Golconda Fort -Hyderabad

The Golconda Fort is located about 11 Kms away, on the Western outskirts of Hyderabad city. It is located on a granite hill having a height of 120m.The ruins of Golconda Fort is as old as 800 years. Golconda means Shepherd Hill was built consecutively by three dynasties, the Kakatiyas, the Brahmins and the Qutub Shahis. Golconda is more than just the Fort; it's a little city in itself. The Huge gates of the fort are decorated with large pointed iron spikes. These spikes prevented Elephants from damaging the fort. The fort of Golconda is encircled by an 11-km long outer wall. The width of the wall ranges from 17 to 34 feet broken by 87 semi-circular bastions, 50 to 60 feet high. Enter the gates to explore the architecture splendor of Golconda Fort. Clapping of the hands can be done to understand the acoustic nature of the Fort. On the ascent to the top, we come across the Durbar Hall where we get a magnificent view of the city. The design of the Fort was very useful for communication. Golconda’s mines were famous for its diamonds. It is said that the famous Kohinoor diamond has been unearthed from here. We can view the Charminar from the terrace of the Durbar Hall. The Durbar Hall was where the commoners were met by the royal people. There are eight gates of which four of the gates are in use. Now tourists enter through the Bala Hissar gate. The buildings inside which were constructed by the Qutub Shahi kings are decorated with various floral designs and decorations which falls in synchronization with the Qutb Shahi style. On top of the fort is the Baradari, which can be reached by climbing the stairway.

On the way up, the tourist can see what seems to be part of the plumbing system during the ancient days. The ventilation of the fort is absolutely fabulous having exotic designs. Ventilations were designed so that the cool breeze could reach the interiors of the fort. The highest point of the fort is the 'Bala Hissar' which offers and excellent view of the city. The Rahban cannon are seen within the fort. There is a secret underground tunnel which leads from the Durbar Hall and ends in one of the palaces at the foot of the hill.. The tombs of the Qutb Shahi sultans lie about one kilometer north of Golkonda’s outer wall.. These tombs follow the Islamic architecture .These tombs are surrounded by beautiful gardens and beautifully carved stones. There are two individual pavilions on the outer side of Golconda. The Kala Mandir can be viewed from the Durbar Hall which was on top of the Golconda Fort. There is a light and sound show which is hosted daily which last around one hour. With a spectacular interplay of audio and visual effects, the story of Golconda unfolds over centuries of splendor. This audio visual extravaganza is worth watching.