Warangal

Overview

The old name of Warangal, Orugallu, means "one stone" and points to a huge granite boulder that once marked the fort. Among the Warangal tourist places most visitors list, that fort comes first. The Kakatiya dynasty ruled from here from the twelfth century, and the site still has three concentric defensive rings, the ruins of a Shiva temple complex and a fourteenth-century hall called Khush Mahal. Four tall stone gateways, known as the Kakatiya Kala Thoranam, stand in the middle of the enclosure. A version of that arch appears on the Telangana state emblem, so you may recognise it before you arrive.

Warangal, Hanamkonda and Kazipet now run together as one urban area, and Hanamkonda lies about 7 km north of Warangal. Here the Thousand Pillar Temple gives a Kakatiya view of Shiva, Vishnu and Surya under one roof, in a three-shrined star-shaped plan, with a large Nandi bull carved from a single block of dolerite. A short ride away, on a hilltop beside a lake raised by the Kakatiya king Ganapati Deva, the Bhadrakali Temple is dedicated to the goddess the dynasty held as its family deity. Local accounts trace the shrine back to 625 CE.

Beyond the city, the rest of the Kakatiya story is spread across the countryside. Ramappa Temple at Palampet in Mulugu district was begun in 1213 under the general Recherla Rudra. Unusually, it carries the name of its sculptor, Ramappa, and it joined the World Heritage list in 2021. Ramappa Lake, dug at about the same time, sits close by. Laknavaram Lake, with its hanging bridge across islands, and Pakhal Lake, beside a wildlife sanctuary, give the trip a break from stone and carvings.

Plan around the weather. May brings highs near 42 C, while December and January afternoons stay near 29 to 30 C with cool nights. Rain falls mostly from June to September. The fort has an evening sound and light show, so a night in town lets you see it by day and again after dark.

Known for

With the four Kakatiya Kala Thoranam gateways