Forts of Maharashtra

Shivaji, the erstwhile ruler of Maharashtra is revered for his relentless refusal to bow down to the Mughal might. He used guerilla warfare at its consummate best. For any student of strategy, tales of Shivaji are a rich treasure trove of battle tactics.

The first question however is that when nearly every ruler in the North smoked the peace pipe with the marauding Mughals by marrying their sisters to them or by paying tax, why did this Maratha warrior choose the path of confrontation and defiance? This is precisely why he is a ruler and a leader I admire. He never chose expediency over what was right and never allowed himself to bow down to insolent might. Shivaji's brand essence was that of self- respect and pride. This was the prime motivator. Unwillingness to bend down and subjugate oneself and the need to hold one's head high. He rallied his people around him with this promise and delivered with his cunning and strategic sense.

Before we get down to his tactics and strategy we need to underline that this essence is exactly what Gandhiji , Bhagat Singh and others stood for,which ignited self belief and self respect in us and the nation finally moved as a whole to the next level of wanting self-rule!! But that is another chapter and we will cover that later.

One facet of Shivaji was his choice of forts in terms of location and the manner in which the topography was leveraged to provide a degree of natural defence and advantage to the defending army. Cliffs, high altitude, rocks submerged in the sea when it was on a cliff or on the sea side are all captivating examples of this warriors guile. These forts now offer us education and entertainment and are sufficient cause to cover Maharashtra.

The forts comprise just one element of the battle plan and anecdotes of Shivaji's escape in a sweet basket, of the lethal confrontation with a Mughal warlord who tried to kill him by surprise during a discussion for peace where no arms were allowed , are all folklore that makes for delightful reading. Fooling the opposing army into believing that an army was approaching by sending a herd of bullocks with burning torches tied to their horns at night was sheer genius!!

Shivaji's exploits offer useful strategic insights to small regional players on how to handle national brands with huge budgets.