Kugaon Killa : Forgotten Legacy Series

Last week after exploring the submerged temples of Chandori Village (Click on this link to read Chandori Temples blog ) which not only left me awestruck but also pained.
One may be surprised by this statement of mine but the fact remains that despite being such a treasured and beautiful art of architecture these temples of Chandori were totally ignored and wasted.  The heart can only cry in agony over the antipathy of the locals and the authorities on seeing ancient art scattered around here and there on the dried river bed of Godavari river. A small efforts from them can save such treasured ancient legacy.

It was during our exploration of Chandori Temples someone among our group informed me that there is another such kind of submerged temple which again due to torrid summer can be seen as the water levels of the river has receded here too. The temple we were talking about was Palasdeo Temple, near Indapur and Kugoan Killa aka Inamdarcha Wada.

Armed with this information me and Shashikant Dumbre started working on a plan to visit these places. Information regarding Kugaon fort was not there on the Google so we went around checking with our common friends to dig the details of the route and other things.Finally within a week time we were ready with our plan and decided to leave Mumbai by night at 9.00pm because we wanted to catch the sunrise at Kugaon Fort. 

Gotto catch the sunrise at Kugoan

Our Journey:
We all met at 9 pm at Ambarnath and boarded the hired Tavera, all set to go for our next exploration trip.Driving through the night on the deserted roads is an experience you don't get everyday.The distance to be traveled was suppose to be more than 300 kms one way and our route was Mumbai-Pune-Bhigwan-Palasdeo-Warkute Fata, taking the Solapur Highway.

Start of the journey with breaking of Coconut

It was 4 a.m when we saw the Palasdeo signboard on the Highway, Initially our plan was to visit Palasdeo Temple first and then move on to Kugoan fort which is around 9 kms ahead of this.We therefore stopped here for a tea break as lots of tea sellers were operating at this point and we also wanted to catch on with their tea and local information.

Drive through the Night

The tea seller informed us that the first boat to go to Palasdeo will start at 9 am so we thought it would be futile to waste time sitting here hence we decided to move on to the Kugoan Fort.We drove about 8-9 kms till we reached Varkute Phata,from where we took left turn,this small road which leads to the Kalasi village can easily be missed had it not been the advise by the tea seller who said to watch out for the left turn before petrol pump.Taking a left turn and around 10-15 minutes of bumpy ride we reached Kalasi Village.

It seems to be becoming a routine for us guys to stalk the empty streets of deserted villages in the wee hours of the night. As usual not a soul was to be seem who can guide us as to where do we go. so we kept looking around until we found one solitary man walking towards us, who finally showed us the way. Well the beach is at a distance of about half kilometer away from this village and the road is kind of dead end.

Reaching the dead end of the road
 to find this view

We moved out of our car and in pitch darkness we kept finding our way till the creek.Once we reached the creek we knew that next few hours shall be the waiting period for us to view the sunrise.

Waiting for the sunrise

Sitting here and watching the nature unfold the spectrum of colours  was simply amazing, I'll go one step further and say that it was the moment to die for. A moment, for which I can come again and again to watch.My true feelings of the moment can be guaged from this quote:
Right in this moment,
I can't even remember what unhappy feels like

This is the moment I can die for

Early morning bliss

The creek of Kalashi village not only offers one of the best visual delight in terms of exploding colourful skies but also is home to some of the wonderful migratory birds.

I was later informed by one of my friend that these birds are basically those which come to Bhigwan Bird sanctuary.
Hence we were lucky to catch glimpses of such wonderful species.

Migratory birds 

Everyone was busy capturing the birds and another reason for us not rushing to go to Kugaon fort was that one needs to take a boat to reach the Kugoan fort which is situated in the waters of river Bhima. We were informed that the boatman comes at 7.30 am so we were simply bidding our time.

Chilling in the boat,
Waiting for the boatman to arrive

Time now was 6.30 am and there was still one more hour to go,so we all had some photo fun on the boat which was anchored at the shore.

Photofun on the boat

After a long wait finally the boatman arrived and we were all set to sail to our destination which was waiting for us right across. Yes The Kugaon Killa or Inamdarcha Wada.

Inamdarcha Wada      (PC Dr Neha Mehta)

A very short ride of hardly 5 minutes for which you shell out Rs 40,gets over before it starts and you find yourself at the entrance of the Kugoan Fort,Fort which has no entrance gate to greet you, its only the crumbling rubble stone through which you wade your way to enter the famous Inamdarcha Wada.

Unusual entrance through the rubble

History :

Before we set our foot on this place it is very necessary that we should know about the history of this place.In the year 1976 Ujani Dam was constructed on the river Bhima due to which many big and small villages,temples got submerged under the waters of Bhima river which included this Kugaon's Inamdar's wada(Kugaon fort)too.

Partially submerged Kugaon Killa

The story goes that in those day the Nizam who was the ruler here gave Devrao Inamdar, Jijaba Inamdar and Nagoba Inamdar this Kugaon Killa and five villages around it as a gift in form of jagir.

This fort was built around 400 years back by Inamdar brothers on the banks of river Bhima river. There are four bastion in the four corners of the fort.In currents times these bastions are in ruins.

Crumbling bastions 

During the current times only one bastions is in proper shape rest have being partially destroyed.

Bastion on the right

The Main Darwaja or the Entrance gate is bigger than the Pune's Shanivar Wada. It is believed that during ancient times there used to be pedestrian way from the shore to the fort gate.

One of the entrance gate of the Kugaon Killa

The main entrance has two tall pillars on each side of the entrance gate, a close look at these pillars give an impression of minars type construction.

Minars at the entrance

Exploring the Fort we see there is a small well too within the fort area.

Well on the fort

Just adjacent to this fort but at a small distance we see a beautiful structure. We were informed that it is a temple. As one can see in the picture given below that there is water between the fort and the temple so I was not able to see it from inside however few adventurous among us swam across to have a closer look.

Temple little away from the main fort

I was informed by my brave friends who swam across that in this structure there is an idol of Hanuman and Shivling.We requested the boatman to take the boat closer to this place but he said the water is quite shallow so not possible.

From here on we moved towards the entrance of the fort from inside.This whole place has white colour looks which kept reminding me of the white dwelling places of Greece.

Inside view of the gate

The entrance has many sections, a small roomor a passage with a place to keep lamp or as they say devadi in marathi.

Passages within ( PC Dr Neha  Mehta)

Few more passages ( PC Dr Neha  Mehta)

I was told that there is one chor darwaja too.As the fortifications were in dilapidated condition so checking out for chor darwaja was difficult.

Searching for that hidden Chor Darwaja

Though the main entrance is in dilapidated condition still there is some structure left sharing below for your eyes only.

After exploring the fortification I moved on to the top of this entrance gate to get a birds eye view of the fort.The view from the top offers a very good panoramic view of the surroundings and the inside of the fort.

Panoramic view from the Top

The Fort is built on two acres of land and it is believed that the outer wall fortification was around 15 feet in width. The entire complex though is in ruins, still is able to hold its head high because of the intense beauty that surrounds it.

I am simply mesmerised !!

It was 11.00 am and the sun was hitting hard and we could feel the thirst in our throats,So quenching our thirst   it was time for us to move back and explore our next destination Palasdeo Temple another submerged Temple now visible.

Quenching our thirst 

We all regrouped and sat at the same spot where the boatman had dropped us waiting for our boat to arrive,The boat finally arrived bringing with it new batch of people and we all soon jumped into the boat for our return journey.We shall now be moving on from here to Palasdeo temple. Palasdeo Temple blog coming  

Chandori Temples: A Forgotten Legacy

Few days back there was this news in Times of India newspaper which I came across and  which set the ball rolling for my next exploration.

The news was that in the village of Chandori, few temples which has got submerged under the Godavari waters have resurfaced again and that too after 34 years!, The reason behind the resurfacing of these temples were the drought like conditions in the state of Maharashtra  which has lead to drying of the Godavari river bed.

Dry river bed of Godavari river

Once this fact became known to me, I was restless to be there,for the simple reason that if it rains again, its quite possible that I may lose the opportunity to explore this submerged legacy.

Submerged Legacy

It is not everyday that you get an opportunity to witness something which is lying submerged for past 34 years under the flowing waters of Godavari river.

Past glory

Now the next step was to see how I can reach this place, luckily for me my friend Shashi called me and asked can I join him for the visit to Chandori Temples. Well now this is what I call Law of attraction at its best and without blinking my eyelids I said I was in.

We all left on Saturday night taking a last fast Kasara local train and by the time we reached Kasara Station it was 1.30 am. From Kasara we had booked Jeep to take us to the base Village. Following the google map we reached the Chandori Village.Upon reaching the Chandori Village we took a right turn from the highway to enter the village, as it was 3;45 am so asking for direction was itself a task as not a soul could be seem. Anyways a little drive into the village and we were near this Temple.

Temple from where the path from right side leads  to the Godavari river

It was quite dark when we reached here luckily for us we found one villager who informed us that we were on right way and the Godavari river is just behind this temple but one has to take a little walk to the right side from the side of this temple.One thing that was very surprising was the coolness in the weather and the breeze flowing in the village.It was decided that we would go down the river side in the morning and check out the temples as it was dark but then wanderers are wanderers so few of us started to walk to have a sneak preview of the temples.

Sneak preview

Exploration under full moon

I simply cannot describe you the beauty of the place, especially when you are able to see only deserted ruins drenched in the milky moonlight of full moon and with cool breeze humoring you. Well it was a sight to die for. How I wish I could capture that real moment on camera but my camera is not so efficient to do so still here I am.

Deserted temples drenched in the milky moonlight of full moon

We again came back to the temple and decided to catch little sleep, hence we slept on the floor of the temple till the day break.Most of us were not able to sleep as the breeze was blowing very furiously and it was too chilly, mind you all this during the times when average climate in Maharashra is 40 degree furnace hot.

Caught napping 

Oh ! I  simply loved this place. As I was not carrying any bed sheet so for me the sleeping proved to be quite challenging.

Sun was yet to come out, and we were all eager now to go and explore the Chandori Temples Legacy, so we all regrouped and started our walk all over. Moving from the right and a little walk of 2 minutes we come across a this bridge.

River bridge and temples behind it

Walking little further from the temple we come across this bridge which joins the Chandori to Saykheda village and behind this bridge one can see a series of small temples on the river bed and the on the other side of the river the sun was rising in all its glory, painting the scenery all around in golden sheet.

The golden sunlight lit these temples in such a manner that one could feel the magic of bygone era.These temple are in a row one after the other but at little distance.

Temples in a row

Today luckily for us the place was devoid of any water today hence we would be able to explore each and every temple inside out.  

Temples standing as on today

Few of our friends had visited this place 3 weeks back and they found these temple partially submerged in water hence they had little difficulty to check out from inside. I am sharing the pictures they clicked 3 weeks earlier.

Partially submerged temples clicked 3 weeks earlier ( PC:Vinay Y Jadhav)

The interesting thing about all these temples was that each of them had a shivling. In a way we can say that each of the temple is Shiva temple. 

Innumerable shivlings

Another most baffling thing was that there was more than 20 nos of shivling lying here and there and almost everywhere. For a moment I thought Am I I missing something? lots of mystery surrounds this temple I must say viz like how come so many shivlings, rarely I have seen series of temples with only one deity.Indeed I was feeling puzzled.  

Shivling here

Shivling there

Shivlings everywhere

Not much information is available about these temples on the internet and neither the locals could give us any useful information. No doubt they have cleaned the temples from inside and offered prayers too.At some places people who had visited had put flowers and garlands on the deities.

Garlanded Idols

Another garlanded Idol

I could not find much history about this place on the net, matter of fact even the Archaeological Survey of India(ASI) has no record of these temples except for the fact that the villagers last saw these temples in the year 1982. According to one of the reports that I read on net was that during the year 1907 Nandur Madyameshwar dam was built (Reference Nashik Gazetteer) resultant to that the water's course went over these temples and they got submerged under the waters.Since last 100 years only twice these temples could be seen this been the 3 time, otherwise mostly their top domes were visible.

3 weeks earlier picture (PC: Vinay Y Jadhav)

It was now time for us to start our exploration. Moving down from the bridge we checked out the temple nearest to the bridge. 

Visit to our first temple

The front portion of the this temple is under debris perhaps due to this reason one can see only the head of the Nandi idol rest of the body buried under the stones.

Sunken idol of Nandi

There were two idols on each side on the outer side of the temple.

Ganpati carved on outer side 

The carving on the temples are quite exquisite 

Exquisite carvings on the temple
(PC: Vinay Y Jadhav) 

Exquisite carvings on the temple 
(PC: Vinay Y Jadhav) 

I am sharing pictures of my friend Vinay Jadhav who had visited this place 3 weeks earlier because that will help you understand how different the whole complex looked with water still being there.

Pic taken on 1st may 2016

 From here we moved on to the next temple. most of the temples were of similar pattern except for the last which is of Indra god.Few temples has this kind of embankment.

Embankment around the temple

A little ahead of these temples we find a proper ghat with well laid out steps, In current times the villager use this spot for washing clothes and bathing.

Ghats been used for bathing

We relaxed here for a bit of a time and then moved on to the last temple which is also know as Indra temple. 

Indra temple with 2 real snakes
( PC: Vinay y Jadhav)

Watching all this neglected historical legacy of temples and idols scattered around like some waste garbage. I was not only pained and hurt but felt helpless and frustrated as to why nothing can be done to protect and salvage such beautiful architecture.

History or garbage

Is this the way to treat the national treasures

Utter Filth 

People worship God, Go for char dham yatra and what not, but are not at all pained to see how brutally these temple embellishments and idols are left at the mercy of nature to be seen floating around in the dirty waters.

Seeing all this I want to make a humble request to, then be it Govt of India or some NGO to come forward and adopt this site. Reconstruction can be done of these temples especially with the modern technology available.The local Sarpanch should make an effort to bring their village on map as a popular tourism spot.

Now that these temples have emerged and can be seen. Every effort must be made to see that this wonderful piece of history don't dissolves away into oblivion and remains only as news that these temples were seen third time during the year 2016.

With heavy heart and lots of questions in my mind  I left from Chandori Village to explore a new destination Kugaon Killa aka Inamdarancha wada( Click here to read out our new journey)  because I believe the journey of Weekend Wanderer is ever ongoing !!

Links:
Shashikant Dumbre Picture set of Chandori

Chandori Temples Journey video ( Click here for the video Film)

Special Thanks to Shri Vinay Jadhav for allowing few of his pictures for this blog.