Long Drive to Bidar from Hyderabad

I was pretty excited as this was the first long drive with my son. Prior to this, I had only gone to Vikarabad which was a mere 70 km from Hyderabad. Bidar, about 115 km from Hyderabad is famous for the historical significance. It was ruled by the Bahmani kings and hence remains of the kingdom still exists here. One of the main attractions being Bidar Fort.

The road to Zaheerabad is moderate, some places it is pretty good while in other places it is not that great. Entry from Zaheerabad to Bidar was closed and hence we had to take the bypass which was not very pleasing though.

Gumbaz Darwaza

Gumbaz Darwaza: The place fort complex could be entered from the city through two main gates on the south eastern side by a zig-zag passage and well protected gateways. The Sharza Darwaza and Gumbaz Darwaza are main entrance gates to palace complex.

 Tarkash Mahal

Entering the fort area, one can see the beautifully decorated garden with Tarkash Mahal and Solah Khamba Mosque. Tarkash Mahal is said to be built for a Turkish wife of one of the Bahmani kings. Entry to the Mahal is now restricted for public.

Solah Khamba Mosque

Solah Khamba Mosque is said to the oldest Islamic building in Bidar and one of the largest mosques in India. As the name states it is derived from the sixteen pillars (or Khamba) in the middle portion of the Prayer Hall. Entry to this is also restricted to the public now.

Old Fort entrance

Diwan-I-am and Diwan-I-Khass are present inside the Old Fort entrance.

Leaving Bidar Fort, other areas of attraction in Bidar includes Jharani Narasimha Cave Temple, Nanak Jhira Sahib, Bahamani Tombs etc

Specialty of Jharani Narasimha Cave Temple is that in order to view the idol of Lord Narasimha, you will have to go through waist deep cave water for about 300 hundred meters.There are lots of stories connected with the temple.

Nanak Jhira Sahib

Nanak Jhira Sahib is a historical Sikh shrine. This is very popular and hundreds of devotees come here every year during Guru Nanak Jayanti. The Gurudwara stands beside a sweet water fountain carrying stories of how Guru Nanak gave relief to the people of Bidar who were suffering from the scarcity of water. A small Amrit–Kund is constructed in white marble and this accumulates the water flowing from this fountain.

Closed Tomb Besides Gurudwara

After spending around an hour or so, we started our way back as it was almost getting dark and also started to drizzle.

Below is a wonderful documentary from Karnataka Tourism about Bidar.

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Medak - a small historic town

Medak is a small town in the Medak district located around 90 kms from Hyderabad. It is an old town and the rocky nature of the terrain forms a natural citadel. It is a historic place and was once known as Sidapuram. This place is an ideal day break for the travelers of Hyderabad.

Places of interest: 

Medak Fort: Medak Fort is located to the north of the city over a hillock. The fort has three main entrances which are marked by lion and elephant sculptures. They are called as 'Lions Gate', 'Prathana Dwaram' and the 'Gaja Dwaram'. As named Gaja Dwaram has sculptures of elephants. The fort was built somewhere around 12th century and during the reign of Kakatiyan ruler, Prataparudra. This is said to be a natural fort.

Sculptures of Elephant

There is also a small pond at the top of the fort which almost dries up during the summer. This was supposed to the source of water supply for the inmates of the fort.

Medak Church is located at a distance and can be seen from the top of the Fort.

Medak Church: Medak Church is the single largest diocese in Asia and the second largest in the world after the Vatican. This is built in Gothic style. One can sit inside the church and enjoy the peace and serenity of the surroundings. No noise is entertained inside the church.


Pocharam Forest & Wildlife Sanctuary: Pocharam is around 10 kms from Medak. To get inside the forest, one has to take permission from the Forest officer in Medak. We managed to go inside the forest by requesting the officials in our own vehicles. The forest is dense but we could not find any animals except for the deers and wild cats.

Pocharam Reservoir: (1.5 KMs from Sanctuary) The reservoir was constructed across the Allair River, a tributary of the Manjira River. The reservoir dries up during the summer but remains water filled during the rainy season.

Edupayalu: Edupayalu a small village near medak is a holy place for hindus as it has a great historical significance.This is the place where seven rivulets meet at a point.

Speciality of edupayala:- The manjira river (a tributary to Godavari river) is divided into 7 streams in which the first rivulet is divided into two i.e., vashishta and jamadaagni, then from vashishta the vishwamitra will start flowing from the back of the temple and combine with the vaashishta which flows front of the temple. The two rivulets gowthama and bharadwaja bore from the jamadaagni and flow in the back of the temple. Then the aathreya and kaashyapi flow from the front of the goddess which makes edupayalu of Sri Vana Durga Devi. Pilligrims believe that in rainy season the river water flow in heights and reach the legs of goddess Vanadurga Devi.

Unfortunately we could not go inside this temple as it was already late and place was too crowded due to some festival in progress. But this is a place which one can definitely try to visit when time permits, but make sure you visit during the rainy season else there will be no water and you would not be able to identify the streams.

Probable Routes:
Route 1: NH7 Route: Kukatpalli -> Bowenpalli -> Get on NH7 -> Go all the way till Narsingi -> Ramayampet -> Take a left to Medak

Route 2: JNTU -> Medak Road -> Medak (Shorter)

Route 3: Medak is around 85 km on the Dundigal highway and Pocharam is another 10 km from Medak

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