The word ‘Janjira' mean an island fort. However, the term is now used exclusively for the great Siddi fort off the coast of Murud and hence it is often called Murud Janjira. Located at 18º 16' north, latitude and 72º 55' east longitude, it was at one time given the name “Mehar-ruba” or “Mehar-rusa”. The Portuguese called it “Damda”.

The fort was originally built by Rama Koli, under the protection of the Nizamshahi Sultan, in late 15th century. The walls were made from huge logs. In 1617 the command of the fort was given to Siddi Amar by Malik Ambar, the great Nizamshah's statesman. From then onward the Siddis held the fort continuously for over three hundred years. And it is to their credit that Janjira was never captured by any power, even the great Maratha warrior Shivaji failed.

Janjira was a very strong fort with high rampart and 22 bastions. The main gate faces east and is protected by two huge bastions with a gallery on top. An interesting feature of this gate Mabadarwaja – is a sculpture on the walls. It shows a tiger clasping four elephants in its claws and one each in its jaws and tail. There are four huge cannons in the gallery above the main gate. Today, the fort is in ruins but a visit is well worth it because even the ruin give us a good idea of the grandeur of the place in olden times. A walk along the ramparts presents a wonderful view of the sea and the channel and the large area of the fort.







Korlai and Revdanda forts are on the scenic Alibaug - Murud route. Janjira has a nice beach, tasty sea food, the scenic Kashid beach and a gorgeous mansion built by the Nawab of Janjira. An MTDC rest house and a few hotels provide fairly good accommodation.

Janjira island fort with one of India's largest cannons - Landa Kasam ( > 90 cm is in diameter ferried in pieces and welded together in the fort), 12 m high fort walls, palace (in ruins), nearby Padmadurg fort (3 km by boat - built by King Shivaji to observe the activities of the Siddis), Janjira is one of the few forts in Maharashtra, which is in good condition even now. The fort still has more than 60 cannons. Toilets with septic tank is another rare thing in the forts of Maharashtra. The fort has two entrances, of which one is commonly used. The other entrance is difficult to approach by boats as the area is rocky and can damage the vessels severely.

Janjira fort is situated about 2 km into the sea from Rajpuri near Murud. The fort was constructed on an island with two large water tanks for drinking water. The fort can be accessed by wind sail boats which operated from dawn to dusk (Rs 15). Morning time is best to photograph the fort. It was considered impregnable and witnessed many battles during the 300 year old reign of Siddis.

A must see for a fort enthusiast, a tourist, a defence personnel ......... .

Location : Murud is 165 km from Mumbai via Alibaug. Nearest railway station is Roha on Konkan railway.