Muhammed Adil Shah Of Bijapur
Bijapur or Vijayapura, meaning ‘City of Victory,’ was founded by the Kalyani Chalukyas between the 10th and 11th centuries. It subsequently came under the sway of various dynasties that included the Bahmani, Adil Shahis, Mughals, Nizams of Hyderabad, Maratha Peshwas, and the British.
Mohammed Adil Shah was the seventh sultan of Bijapur, ascending the throne in 1627. Apart from the lifestyle and prosperity of Adil Shahi, there are a few interesting stories of which some of the monuments are witness.
Rambha and Mohammad Adil Shah Story- Rambha was a Hindu dancer in Bijapur and was the mistress of Mohammed Adil Shah (1626 AD-1656 AD). The dances used to take place in Gol Gumbaz where the King, Queens, and other courtiers used to sit. Once Mohammad Adil Shah asked Rambha to prove her love to the king. To prove this Rambha jumped from the top floor of Gol Gumbaz. Before dying she expressed the wish that she should be buried beside the king. That is why we see her tomb in Gol Gumbaz beside the king’s tomb.
Another interesting fact Jahan Begum, Queen of Adil Shah, chose to have her tomb built away from Gol Gumbaj (the tomb of Muhammed Adil Shah) at a place called Ainapur where one can find the ruins of the incomplete tomb of the queen. The reason behind the unfinished structure remains a mystery to date. But local legend says it is because Mistress Rambha was buried beside his tomb, she chose to have a separate one for herself.
Mohammad’s reign witnessed the revolt of the Maratha general Shahaji Bhosale and then, the rise of his son Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj to eminence and his founding of an independent Maratha kingdom, which was initially carved out of the Bijapur Sultanate.
