"Exploring the Enigma of Bhangarh Fort: India's Most Haunted Fort in Rajasthan with Stories, Myths, and a Majestic View"
By E Kay
Bhangarh fort. Supposedly the most haunted fort in India. Stories of ghosts and unnatural, supernatural events are numerous about this 17th century built fort in Rajasthan. Browsing through various sites and information about this place, you will get that urge to go visit this site, what with all the spill chilling stories and pictures floating in the media.
It is said that the Bhangarh fort was constructed by Raja Madho Singh, the younger brother of Emperor Akbar’s general, Man Singh.
There are numerous tales related to the construction of the fort and the structures surrounding it. According to one such story, there was a sadhu who lived in the vicinity of the fort and when the king was constructing the fort, he asked the king to not make the fort higher than his house or that there should be no shadows cast by the fort on his house. However on completion of the construction, it was found that was not so. The sadhu cursed the village and so the village remains cursed to this day despite no inhabitants.
Another tale is that a tantrik fell in love with the princess Ratnavati, and tried to use magic to make her fall in love with him. She however came to know of his plans and had him killed. Before dying he cursed the village and the dwellers there.
Prior to the journey there, which is a good 200 plus kilometers from Delhi, we were also told that we should and could not visit the fort before sunrise and after sunset. A couple of earlier visitors also stated that there are signboards put up around the place warning people about staying overnight, and that the fort is closed after sunset and does not open before sunrise and so on. We however, did not find any such sign and when questioned, our driver said that the warnings of timings are probably because of the wild animals and monkeys in the area, the fort being situated close to the Sariska Reserve.
Upon reaching there, we also did not get that eerie or "ghostly" feeling that was expected. It is like any other fort. No doubt the fort is beautiful, well maintained with rather clean surroundings. The ruins are equally beautiful. The ticket counter lies at around 700 metres from the fort. And you need to walk from the counter up a slight slope. Along the path, you will find ruins supposedly of the market that flourished in the bygone days. A sadhu we met told us that the market area is still being kept clean by the spirits of the people who once lived there. Definitely an interesting way of looking at things. Anyways, just a few metres from the fort you find a few temples, the Someshwar temple, the Hanuman temple and others.
From the top of the fort, the view of the surrounding areas is beautiful. (A word of caution though, as there are several monkeys lurking around and you need to be aware of them, as they snatch food and eatables from visitors.)
That said, it was a hot and clammy visit to one of India's most famous forts but the beautiful majestic fort, whether haunted or not, it was definitely worth the bucket loads of sweat shed.