JAIGARH FORT: CHAPTER 1

NOTE AND CREDITS: This story is based on Author's fiction. It doesn't apply to any historical references or real-life incidents. It's my first installment of Jaigarh Fort. The characters, narration and settings are largely inspired from the acclaimed novel Ponniyin Selvan: Part 1, written by Kalki Krishnamoorthy.

The main characters are loosely based on real-life queen of Jaigarh Fort- Maharani Gayathri Devi and from the Ponniyin Selvan: Part 1 characters: Vallavarayan Vandiyathevan, Kundavai, Sundara Chola and Nandhini.

We welcome our readers to get into the boat of imagination and go sailing down the flood of sourceless, endless time. Let us travel a century for every second and quickly reach the times of 1970's before the present.

15 AUGUST 2022

SITRA, COIMBATORE

It was August 15, 2022. The 75th Independence day. Journalist Raj Hegde was reading the non-fiction book "Jaivana"(depicting the periods of 1975 to 1984). It got banned and seized by the then ruling party of India. Because it directly attacked big politicians and influential people. Later on, the now-ruling party have allowed the book to get published in the local newspapers and channels, despite following severe oppositions.

To know more about the book, he interviews Muhammad Ibrahim Sulfaikar, an 80-year old man, who wrote this non-fiction book after seeking permissions from the TV Channel, in which he is working. Greeting him according to the Islamic traditions, he said: "Sir. We are journalists. The smallest of things, we hook, find and pull out! In this book that you have written, such a big thing…It will give rise to a deluge of questions. These things directly implicate big people." After having some tea, Ibrahim asked the book to be given to him.

Smiling a little, he asked him: "Do you know what's El-Dorado?"

"You mean the Lost city of gold sir?" asked Raj Hegde to which, he said: "Thousands of years, knowing that there's a golden kingdom, many Kings in a mad bid to seek that, have lost too many armies. Not a single soul was able to salvage it! If anyone had got it, he would have become the greatest king of them all! Isn't that too?"

When asked about the location of that place, Ibrahim revealed the location as Jaigarh Fort, where people have sculpted the picture of two successful people. Because they have achieved something big in their life. Now, Ibrahim started to narrate the events, that happened in Jaigarh Fort.

18 AUGUST 1970

JAIGARH FORT

RAJASTHAN, INDIA

6:30 PM

Jaigarh Fort was built in 17th century on peaks of Aravalli ranges by Sawan Jai Singh- II for the protection of Amer Fort. Amer and Jaigarh Fort both are connected by a secret passage(which is now opened for civilians). It was the centre where treasury was kept and worked as the defense system of Amer.(Ajmer and Amer are different places)

There is a big lake named "Sagar Lake" which is used for collecting rain water as well as for transporting humans on elephant backs. (About 6 billion gallons water can be stored). Whole conspiracy is moved around this tank. It was used by Kachwana dynasty to store their treasures. Raja Mansingh-I had invaded Afghanistan the spoiling that he had acquired to Akbar, but kept it with himself. King Mansingh-I stalked all the treasure inside this tank.

On the 18th day of the month, in the early hours of the evening, a young warrior, mounted on a horse, was riding down the banks of Luni River. He belonged to the Kshatriya clan which is famous in the history of the gallant warriors. Shiva was his name. Having travelled a long distance and being worn and weary, his camel was walking along rather slowly. The young cavalier did not seem concerned about this. The sprawling water tanks and canals had so enchanted his heart!

These are connected to various canals on hills. Every drop of water was valued and conserved through these water tanks. These were also meant to serve during any emergency like drought or war. Here and there, the songs of women created a pleasant atmosphere due to their joyous music. Listening to all this, Shiva was riding quite slowly, without prodding his tired horse. As soon as he had climbed the embankment, he had started counting the tanks with the intention of finding out if popular claims, which declared there are three tanks, were true! After having come about one and a half leagues along the bank, he had counted various canals on hills.

"Aha! How huge is this lake? How wide and how long? Can we not say that the tanks built by the great Rajput monarchs in the Jaigarh Kingdom are mere ponds and pools compared with this immense reservoir? Did not Prince Jai Singh who conquered Jaigarh, think of building this great tank to conserve the waters of various canals, which were going wastefully? And did he not execute his thinking into action? How great a genius he must have been! Who can we compare to his brave nobility! During the battle with Mughals, did he not, riding an elephant go to the forefront and single handed, enter combat? And in the course of that confrontation did he not receive enemy spears on his chest and give up his very life? And because of it did he not get the title Deva who reposed atop the elephant as he departed for the heavens meant for the brave? These kings of the Rajput Dynasty are remarkable! They were just as just as they were brave! And as in justice they excelled in the veneration of their Gods."

Shiva's shoulders swelled with pride when he thought of his good fortune in having received the friendship of a Rajput prince of such a dynasty. Just like the waves that dashed against the banks of the lake because of the swift western breeze, his heart too bubbled with gratification and pride. Thinking all such thoughts Shiva reached the southern end of Jaigarh Fort.

There he could view the panorama of Tank 2 separating from the largest tank, where the legendary treasures was stored. Shiva saw a few other things that increased the pleasing joyousness of this enchanting scene. Was it not the day of Festival? Crowds of people from nearby villages, dragging their carts covered with canopies of sandal-coloured, were coming there. Men, women, children and even several elderly folks all wearing new clothes and vividly dressed in various ways had come. Bunches of fragrant flowers decorated the braids of women.

Shiva stood there watching all this for a while. He listened with an eager ear when some of the girls with pleasant voices sang. They sang traditional songs as well as folk songs like Kummi and Sindhu. Such flood-songs pleasingly flooded the ears of Shiva. Others sang ballads about the bravery and fame of Rajput kings. Some girls sang of Jai Singh who had built this great treasure. Others sang acclaiming the bravery of Raja Mansingh-I, and how he constructed Ram Harihar temple of the 10th century vintage and Kal Bhairav temple of the 12th century vintage(by Mansingh's son) all along the Luni river- from where it rose till it mingled into the Arabian sea. One girl sang the fame of Jai Singh-II, who had not only conquered Rajasthan, Delhi and Jaipur kings but had also sent an army to Afghanistan to hoist his victory flag. When each girl sang, several people stood around her listening with rapt attention. They applauded with loud shouts of "Ah, ah" and expressed their happiness!

DUNGAR GATE

7:30 PM

Around 7:30 PM, Shiva reached Dungar Gate which was built in 1720 AD by Sawai Jai Singh-II. It's a result of conjunction of two Hindi words namely, Jai and Vana. Jai in Hindi means victory and Vana means Arrow. Thus, the name Jaivana means "Arrow of Victory." This canon is placed at Dungar Gate in the fort. Notably, the length of the barrel is 20.2 feet and it weighs 50 tons. The massive canon rests on a wheeled carriage. Jaivana was fired only once. That time it used 100 kg of gunpowder to fire a 50 kg shot ball. The shot ball reached 35 kms away from Jaipur near the town of Chaksu. Because of the blast impact a depression was caused making a pond. The shock have killed 8 men and an elephant.

Meanwhile, an elderly woman noticed Shiva who was sitting on his horse and listening to all this. "Dear brother! You seem to have come from a long distance; you are tired! Come down from your horse to eat this stewed rice," she said.

Immediately several young girls noticed our youthful traveller. They whispered amongst themselves about his appearance and laughed merrily. Shiva was overcome by a certain mortification on one side and delight on the other. For a moment he considered dismounting and eating the food offered by the old woman. If he did so, the young maids would surely gather around to tease and laugh.

So what? Is it easy to behold so many beautiful maidens in one place? Even their laughter and teasing would be heavenly music. In Shiva's eyes all those girls on the lake shore appeared like the heavenly nymphs Ramba and Menaka!

Shiva approached an elderly man leaning upon his cane by the bank. "Sir, whose men are these? And whose boats are those coming behind like a school of swans in the lake? Why are these footmen chasing away the people? And why are the people hurrying away?" came his questions, one upon the other.

"My Dear! Do you not know? There is a flag flying in the middle of those sailboats. See what is embossed on it!" said the elder.

"Seems like a red sandstone."

"It is a red sandstone! Don't you know that the red sandstone belongs to the Queen Mandakini Devi Rajput?"

"Is she such a great princess, who is coming?"

asked Shiva in a startled voice.

"It must be so. Who else could raise the red sandstone flag and come?" said the elderly man.

Shiva's eyes opened wide with immeasurable surprise as he looked towards the boats of Sagar Lake. Shiva had heard much about Queen Mandakini. Shiva's heart brimmed with an eagerness to meet this powerful, illustrious and noble Queen Mandakini. At the same time he recalled the words uttered in privacy by Prince Susanth Singh-I, at the new Golden Palace in West Bengal.

"Shiva, I know you to be a brave man. At the same time I trust you to be intelligent and give you this immense responsibility. Of the two letters I have given you, deliver one to my father Gangadhar Rajput, the Emperor and the other to my younger sister Pirati. (Pirati is the term used to refer to princesses of the ruling house.) I hear all sorts of rumours about even the senior officials of the kingdom in Jaigarh. Therefore, the contents of my letters should not be known to anyone. Even the most eminent persons should not realize that you are carrying letters from me. Do not get into quarrels with anyone on the way. You should not merely avoid conflicts of your seeking. But also not be involved in disputes thrust upon you. I very well know about your courage. You have proved it several times. Therefore, there shall be no loss of valour in escaping from duels forced upon you. Most important, you should be particularly careful about the ministers of Central Government and also my young uncle Krishna Singh. I do not wish them to know even who you are! They should definitely not know why you are going!"

The Crown prince of the Rajput Empire and the Commander-in-chief of the Northern Armies Susanth Singh had told him all this. The Prince had repeatedly advised Shiva about how he should behave. Since he recalled all this, Shiva suppressed his desire to meet Mandakini. He whipped his horse to move on quickly. In spite of the prodding, his tired horse merely plodded ahead. Having decided to spend the night at the Jaigarh fortress, he resolved to procure a better horse before resuming his journey the next morning.

Shiva rode down the embankment and turned his horse towards the southern path. His heart danced with joy: like those sailboats skipping across the waves. The excitement buried deep in his heart seemed to erupt outward. His intuition meant that he was going to meet adventures experienced by none in one lifetime.

AUGUST 1975

Meanwhile, on August 1975, there were orders given to the IT department for raiding the properties of Mandakini after taking into account of the assets of her Royal family. The raid first started from the Moti Doongri Palace.

PRESENT

At present, Raj asked Ibrahim: "Sir, sir. You have moved forward in your story."

"How far have I moved?"

"Too forward sir." Raj said to Ibrahim. Drinking some amounts of water, Ibrahim continued to tell about the journey of Shiva to meet Mandakini.

19 AUGUST 1970

10:30 AM

The next day around 10:30 AM, Shiva was delighted to meet Mandakini. His wish was finally fulfilled as he reached the royal treasure of the fort to meet her. There, the security guards stop him and asked his identity to which, a friend of Shiva named, Adhithya comes in between and tells: "He is Shiva. Friend of Susanth Singh. Allow him inside." Now, Shiva goes in to meet Mandakini.

While walking inside the fort, he wondered upon looking at the buildings and walls.

"What joyous delight even as I approach the Rajput Fort of Jaigarh. What wonders will the bountiful land beyond Jaigarh hold? How would the men and women behave? How many canals? How many lakes? How many hills? How wondrous would be the river Luni praised in song and epic? How magnificent would be the spectacular temples erected by these devout Rajputs along both banks of the Cauvery? Aha! Jaipur! Capital city of Rajput! Jaipur that turned Aravalli into small towns! What of its palaces, towering columns, armaments, guard houses, busy markets, Shiva temples of granite and towering Vishnu temples?"

Finally, Shiva spends some time with his friend Adhithya. He tells about Mandakini to Shiva.

"She is one of the most modern, independent and chic queens. Women respected and idolized her. Born into enormous wealth, Mandakini chose to use her wealth to help those in need. Despite being a symbol of India's feudal past, she decided to be an active participant in Indian democracy.

She is elegant and graceful in her sarees and sometimes in khaki pants. Mandakini Devi was one of the most beautiful women in the world." Now, Shiva's curiosity to meet Mandakini have increased.

Now, Shiva was to personally meet Emperor Gangadhar Rajput, who was comparable to the God Velan in valor. He was as handsome as Manmatha, the God of Love. Furthermore, he longs to meet the Emperor's beloved daughter, an incomparable jewel among women, the younger Pirati Mandakini!

Hopefully there would be no interruptions along the way.

So what if there are obstacles? I have a spear in hand, a gun at my waist, armour on my chest and courage in my heart. But the orders of the Commander-in-Chief, my Prince, are strict: do not enter into any skirmish until the assigned task is completed. It is pretty trying to obey that order! I have followed it thus far in my travels. A mere two-day journey remains. I must be patient until then.

Travelling with the intention of reaching Mandakini before sunset, Shiva soon reached the fort.

From there, he proceeds to meet Mandakini inside the fort. There, he feels elated with her style of dressing. He frankly said: "Mandakini princess. You look so beautiful and stylish in this dress."

"I really don't think so, Shiva. Style comes naturally to me. I guess you are just born with it. My mother has been my role model and icon. When I was young, I watched her dress. Ma was very fussy about her clothes. Did you know? She was the first person to start wearing saris made of chiffons? But her great passion was for shoes. She had hundreds of pairs and still went on ordering them from Ferragamo in Florence. She always knew the best place to buy anything and she shopped all over the world. I guess I learned about style from her. She taught me about style. Life was more glamorous in the olden days, a lot has changed now." She said with smile to Shiva. While, he said the purpose of his arrival to come to the fort. Mandakini learned from him that, "Susanth Singh sent him to share an important information with her and Gangadhar Rajput."

Further he added: "Some big plans have been made by the ruling party of Indian government to amass our Gold in Jaipur Fort Mandakini. The information came to the ears of Susanth Singh from Minister Sanjay Raghavan."

"Sanjay Raghavan?" asked Mandakini to which, Shiva said: "Yes. The one, who is serving as the Minister of Udaipur in Rajasthan."

Apart from the Indian Government, Pakistan's Prime Minister Sulfaikar Akthar too was keen to take half shares of Gold treasure in Jaigarh Fort. There were enemies and traitors in Jaigarh Fort as well as in India and Pakistan. People were waiting for the right point of time to loot the gold treasures of Jaigarh. However, it's not so-easy process for the government. Because three people(Gangadhar Rajput, Mandakini Devi and Shiva) were an obstacle to these people.

PRESENT

At present, Raj asked Ibrahim: "So, what's the next plan of Mandakini and Shiva?"

"To save their royal family from Indian Government and the conspiracy plans of Pakistan."

NOVEMBER 1970 TO DECEMBER 1970

Shiva, Adhithya and Mandakini Devi met each other to discuss about the "protection of gold treasury" in Jaigarh. Adhithya said: "We should bring back Susanth Singh to the fort. Or else, Indian Government may attack us on any time."

"Not only Indian Government. But, our own associate ministers: Yash Singh and Ramesh Rajput are conspiring to take the gold treasury." However, while speaking, the guys heard the sounds of Gangadhar Rajput. Upon reaching his room, they found him lying unconscious in the floor.

The doctors, who checked him says: "He is very ill and could die at any point of time. Either Susanth Singh or Mandakini should take charge as the next emperor of Jaigarh Fort." At this point of time, Susanth Singh is killed mysteriously in an air crash when he arrived to Rajasthan. Due to the shock, Gangadhar Rajput died instantly. Following the cremation, Shiva vowed to find out the conspirators, who killed his friend Susanth Singh.

In between this point of time, Shiva begins to spend more time with Mandakini having fell for her incredible beauty. Teaming up with her, they investigates about the mastermind behind the death of Susanth Singh and Gangadhar with the help of some people, who elected Mandakini as the next princess.

They learn that: "It's Yash and Ramesh, who conspired the assassination of Susanth Singh." With the help of the ruling party in India, they hijacked Susanth's helicopter and killed him. Then, Gangadhar's food was poisoned and subsequently, it was framed as a death due to the shock. They did this to ascend the throne as the "Next emperor of Jaigarh Fort."

Upon learning the truth, Shiva angrily went in his car to murder the two. However, they already escaped the fort in their horse from Jaigarh Fort to Jaipur roads. But, Shiva caught them in Amber Fort, where he brutally fights with the henchman of Yash and Ramesh.

After fighting with them, Shiva chased the two and had a violent dual with them. In the process, he shoots Yash's arms and later on, beheads the duo with his sword brutally. Everyone comes to know about Yash and Ramesh's death! Like Susanth Singh predicted earlier, the trumpets were waiting to loot the Gold Treasure!

PAKISTAN

PRIME MINISTER'S MANSION

"This is news from Hindustan sir." The Pakistan Prime Minister's Personal assistant informed him about the clash in Jaigarh Fort. These people were waiting to amass the Gold treasure of Jaigarh Fort. And our Indian Prime Minister Priya Darshini also learned the same news from her personal assistant.

"But the fact is that another person's footsteps had fallen there. That nobody knew! Powerful people come from powerful places. When Susanth Singh asked Shiva to protect Jaigarh Fort and his sister from the clutches of his nemesis, he immediately agreed. Not just because his friend have asked him to do so. But also to the fact that, Gangadhar also asked him to do so. That's unknown to Mandakini and Susanth Singh, himself. To protect her at any cost, Shiva even killed their traitors- Yash and Ramesh."

PRESENT

"This is still the first chapter. The story now is just the beginning." Ibrahim said to Raj Hegde.

To be continued…