Journey into the medieval south

Painstakingly researched and vividly described, this debut work is a racy resurrection of the glory of the medieval dynasties of southern India.

The portrayal of Indian history is largely dominated by foreign invaders and rulers of North India who take the centre stage, while dynasties that shaped and defined the South for centuries are usually reduced to mere bystanders or at most, passive players. Though South Indian kingdoms regularly invaded and defeated those of the North, they do not find a rightful place in most narratives. The Lords of the Deccan by Anirudh Kanisetti seeks to bridge this gap by breathing life into the medieval history of the South, spanning a period of over 500 years.

The book begins with the rise of the Chalukyas and traverses up to the age of the Cholas, touching upon various other dynasties en route. How a group of agriculturists would graduate to become petty chieftains, lead military campaigns and soon consolidate their position to form one of the biggest and greatest dynasties of the South, the Chalukyas, makes interesting reading. A defining moment would be the defeat of Harsha, the most powerful warlord of the North, also called the King of kings, by Pulakeshin II. But the defeater of Harsha himself would be vanquished probably by a coalition of three kings of Chola, Pandya and Pallava dynasties. This would set in motion a bloody cycle of vengeance leading to the reemergence of Chalukyas under Vikramaditya.

Not much is known about the origins of the Chalukyas, nor even the real name of its founder who later came to be known as Pulakeshin I, the Great Lion, or Sri Prithvi Vallaba, which identified him with Lord Vishnu and finally as Satyashraya, the refuge of truth. While one version says the name Chakulyas came from ‘chakle’ an improvised agricultural tool that was used as a weapon by the clan, Pulakeshin would claim that they were a race of heroes who had sprung from a pot (chaluka) filled with water from the Ganga. Set against the backdrop of the Malaprabha river, the Chalukyas had established their capital at Vatapi, the present-day Badami in North Karnataka.

Risky expedition

Though most historians may eulogise the rulers of the North, they pale before the extraordinary power and influence of the emperors of the Deccan who shaped the fate of many modern-day Indian states, some of which exceeded the size and population of European countries. In fact, Rajendra Chola had undertaken an extremely risky expedition — not replicated by any South Asian power until the British Raj — having conquered the north, south, west, and had sent an army across the sea to raid many Srivijayan cities (Indonesia and Malaysia).

It cannot be said that the author has traversed through uncharted territory as some reviewers claim, considering that the history of Deccan rulers has been told by other historians too, though perhaps not as lucidly. The book is nevertheless painstakingly researched and has succeeded in throwing the spotlight on certain lesser-known but momentous events which have long been forgotten. The impact that these dynasties left on the future generations in terms of politics, art, architecture and literature is also vividly described.

The book lends itself to easy reading due to the racy narrative and Kanisetti has naturally exposed himself to charges of exaggeration and over-editorialising. But, to be fair, the author has given wings to his imagination without distorting historical facts as such. In the absence of such descriptive and flowery portrayal, the book would have been monotonous.

The author often obliquely draws a parallel between the medieval ages and now, especially when he explains how erstwhile kings used religion to consolidate their own position: “There are few more effective ways to cloak avarice and political ambitions than by using the garb of devotion.”

Game-changing debut

Such inferences have already earned him much criticism, but the role of a historian is not to make his work amenable to certain sections but to present facts as they are, however unpalatable they may be. The period also saw the revival of Hinduism in the Deccan where Buddhism and Jainism had a significant presence. Today, the temples constructed by the Chalukya kings are some of the oldest in the South and tell a fair bit about the political clashes and the competitive religious environment of the sixth century.

Any narration of history is usually dull, boring and drab, but the book succeeds in keeping the reader enthralled till the very end, by taking one on a fascinating journey into the past. The work is best described in the words of historian and author of the much-acclaimed ‘The Anarchy’, William Dalrymple: “Lords of the Deccan is a completely thrilling and game-changing debut of a major new talent, Anirudh Kanisetti who resurrects to us the extraordinary world of two nearly forgotten medieval dynasties with flair, nuance, clarity and sophistication.”