The Fort
The Bhangarh Fort is a 16th-century fort built in the Alwar, Rajasthan. The fort was built by Bhagwant Das, as residence for his second son, Raja Madho Singh. The well-preserved fort is located on the border of Sariska Tiger Reserve. The fort built by Kachwaha Rajput kings is located at the foothills of Aravali ranges on a sloping terrain. Ruins of the king’s palace at the extreme end of the fort, is the most sought-after tourist attraction inside the fort.
The palace was reported to be a 7-storey building but now only 4-storeys remain. The fort located 235 kms from Delhi can be approached only through an unpaved road. Modelled on the medieval city of Shahjahanabad, the fort encloses remnants of an entire township inside its walls. Besides the royal palace there were more than 9000 houses with everything from grand havelis, markets, temples, palaces, houses, tombs and much more built in clean and proper rows till the year 1720 AD. The fort is protected by 3 layers of fortification. The fort that includes an ornately carved miniature waterfall, is surrounded by greenery and mountains with four massive wooden entry gates; namely the Lahori Gate, the Phulbari Gate, the Ajmeri Gate, and the Delhi Gate.
At the main entrance gate are many Hindu temples dedicated to various gods namely Hanuman Temple, Keshav Rai Temple, Ganesh Temple, Mangla Devi Temple, Gopinath Temple, Someshwar Temple and Navin Temple. All this are clear indicators of now desolate fort’s enviable prosperity during its heyday. The Gopinath Temple built on a raised platform with yellow stones is the most well-known temple known for its carvings. Other buildings like Purohitji Ki Haveli, Nachan Ki Haveli (dancer’s palace), Jauhari Bazar (market place), Gopinath Temple are worth a visit.
Hanuman temple and Mahadev Shiv temple were built using marble as cenotaphs rather than temples. A Muslim tomb just outside the fort’s main gate is believed to be tomb of one of King Hari Singh’s sons’.
The Haunted Place
The fort is considered one of the most haunted forts of India. Legend goes that a sadhu named Guru Balu Nath who lived and meditated at the spot where the fort is situated, when asked by the King for permission to build a massive fort, had agreed to allow it but warned that any house built in the fort should not be taller than his house, and if the shadow of any such house fell on his house, it will result in total destruction of the fort.
Unmindful of the warnings, the then king added columns to the fort in a manner which cast a shadow on the sadhu’s house. This resulted in cataclysmic events that led to the total destruction of the entire fort and town within it, resulting in the once bustling fort being abandoned suddenly sometime after 1720 AD. As the fort is considered too haunted, it is strictly forbidden to venture in or stay inside the Bhangarh Fort after dark. The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) that manages and protects the fort as Monument of National Importance since 1951, has put up warning sign boards at several spots in the Bhangarh Fort to warn visitors against staying inside the fort premises after sunset and before sunrise.
Legend goes that, anybody who goes inside fort after sunset, has never returned alive to tell their tale. Local residents living in the vicinity of fort ruins believed that haunted spirits roam all over the fort at night, resulting in a lot of paranormal activities. A very strange phenomenon in the fort is that none of the houses located inside the fort have roofs. Legend goes that it is due to the curse of sage Guru Balu Nath that no roof could be built on the houses inside the fort. Any attempt to build one always resulted in an accident invariably resulting in deaths. Only the temples seem to have retained their roofs. Even when some daredevils decided to stay back inside the fort after dark, mishaps occurred when one fell off wall and while taking the injured to hospital all died in a road accident.
Adding fuel to the hauntings related to the Bhangarh fort, local residents of nearby villages claim to hear many times the wailing cry of many women, bangles breaking and strange music coming from the fort. They even claim to smell perfume emanating from fort premises, seeing inexplicable lights and ghostly figures.
Best Time
The best time to visit the fort is during winter season from October to February, when the weather is cool and bearable. Bhangarh Fort is open to tourists on all 7 days from 6 am to 6 pm. Known for its architectural marvel, Bhangarh Fort is an important stopover for both local and international tourists in the ‘Golden Triangle of Tourism’ in India that includes Delhi, Agra and Jaipur.
The fort can be reached by road on the way to visit Alwar or Jaipur or Sariska Tiger Reserve. Tourist can also reach the fort by train from Alwar and by air from Jaipur airport taking chartered taxi or bus. Entrey into the fort is free but still/video camera are changed INR 25. Tourists are prohibited from carrying any plastic packets or bottles to avoid littering.
