Aurangabad , today being named as Chatrapati Sambhaji Nagar , is an important city in Maharastra, India. Originally named as “Aurangabad Subah” , thsi was a medieval town named after Mughal emperor Aurangzeb , who had established this town during his tenure when he was the Viceroy of Deccan (Dakhin in those times). Deccan was at that time a geographical region comprising parts of modern day Maharashtra, Telengana and Karnataka. So Aurangabad is a quintessential Mughal city , hence expect lots of Mughal architectures and mosques
As far as I could note ……. Malik Ambar (1548-1626), was a military leader and statesman who was the Peshwa (Prime Minister ) of the Ahmadnagar Sultanate and its de facto ruler till his death . Malik Ambar was originally a slave from modern day Ethiopia -“Chapu”, ……as he was known then. He was sold from place to place by many slave merchants , one of whom renamed him as Ambar and converted him to Islam !
How fascinating such stories……..which are destined to make history !
He was eventually brought to India , where he was bought by his last owner, the Peshwa of Ahmednagar Sultanate . Ambar rose through the ranks at Ahmednagar where he created a mercenary force numbering more than 50,000 soldiers . He was eventually given the title “Mallik” , meaning King in Arabic.
He was based at the Deccan region and was hired by local kings .
Ambar became a popular Prime Minister of Ahmednagar. He also pioneered the guerilla warfare in the region. He also created the revenue settlements for whole of Deccan , which formed the basis for subsequent settlements . He challenged the might of the Mughals and Adil Shah of Bijapur and raised the low status of the Nizam – Shah
In 1653, when Prince Aurangzeb was appointed the viceroy of Deccan for second time, he made Fateh Nagar his capital and called it Aurangabad (after his name!) .
It was surprising to know that Aurangzeb’s crematorium is near Aurangabad , at a place near “Daulatabad Fort “, some 23 kms from the City , on the way to Ellora caves . Aurangzeb’s wive’s crematorium too is here , named as “Bibi ka Maqbara”.
However as we know his father – Emperor Shah Jahan was buried near Taj Mahal, next to his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal.
So the story further goes as …………
In March 1666, accompanied by 1000 bodies of selected troops- the great Maratha warrior king – Shivaji arrives at Aurangabad, on his way to Agra . Safshikan Khan , the governor of Aurangabad, treats him with scant respect! For this he was reprimanded by Jai Singh and made to pay a courtesy call on Chatrapati Shivaji .
In 1681 after taking Burhanpur , the Marathas assembled in the neigbourhood of Satara Hills to attack Aurangabad. The plan was however abandoned on hearing of the arrival of the viceroy , Khan Jahan Bahadur . In the same year Khan Jahan Bahadur erected a wall around Aurangabad to protect it against the surprise attacks of Marathas !
It was done at the order of the emperor , and the cost was Three lakh rupees !
Two years later the emperor himself arrives at Aurangabad!
And shortly after the death of Aurangzeb the city of Aurangabad slipped from the hands of the Mughals .
The City of Aurangabad has all in all 52 Gates ! So these are not like the gates in our houses or society 😉
These are pillared walls slightly like the India gate , made of bricks and arched with tow columns supporting it .These gates were like entry and exit points into this important city back then …I suppose .
Interesting also to know that each gate gets its name from some Arabic symbolic word !
For instance – the largest gate , ‘Jhalna gate’ , ‘Paithan gate’ (facing south towards the holy city of Paithan, from where also the famous Paithani sarees of Maharashtra comes ! Then the ‘Dilli gate‘ , which was used by Marathas to turn towards Agra . ‘Makkai gate’ which faces west towards Mecca near Begumpura ! The ‘Bhatkal Gate’ is the largest gate
Aurangabad is easily approachable by road and public transport by Mumbai and Pune . The drive enthusiasts …do take up that road drive this year ! Though check the road conditions prior. I have not had experiences on that !
There are two early morning flights Ex Delhi. This take some 2 hours by which you get ample time the entire day to check into your hotel and relax and go covering the city . Green Olive hotel some 11 kms from airport is a great place to book ! Right on the main road , with some great staff and food on their menu! Their Nizami biryani and spicy Maratha thali’s were awesome. Equally good were the Non-Indian cuisines and beverages menu ! Five stars to this property – more so for solo women travelers and Western visitors to India .
It was nice to make friends with Asian and Japanese visitors here , who halt for covering the Ajanta and Ellora.
So after refreshing , ask the reception for the full day Cab tour of city ; this includes 4-6 important sights , like Daulatabad Fort ( this is a very long climb of some 300 steps on mountains, so I avoided …just saw the magnificence while driving up the hills to Ellora , Bibi ka Maqbara , Jyotirlinga temple (12th and last one) , which is 400 metres near Ellora caves itself, Aurangzeb’s Tomb ( can skip this too ). Mind Ellora will take your 3 hours easily !
I suggest visiting Ellora early morning by 9 am . However I had no option , since due to paucity of dates , I needed to cover on same day as landing and hence could enter the Ellora caves only by 12 Pm !
A must avoid kind …Why ? Check out the Ellora caves pages …..
