Kolhapur

Kolhapur, in southern Maharashtra on the banks of the Panchganga River, has been an important centre of power and pilgrimage for over a thousand years. The city’s identity is anchored in the ancient Mahalakshmi (Ambabai) Temple, a major Shakti shrine that drew traders, warriors and pilgrims from the Deccan and coastal Konkan. Early on, the region was ruled by the Shilahara dynasty, and later came under the Yadavas of Devagiri, forming part of a wider network of Deccan kingdoms and trade routes to the Arabian Sea.

From the 14th century, Kolhapur’s fortunes shifted with the rise and fall of the Bahmani and Bijapur sultanates, and then dramatically with the emergence of the Marathas. In the late 17th century, Kolhapur became associated with a separate branch of the Bhonsale family, descended from Chhatrapati Rajaram, Shivaji Maharaj’s younger son. This line formed the princely state of Kolhapur, which developed its own court, palaces and administrative structures, even as the main Maratha power centre lay in Satara and later Pune.

Under the British, Kolhapur remained a princely state, known for relatively active rulers and social reforms. After Independence, it acceded to India and joined Bombay State, later becoming part of Maharashtra. Today, Kolhapur is a district headquarters famed for Mahalakshmi Temple, wrestling (kushti), jaggery, kolhapuri chappals and a rich royal–cultural heritage.