Did you know that INDIA had it's own Grand Canyon. In heart of Andhra Pradesh lies a spectacular gorge that is commonly known as the Grand Canyon of India that cut through majestic mountain ranges which rose up more than a million years ago on the right bank of the river Penna. The Indian Grand Canyon is present in Gandikota village in the Kadapa district of Andhra Pradesh. ‘Gandi ' means gorge which means a narrow valley between hills or mountains. The region was first developed by Ahavamalla Someswara in the thirteenth century and in the same year Raja Kapa constructed this marvellous architecture.This spectacular and deep gorge was formed because of the downward pressure of the Penna river. The wall surrounding the gandikota fort is around 11 km long.
This region was ruled by many kings for over many years. Mir Jumla, Fakir Khan, Nek Nam Khan, Mohamed Nabi Khan ruled this place for years but in 1777 Hyder Ali under the wing of Mir Jumaluddin conquered this place and ruled till 1782.Finally around 1800 East Company captured this fort. This being plateau region is fully surrounded by rocks ,three hundred feet beside this region flows the beautiful Penna river. The natural defense provided by the gorge made this fort secure and strategic for the rulers to station their forces during wars.
The main attractions other than the gorge are:- the Charminar at the entrance which was constructed for the pigeons back then ,and the Juma Masjid within is a reminder of the later Islamic reign. It is said that Mr. Jimula with the help of Aurangzeb captured the Fort by 1649 and started constructing Juma Masjid. It has two big arches and two minarets inside it. There is a water body Kattula Konneru which means pond of swords ,this place is called so because after each war the rulers of Gandikota cleansed their swords in this pond. The fort is also home to two temples -The Ranganatha Swamy Temple and the Lepakshi Temple are splendid examples of Vijayanagar architecture.The fort also includes house of the drum and many beautifully designed room structures but some structure lies in ruins owing to this region's history.
This place is quite underestimated and receives very few occasional visitors .This fort truly falls under a tourist destination and one should try to visit this place. This place is famous among the visitors for campaigning .
