility of jewels being added and replaced. It became a custom that every prince had put their own mark of jewelry on the throne. During the reign of Sultan Muhammad Shah, it was valued at three and a half crores of rupees. This splendid throne was called the Firozah, owing, as Ferishta says, to it being partly enameled of a sky blue color was which in time was entirely concealed by the number of jewels.

This throne was was originally setup in the Durbar hall of Gulbarga was later moved to Bidar and put in the audience hall.

We have come to the end of our marvelous and memorable journey across the Bahmani Kingdom. I will end this series with an interesting account of a meeting… Watch out….

Continued from the previous post…

The royal pavilion is also of small dimensions, the main room square and plain. It has windows on the east and west and a pentagonal projection towards the south. There are also projections in the corners which give a look of a star shaped medieval Deccan temple. The beauty of the room lies in its rich decorations and mother-of-pearl work and tile mosaics. The former is fairly intact in the entrance arch, which is built of basalt of a very dark variety. The floral patterns and calligraphic texts have been depicted by inlaying mother-of-pearl of the finest quality. The effect is lovely and is further enhanced by the architect’s choice of the verses which he has inserted in the decorative scheme. 

The pavilion once had a fountain in the middle, the basin on which is now lying in the outer court of the palace between the two flights of steps referred to in the previous post. Like the Mughal kings, the Baridis were also fond of fountains and it can be noticed in laying of waterworks in many of their buildings.

The Rangin Mahal, however beautiful its wood carving and fascinating are its tiles and mother-of-peal work, suffers by the smallness of its dimensions and shows a lack of vision on the part of the builders. But the plan of the structure is so much altered at various periods, that it is difficult to visualize in its original form or to appraise correctly its beauty or defects.

In the basement of the Rangin Mahal there is a series of rooms, which were apparently occupied by guards and the menial servants of the palace. The ceilings of these rooms are vaulted, being massively built with a view to supporting the weight of the royal apartments above.

Rangin Mahal literally means “The Colored Palace”, and this name was apparently given to it on account of its walls being originally decorated with tiles of different hues, traces of which still exist.   It was originally built by Mahmud Shah Bahmani and some of the apartments were rebuilt by Ali Barid Shah, who adorned them with wood carving and mother of pearl works. In modern times, this has been used by the local administration, and several portions have been built which not only mar the general appearance of the building, but makes it difficult to trace its original plan. Today, it is completely barred from entrance and is opened only for dignitaries.

I badly wanted to visit this building right from when I started planning for the trip. I visited the local ASI office which is inside the Fort and asked for permission, which was obviously turned down. My cab driver came to my rescue. We had chosen a time in the morning even before the ASI office opens. There were two ASI workers doing some maintenance work. My driver went over them and talked in such a way that I was an important visitor and wanted to see the place. They gave up after some persuasion. This incident always make me laugh. There is no detailed information about this building over the internet and i am writing this post after a lot of study and comparing with my pictures.

Access to the building is now obtained by two flights of steps which lead to a landing from which, by passing through some rooms, the interior of the palace is reached. One of the rooms opens on a verandah which is modern  but there are two halls at the back which are of the Bahmani period. To the south of this hall, there is another which was originally connected by an opening in the wall. This hall also seems to be from the Bahmani period, and may have been added by Mahmud Shah.

From the court, a view of the upper walls may be had. These were once richly adorned with tile work arranged in arch shaped rectangular panels as you see in the picture above. The color scheme now visible consists of white patterns on a dark blue background. They must have contained others colors also, however due to extreme weather conditions, they totally faded. The designs consists of floral and calligraphic texts exhibiting a highly developed technique and refined taste. The court has a water channel with fountains and a cistern in the middle.

At the southern end of the court is a hall and pavilion built by Ali Barid. The hall originally had two apartments, each containing five bays. The divisions are arranged by means of columns, which are of wood and most beautifully carved. The designs are both Hindu and Muslim. An interesting feature is presented by the ornamental arches. The ceiling of this wooden hall is also extremely beautifully carved.  The walls of the hall were originally decorated with tile work which unfortunately has been destroyed in the course of repairs done in the recent times, but specimens of it may be seen in the spandrels of the doorway which leads to the royal pavilion. This doorway is built at the back of the hall and consist of two arches, one on the outer side and the other inside, with a passage between them. The outer arch is a little larger in size. This arch has a black stone moulding (of rope pattern type) above the imposts, while below are tiny shafts elegantly carved. In the spandrels are lovely floral designs worked out on tiles, and above the doorway is a Persian verse inscribed on the same. The inner arch of the doorway is decorated with mother-of-pearl work, which, inlaid in jet black stone, appears all the more brilliant. Beyond this arch is a square room which served as an antechamber between the royal pavilion and the hall. This room was also once richly decorated with tiles, which are to be seen now only in some places. The designs are floral, with pink, green, blue and yellow colors – all arranged and contrasted most tastefully. The room besides leading to the royal pavilion, has two more rooms attached to it.

To be continued…

Once I pass through the naqar khana of the Sharza Darwaza, I see one of the most beautiful sights. An awesome view of the fortifications simply awed me to the core. I am sure that anyone would love that sight. Imagine those days when king was moving inside the fort with soldiers guarding the gateways and the sides. On the left stretches the lines of ramparts with bastions in between and having a passage along the basements for the use of garrison firing at, and hurling missiles on the enemy during siege.

To the north-west, stands the Gumbad Darwaza, which is a most massive structure, the appearance of which presents a striking contrast to the somewhat weak and decorative features of the first two gateways. The distance between the Sharza and Gumbad Darwaza is considerable, but they are connected by a broad passage which is well defended on both sides by massive construction. Two to three thousand solders can easily be posted between these two gateways in time of danger.

The architecture of the Gumbad Darwaza forms an important landmark in the history of Deccan monuments. Its battering walls, its low arch shaped parapet, its fluted corner turrets (guldastas), and its hemispherical dome are all reminiscent of the contemporary architecture of Delhi, but the shape of its outer arch with its significant stilt show Persian influence which gradually became more and more prominent in the buildings of Deccan. The span of this arch is 29 feet. With a view to greater security, the entrance through the Darwaza is through a recessed arch of much smaller dimensions than the outer one, and is fitted with doors plated with iron. The walls of the Darwaza rise 45 feet, above which the dome is built. You would not believe when I say that the thickness of the dome is 10 feet. The interior of the gateway has platforms on either side of the passage for the accommodation of the guards.

From its style of architecture, the gateway seems to be of the earliest period, and it is not unlikely that it was built by Ahmed Shah Wali when he laid the foundations of the fort in 1429. The bastions adjoining the front seem to be later additions built at different periods. We can clearly understand this as they are architecturally not welded into the main body of the gateway, as they cover portions of the original wall and appear as if superimposed. From the entrance of the Gumbad Darwaza, the first object to attract attention is a Banyan tree which is of great antiquity and at one time was of colossal size. 

To continue description of the fortifications, it will be best to take the road which goes in a north- easterly direction on entering the fort from the Gumbad Darwaza. First you notice a bastion and a tower, perhaps used as a keep as it commands a complete view of the city. I have read that the interiors of the tower is beautifully finished with plaster work but today it is barred from entrance. On either side of the tower, there are remains of halls. At a lower level, there are some rooms as shown in this picture with arches heavy in proportion.

There are various other fortifications and gun points all across the fort like the Kalmadgi Gate, Kalyani Burj, Delhi Darwaza, Petla Burj, Lal Burj, Kala Burj, Carnatac Darwaza. However, I am not mentioning the details of each as it would be boring for the readers. Each of these gates and bastions are formidable and of utmost importance in the fort.

In the next post, we will visit the Rangeen Mahal. I am sure that my next post would interest a lot of people as Rangeen Mahal is completely barred from entrance to public and my post would be an exclusive account.

The first look of the fort itself created a lot of curiosity to explore. As I walked through the gateways, I imagined soldiers guarding the gateways and on watch above and on the sides.. As I mentioned in the previous post, there were cannons on each of the 37 bastions ready to fire at any angle. Some of the bastions are most massively built, and they are generally round of octagonal in shape. The parapets are honeycombed with enclosures providing facilities for firing muskets as well as cannon, both at short and long range.

The walls near the main entrance appear to have been breached and rebuilt. The old portions consist of large blocks of stone laid in lime, but the joints are so fine that lime is not visible. The stone is believed to have been bought from the quarries in the Gulbarga district. In front of the first gate of the main approach there was originally a draw bridge over the moat, but the moat was later filled up for the construction of the road.

The first gateway, called the Mandu Darwaza is somewhat weak in its appearance. It has an inscription carved on a metal tablet that it is built in 1683 by the Mughal Commandant, Mukhtar Khan Al-Hussaini. The height of this door up to the top of the parapet is 36 feet while the entrance arch is 19 feet high. The two small turrets in front of the parapet are later additions The door is fitted with spikes to secure against elephant attacks As you can see in this picture, the passage through the doorway is vaulted and is divided into two compartments by an arch built in the middle of the passage. Beyond the first Mandu Darwaza, there is a courtroom and an other gateway. The Mandu Darwaza thus serves the purpose of a barbican for the second. The court has rooms for guards on either side.

The second gateway is called the Sharza Darwaza, on account of the effigies of two tigers carved on its façade. Such effigies are often found in the forts of the Deccan and their presence apparently signifies the belief that the representations in this form make the building safe from the attacks of the enemy. The Sharza Darwaza is of larger dimensions than the first gateway, the height of the entrance arch being 22 feet. The top of the gateway was originally decorated with a beautiful parapet of trefoil design, the face of which is adorned with encaustic tiles of blue and green patterns tastefully relieved with yellow and white bands. The tile work has decayed considerably, but wherever its intact the colors are extremely fresh and charming.

Below this parapet is a long panel of black stone covering the entire forehead of the gateway and containing an inscription which records the building of the gateway. in 1503 AD. during the reign of Mahmud Shah Bahmani, by Saif Khan Kotwalbek. The style of writing is Thulth, but the letters have been so intertwined that the whole looks like a lace design. There were other inscriptions on the side bastions but most of them perished as they were inscribed on tiles. A few pieces which are intact show that they were in white with deep blue background.

The Sharza Darwaza has a naqar khana (music gallery) in its upper parts, of which the entrance room is rectangular in plan from which the main apartments of the music gallery can be reached. These are three in number and the side apartments have semi octagonal projections which are pierced by tiny windows and thick iron doors. To keep up the old military traditions of the fort, till 1920 music was still played from this gallery four times a day at the beginning of each watch. I crossed this gateway and moved further.

What is saw next is unforgettable… 

The Bidar Fort is considered as one of the most formidable forts of India. It was distinctly planned and built on the brink of the Deccan plateau by Sultan Ahmed Shah Wali between 1426 and 1432 AD. Engineers and Architects of various countries were employed on its design and construction.

When Prince Ulugh Khan (Mohammed Bin Tughlaq) conquered Bidar for the first time, there was a fort with double lines of defenses. What the form or extent of this was, is difficult to determine as of now. Tradition however says, that it occupied the western area of the present fort. The tradition is further confirmed by the words of Firishtah that Ahmed Shah Wali built the Government House (Dar-ul-Imara) at a site where the old fort of Bidar once stood. The initial fortifications that were built in 1426 were destroyed as a result of the invasion of Sultan Mohammed Khalji during the reign of Sultan Nizam Shah in 1461. However, later during the regime of Muhammad Shah Bahmani, gun powder was used for blowing up the walls by laying mines beneath them.

Improvements to the fort at a larger scale have been made during the reign of Ali Barid Shah, who mounted guns at various vulnerable points and afterwards, Mukhtar Khan Al-Hussaini, the Mughal commandant re-erected and plated and bossed in iron almost all the gates of Bidar which bear his inscription to this day. There have been no major changes since 1656 when Aurangzeb as the governor of Deccan, annexed Bidar.

The fort is an irregular rhomboid in shape with steep sides towards the north and east. On the sides where the ground was lower, a triple channel moat was excavated with partitions hewn out of rock. The moat and the glacis encircle the fort on all sides which sum up to 5.5 kilometers  of defense walls. The external defense has 37 massive polygonal bastions and 7 strong irregular rhombic shaped gates.

We will walk through the gates in the next post.

Chaukandi is a compound Hindi word, meaning a four storeyed building. Although the building itself is double storeyed, the term has been applied as it is situated at a high ground and reached by a flight of steps. Hadrat Khalil-Ullah was the son of Shah Nimat Ullah Kirmani, and as mentioned in of the posts, the former came over from his native place to Bidar in 1431 AD during the reign of Allauddin Shah Wali Bahmani and his sons were married to the royal princesses.

The Chaukhandi has three graves in the main vault and several others in the corridor. The tomb is approached from the road which goes from the Dulhan Darwaza to the Bahmani tombs. To approach the outer gateway of the tomb, the visitor has to ascend a flight of steps and walk across a long pavement which has intermediate steps. There is a pleasing façade at the end of the pavement, comprising of an arch in the middle and a parapet of trefoil pattern at the top of the wall. The arch has a stilt at the top showing Persian influence. There is a panel with medallions of stucco work and contains the names of Allah, Mohammed and Ali written in the Kufic script but arranged in the Tughra style.

Just outside the gateway, there is a hall to the left which is barred for entrance. It has three arches and its ceiling is divided into three compartments built across its width, each compartment containing a vault. The upper hall of this building was originally used by musicians, who played on trumpets and drums at the four watches to maintain the ceremonial dignity of the shrine. Passing through the gateway, the visitor has to ascend some steps to reach the passage. On either side of the passage at this stage are a large number of graves belonging to Shah Khalil-Ullah and his successors. From here, there are again a fleet of stairs after which we reach the building.

The Chaukandi appears to have been designed by the same architect who planned the tomb of Sultan Allauddin, for there is much in common in the decorative schemes between the two. However, their ground plans are different as the Chaukandi is octagonal unlike the other which is square. The walls of the Chaukandi were originally decorated with encaustic tiles, the trace of which are found only in a few places. Black stone borders have been done for the this tomb as well as we had seen on the tomb of Sultan Allauddin. There are arches on two levels which is again a similarity of the two buildings. The walls are built of black trap masonry laid in lime and they are very massive in construction.

The interior of the tomb is approached by a covered passage from the arch facing South. The tomb of the saint, which is built in the middle of the interior of the Chaukandi, as a square plan externally and an octagonal plan internally. The walls are decorated with stucco work both inside and outside. In later times, separate vaults have been built for the graves of the descendants of Shah Khalil-Ullah, one of which is attached to the Chaukandi itself and and may be noticed in the form of a projection to the east of the passage. Over the doorway of this vault the date of 1675 AD. is carved which show that it was built after the conquest of Bidar by Aurangzeb in 1658. Inside the vault, there are 9 graves. The beautiful inscription in the Thulth style if writing which beings from the main doorway of the Chaukandi is continued till the inner corridors. It was designed by a calligraphist of Shiraz named Mughith.

To the east of the Chaukandi, until some 70 years ago, stood a tomb which has since perished completely, but photographs of its exterior and interior were fortunately taken by the Archaeological Department in 1917. It was not of large dimensions but had distinctive decorative features which made the building picturesque.

The Chaukandi, apart from its lofty position, which has made it a prominent feature in the panorama of Bidar, possesses certain architectural merits placing the monument among the best constructions of the Bahmani period. It is now denuded of much of its splendor, but its stately arches, neat carving, and magnificent calligraphy and artwork show the highest quality of Bahmani architecture, which probably reached during the reign of Sultan Allauddun, whose own tomb as similar decorative features as the Chaukandi.

The next in line is the tomb of Sultan Nizam Shah, which is to the west of Humayun’s. The thought of a tomb to Nizam Shah was probably his mother’s as the Sultan was just eight when he became the ruler and ruled only for two years. The tomb is left incomplete due to the demise of the queen mother a few years later. Though small, the walls of this tomb rise to a height of 25 feet from ground level. The external dimensions are the same as the other royal tombs. It is very likely that the architect had initially planned a dome as the structure is massive enough to withstand the load. The exterior of the tomb towards the south has a large arch in the middle which forms the entrance.

Next is the tomb of Sultan Muhammed Shah III, entitled Lashkari which is also incomplete. The reason could be even if he ruled for nineteen years, he was merely a puppet in the hands of the queen mother and the two ministers, Khwaja Jahan Turk and Mahmud Gawan. His tomb is almost similar to that of Nizam Shah except that the dimensions of the arches vary a little. It is possible that it had been designed by the same architect. There are three graves inside and one of them must have belonged to Muhammed Shah’s wife.

The title Malika-E-Jahan is commonly given to the queen consorts during the Bahmani and subsequent dynasties when they ruled, but here it specifically refers to the wife of Sultan Humayun who played a very important role in Deccan politics during the reign of her minor sons, Nizam Shah and Muhammed Shah III. She retired from State affairs and devoted to religious activities once Muhammed Shah was of age. The Malika’s tomb is a little smaller than that of her husband and two sons. With respect to ornamentation, it has good stucco work which gives a pleasing look. There are four graves below the vault and the one right in the middle of the vault is of the queen.

The tomb of Mahmud Shah Bahmani is one of the most imposing structures in the vicinity. He also ascended the throne at a tender age of twelve years. He took control of the kingdom from the de facto rule of Ministers and ruled for thirty six years and probably had his tomb built during his lifetime. His tomb also possesses all the solid dignity of the tombs of the earlier Bahmani kings but lacks in austerity for it does not either have decorative tiles on its outside or paintings inside. The walls rise to a height of 45 feet and strongly support the gigantic dome and are crowned by a parapet of 5 feet.

The enclosure walls measure 77 feet on each side and has a wide arch in the center of each wall. There are smaller arches above this arch and this is a common pattern followed all across the building. The dome has an octagonal base on the roof and its circumference at the springing point is 206 feet. The interior of the tomb is somewhat somber with light entering through windows filled with trellis work. Apart from some minor designs here and there, there is no decoration found but the tomb is consistent in its massive and spacious interiors which is a signature of the earlier Bahmani tombs.

There are two unidentified tombs in front of this one. They are supposedly of two puppet kings Ahmed Shah and Allauddin who were placed on the throne by Amir Barid in 1518 and 1521AD. Of these two sepulchers, one has a conical dome with eight facets, which are marked by plaster ribs. The interior of the tomb is square measuring only 15 feet. The walls have an arch on each side with a parapet of 2 feet above. The second sepulcher is incomplete. The walls of this building have not been plastered but traces of a tomb were noticed and the building restored by the ASI.

Now that we have completed the Bahmani tombs, we will visit the remaining monument in this place, the very famous Chaukandi.