Nadivi fort

I stumbled on Nadivi fort while searching Wikimapia for Ashokan edicts of Nittur and Udegolam. This small fort is situated on river Tungabhadra right bank in Shirguppa taluq, Bellary district.

March 8, 2013
The day started with visits to Tekkalakote, Varavina Malleshwara Devastana and Ashokan edict of Udegolam. The next places on our itinerary were Nadivi fort and Ashokan edict of Nittur. The road connecting Udegolam and Nadivi was pathetic but scenic. As we approached the fort, I decided to take the dirt road going left around the fort. We hit a dead end near the bastion and Ravi had to reverse his cab. Malatesh and I went by foot. I guess the fort was built some time between XV and XVII centuries.

This is the plan of Nadivi fort. Eastern and Southern walls do not exist anymore. About half the area within the fort is occupied by Ramlingeshwara temple.

I guess Nadivi fort was a sentry post for monitoring river traffic. Perhaps a sales tax check-post. Close to the base of this bastion is a shrine.

Southeastern bastion

The structure looks solid and well built. Stones seemed to be sourced from riverbed and nearby hills.

Northeastern bastion

Mortar has been used to bind the stones, that way the walls remain strong for long time. In my opinion, larger blocks make stronger walls - they withstand canon firing better than walls made of smaller stones. However downside of such forts is transporting and handling larger blocks.

That's Ramlingeshwara temple shikhara. We did not go in since the gate was closed and there was no sign of people inside. Its a east-face temple, probably a small structure earlier. To our right flows Tungabhadra.

Blue sky reflects in the slow-flowing waters of Tungabhadra. At this point the river flows in northeast direction. Such spots are considered holy in Hindu traditions and temples are built there.

Tungabhadra flowing towards the fort, as seen from Northwestern bastion.

There's a sudden change in the river bed- a very rough patch of stones creates a hurdle. When the water level is 3' higher they remain hidden. Boat navigators sailing here must have that knowledge else the boats will get wrecked. However, when the water level is much higher, most boats can pass over easily.

Tungabhadra flowing away, as seen from Northwestern bastion.

I wonder why the wall is bent here..

Wall with right angle bend

We went on the rocks, they are really rough and some very sharp too.

Here's a short video of this river fort by Malatesh.

On the way out, an elderly person called after us. He's a priest and performs rituals at Ramlingeshwara temple. He offered us flavored water and milk. The temple fair was due soon and invited us. Very friendly person. It seems that Nadivi Ramlingeshwara temple is popular for childless couples, special poojas are performed here which help overcome problems. We thank our elderly friend and say bye.

We head towards Nittur in search of Samrat Ashoka's minor rock edict.

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Fort Tekkalakota

March 8, 2012
Tekkalakote, also known as Tekkalakota, is a small town situated 45 km north of Bellary. Within the town limits is its fort- a small simple square shaped fort with circular bastions at each of the corner. The fort's main entrance faces north direction. It also has a small doorway on the western side.

The fort is a education hub of the town, a school and a college are within the fort premises. We are standing in front of Mahadwara ~ main entrance. The colorful building on the right is a junior college. Behind me is another ancient stone wall which was built as security of Mahadwara. And on my left, out of sight, is another row of class rooms.

Mahadwara - main entrance.

I couldn't find any info about the fort on the net nor people at the town could provide any info. Hence I'll have to do a some guessing. The construction is pretty advanced, binding material is used in the walls. So this fort cannot be very old. Since this fort is located close to Hampi, it must be built during Vijayanagar times. The symmetrical floral hangs in the doorway is a typical feature in Vijayanagara architecture. 

Twin halls on raised platforms flank the gateway. Those would be security offices of the fort.

Within the walls are two small buildings, close to the south-eastern bastion. I wanted to take pictures from the building's roof, of course with permission. We spoke to a lady in-charge and learnt this is a residential school for girls, students are from nearby villages, mostly from poor families. Its a different type of school, it provides vocational training to its students besides regular academics. The schools objective is to train these youngsters to be better prepared for the outside world. Initially the lady was hesitating to let us go to the terrace, when we told her about the purpose she allowed us. It was actually convenient for Malatesh to shoot with his camcorder from the terrace.

Nearly half the area is taken by Neem tress :-) fresh cool air for students. However, view of the gateway is also obscured by the trees. In the background are the hills of Tekkalkote.

The south-eastern bastion. All bastions seem to be well preserved but the surroundings aren't so clean. I suspect the fort had a moat once..

Glimpse of the north-eastern bastion.

A peep at the side entrance. I did not want to take chances of exploring what lay beyond this gateway.
The teacher suggested us to visit Varavina Malleshwara Devastana near by. She told us the temple is ancient and we would surely like the place. We thanked her for the suggestion and said bye.

It was quick tour. We planned to got check out Varavina Malleshwara, about 4 kms east of Tekkalalote.

Recently I learnt that hills of Tekkalakote is a Neolithic site where archaeologists have discovered the foundations of circular huts and a small cemetery. While driving from Tekkalakote to Udegola we had to pass by the hills, the very look of the rock formations evoked thoughts of inhabitants on these hills. In fact I pointed out couple of rock shelters to Malatesh and told him we must check them out someday. Well, I really want to explore those hills someday.. we might see some rock paintings and prehistoric paintings are always interesting.

Next on our route was Varavina Malleshwara Devasthana - a temple built by Vijayanagara kings.

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