Malhargad – Shyadri
Sonori Fort or Malhargad is a beautiful hilltop fortress found on the Shyadri Ranges in Maharashtra. This fortress served as a strong Fort for the Marathas, Lord Malhar is present here & is considered holy. It is close to Saswad at Sonori, almost 2 km of Kalewadi at Pune District in Maharashtra, India. This served as a unique defensive fortress at Bhuleshwar Range as a look out place for Dive Ghats area. This fort is dedicated to Siva, built on a triangular shaped plateau. The main section was built in a Maratha architectural form on a square pattern or shape. Materials used were granite, signs of red sand stones, molted with lead & lime stone with a rampart strongly built with cylindrical bastions.
A hidden pathway, an arched gateway, here two old Hindu Temples built in Maratha style can be seen. Both temples have a square single structure & triangular pagodas. These pagodas have temple flags of the respective deities which are made in a monolith stone, well made & carved in shape of the gods. There are complexes here without roofs and a fresh water pond which served as a source of drinking water. Here, the entire segment of the fort was completed in a period of just 3 years.