What happened
Shaniwar Wada in Pune, the fortified palace of the Peshwas – chief ministers and in practice rulers of the Maratha Confederacy – was built by Baji Rao I; the foundation stone was laid in 1730, and it was opened on 22 January 1732. It remained the Peshwas' seat until 1818. On 30 August 1773 the eighteen-year-old Peshwa Narayanrao was murdered here. The killers were Gardi guards, and behind the plot – according to the findings of the time – stood his uncle Raghunathrao and his wife Anandibai. Tradition says Anandibai changed a single letter in her husband's order, turning ‘seize’ into ‘kill’, and that the hunted Narayanrao ran through the palace towards his uncle's rooms crying ‘Kaka, mala vachva!’ – ‘Uncle, save me!’ In February 1828 a fire broke out in the palace and burned for seven days; only the granite walls, teak gates and foundations survived. According to popular legend, on full-moon nights Narayanrao's cry still rises from the ruins, and the young ruler's body is said to have been carried out through the gate now called Narayan Darwaja. The monument is one of Pune's symbols and closes to visitors in the evening.
Witnesses
Pune tradition; guards and local residents according to hearsay; the Indian press and guides to ‘haunted places’.
Explanations and hypotheses
Narayanrao's murder is a well-documented historical event that plunged the Maratha state into crisis. The tale of the altered letter in the order is tradition, and the cry on full-moon nights a modern legend with no independent confirmation. The ruins of a mighty palace, an empty courtyard at night and the dramatic story of a murder within the ruling family are source enough for such tales.
Legend A story handed down through generations – it can be neither confirmed nor disproved.
Sources
- The Telegraph (India) – Rangan Datta, Power, conspiracy and murder – Shaniwar Wada in Pune reflects infamy or pride of the Marathas (2024)
- Rediff – Pune and its ghosts (2015)
- Atlas Obscura – Vivek Gadre, Narayan Darwaja (2022)
More: Wikipedia (en)