The History Of Bangalore

Success has a way of inviting a target. Ramjee Chandran details the moment Bengaluru’s rapid rise as a cosmopolitan trade hub finally collided with the harsh realities of Deccan power politics. By 1612, the pete was no longer just a market; it was a desirable acquisition target for jealous neighbors. This episode focuses on Immadi Kempe Gowda (Kempe Gowda II) and his defining test: a massive confederacy of rival palegars who sought to dismantle Bengaluru’s growing dominance. We explore the high-stakes siege of the city’s mud fortifications and the brutal, tactical combat that proved the founder’s son could fight as well as his father could build. It is a story of how Bengaluru’s wealth became its greatest vulnerability, and how the city survived its first true hinge moment.

Key takeaways:


The Target on the Back: Bengaluru’s "urban pitch" and success as a trade hub reaching international ears made it an irresistible target for surrounding regional powers.


The Rival Confederacy: Local palegars, fuelled by resentment and a shared envy, formed an alliance to attack the city. They received the support of a weak, indecisive king of Vijayanagara, Venkata II.


The Siege of 1612: The battle was not a single clash but a siege and a breach of the city’s defenses, forcing Immadi Kempe Gowda to defend the very gates and streets his father had laid out.


The "Ground Zero" of Battles: While an 890 AD inscription mentions a "Battle of Bengaluru," Ramjee Chandran argues that 1612 is the true starting point for the modern city's military history.


The Darker Realisation: Though Kempe Gowda II was victorious, the battle signaled a shift: Bengaluru was now a source of pride that required constant, violent enforcement to survive.

We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Prestige Group, that makes this podcast possible.

Follow The History Of Bangalore on social, here:

Instagram: ⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/historyofbangalore/⁠⁠

Facebook: ⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/HistoryOfBangalore⁠⁠

Twitter: ⁠⁠https://twitter.com/HistoryOfBLR⁠⁠

YouTube: ⁠⁠https://youtube.com/@HistoryOfBangalore?si=mnH3BsYfI4BUU234⁠⁠

iHeartRadio: ⁠⁠https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1323-the-history-of-bangalore-163453722/⁠⁠

Follow Ramjee Chandran on Instagram and Twitter: @ramjeechandran

The theme music for the show was composed by German-Indian Koln based percussionist, Ramesh Shotham. Ramjee Chandran's photos by Asha Thadani.

RESEARCH AND SOURCES: All our episodes are based on published research and archive records. To request information about our sources, write to ⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠. Let us know if you are a researcher (either institutional or independent) and also provide some information about why you need this information. Researchers will get priority. We only have time to engage serious, academic queries so please understand if we do not respond to casual requests.

What happens to a city when the singular authority that willed it into existence vanishes? Ramjee Chandran explores the enigmatic end of Kempe Gowda I. While the Aravidu dynasty struggled to maintain a shadow of the Vijayanagara Empire from Penukonda, Kempe Gowda faced a "strange duality"—the freedom of a weakening center balanced against the rising suspicion of an imperial court looking for someone to blame for their downfall. This episode investigates the recent archaeological discovery of the Kempapura tomb and the historical theories surrounding Kempe Gowda's death. Was it a quiet passing, or did he fall in a skirmish while returning from a tribute mission? We analyze the inheritance he left for his successors: a city built with an economic logic so durable it could survive the fragility of the authority that founded it.

We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Prestige Group, that makes this podcast possible.

Follow The History Of Bangalore on social, here:

Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/historyofbangalore/⁠

Facebook: ⁠https://www.facebook.com/HistoryOfBangalore⁠

Twitter: ⁠https://twitter.com/HistoryOfBLR⁠

YouTube: ⁠https://youtube.com/@HistoryOfBangalore?si=mnH3BsYfI4BUU234⁠

iHeartRadio: ⁠https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1323-the-history-of-bangalore-163453722/⁠

Follow Ramjee Chandran on Instagram and Twitter: @ramjeechandran

The theme music for the show was composed by German-Indian Koln based percussionist, Ramesh Shotham. Ramjee Chandran's photos by Asha Thadani.

RESEARCH AND SOURCES: All our episodes are based on published research and archive records. To request information about our sources, write to ⁠[email protected]⁠. Let us know if you are a researcher (either institutional or independent) and also provide some information about why you need this information. Researchers will get priority. We only have time to engage serious, academic queries so please understand if we do not respond to casual requests.

As the Vijayanagara Empire splintered into a "political looseness" following the catastrophe at Talikota, Bengaluru didn't just survive—it adapted. Ramjee Chandran examines how Kempe Gowda navigated the transition from imperial subject to autonomous ruler in an era of "untethered freedom". This episode explores the pragmatic nature of Bengaluru’s founder, who had the foresight to maintain the city’s logic of economic circulation. While the Aravidu dynasty at Penukonda struggled to issued orders without authority, Kempe Gowda focussed inward, building the temples, tanks, and markets that would anchor the city’s identity for centuries. We follow the final years of his reign, his strategic alignment with the flow of trade, and the legacy he left for his son, Kempe Gowda II. It is the story of how Bengaluru ceased to be an imperial outpost and began its journey as a self-sustaining engine of the Deccan.

We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Prestige Group, that makes this podcast possible.

Follow The History Of Bangalore on social, here:

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/historyofbangalore/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HistoryOfBangalore

Twitter: https://twitter.com/HistoryOfBLR

YouTube: https://youtube.com/@HistoryOfBangalore?si=mnH3BsYfI4BUU234

iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1323-the-history-of-bangalore-163453722/

Follow Ramjee Chandran on Instagram and Twitter: @ramjeechandran

The theme music for the show was composed by German-Indian Koln based percussionist, Ramesh Shotham. Ramjee Chandran's photos by Asha Thadani.

RESEARCH AND SOURCES: All our episodes are based on published research and archive records. To request information about our sources, write to [email protected]. Let us know if you are a researcher (either institutional or independent) and also provide some information about why you need this information. Researchers will get priority. We only have time to engage serious, academic queries so please understand if we do not respond to casual requests.

The collapse of the Vijayanagara center at Talikota didn't just end an empire; it created a political vacuum that was similar to the one left by the Hoysalas two centuries earlier.

Ramjee Chandran explores the historiography of this transition—how the political vocabulary of imperial authority persisted even when the centre could no longer bark orders. This episode follows the Aravidu family as they stepped into the void, attempting to preserve imperial continuity through a strategic retreat to the fortified heights of Penukonda—a truncated sovereignty, while the empire’s vassals began to declare independence.

From the first rebellions of the Madurai Nayaks to the lingering imperial viceroyalty in Srirangapatna that would eventually become Mysore, we map the events that changed the course of history.

We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Prestige Group, that makes this podcast possible.

Follow The History Of Bangalore on social, here:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/historyofbangalore/⁠⁠⁠⁠

Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/HistoryOfBangalore⁠⁠⁠⁠

Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/HistoryOfBLR⁠⁠⁠⁠

YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://youtube.com/@HistoryOfBangalore?si=mnH3BsYfI4BUU234⁠⁠⁠⁠

iHeartRadio: ⁠⁠⁠⁠https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1323-the-history-of-bangalore-163453722/⁠⁠⁠⁠

Follow Ramjee Chandran on Instagram and Twitter: @ramjeechandran

The theme music for the show was composed by German-Indian Koln based percussionist, Ramesh Shotham. Ramjee Chandran's photos by Asha Thadani.

RESEARCH AND SOURCES: All our episodes are based on published research and archive records. To request information about our sources, write to ⁠⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠⁠. Let us know if you are a researcher (either institutional or independent) and also provide some information about why you need this information. Researchers will get priority. We only have time to engage serious, academic queries so please understand if we do not respond to casual requests.

The defeat at the Battle of Talikota was only the beginning of the end. Ramjee Chandran chronicles the "ooru alivu"—the systematic erasure—of one of the world’s greatest metropolises. As the battlefield lay thick with the carnage of fallen empires, the Vijayanagara royals, led by Tirumala, executed a desperate exodus, loading 1,550 elephants with a treasury of gold and jewels to flee toward Penukonda.

We explore the two-stage destruction of the capital: first, the chaotic plunder by local robber tribes and "jungle people" who descended on the forsaken city, followed by the six-month organised dismantling by Sultanate forces using fire and crowbars to level the city's symbolic heart. Amidst this comprehensive ruin, we examine the strange anomaly of the Virupaksha temple, which remained largely untouched while the surrounding city was reclaimed by the jungle and wild animals. This episode captures the visceral moment a seat of imperial power became an empty shell, forever shifting the political gravity of the Deccan.

We gratefully acknowledge the support of the Prestige Group, that makes this podcast possible.

Follow The History Of Bangalore on social, here:

Instagram: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.instagram.com/historyofbangalore/⁠⁠⁠

Facebook: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.facebook.com/HistoryOfBangalore⁠⁠⁠

Twitter: ⁠⁠⁠https://twitter.com/HistoryOfBLR⁠⁠⁠

YouTube: ⁠⁠⁠https://youtube.com/@HistoryOfBangalore?si=mnH3BsYfI4BUU234⁠⁠⁠

iHeartRadio: ⁠⁠⁠https://www.iheart.com/podcast/1323-the-history-of-bangalore-163453722/⁠⁠⁠

Follow Ramjee Chandran on Instagram and Twitter: @ramjeechandran

The theme music for the show was composed by German-Indian Koln based percussionist, Ramesh Shotham. Ramjee Chandran's photos by Asha Thadani.

RESEARCH AND SOURCES: All our episodes are based on published research and archive records. To request information about our sources, write to ⁠⁠⁠[email protected]⁠⁠⁠. Let us know if you are a researcher (either institutional or independent) and also provide some information about why you need this information. Researchers will get priority. We only have time to engage serious, academic queries so please understand if we do not respond to casual requests.