Author of Sahyadris tdo Hindukush and Battles of the Maratha Empire. Next book – Brahmaputra, The Story of Lachit Barphukan being published by Bloomsbury in 2022.
A book about the pivotal battles fought by the Maratha Empire from 1659 to 1818. An engrossing read. While much has been written on this topic, Aneesh takes us to the lesser known yet important battles and campaigns which dictated politics in this country for two centuries. - Smt Yashodhara Raje Scindia "A wonderfully readable... Continue Reading →
The second edition of my book Battles of the Maratha Empire is now out. Covers important battles from the days of Chhatrapati Shivaji to the fall of the Maratha Empire. Read about Pratapgad, Salher,Palkhed, Rakshasbhuvan, Kharda, Delhi, Laswari, Panipat in a single volume. Purchase at : Battles of the Maratha Empire The newer edition incorporates... Continue Reading →
Rudra Singha Originally published in DNA on 26 Feb 2017 When we speak of medieval Assam, Lachit Barphukan is perhaps the only name known to us, for his exploits against the Mughals. But the person who took Assam to its cultural and political zenith was a king named Rudra Singha, who ruled between 1696 and... Continue Reading →
First published in DNA on 15 September 2019 The Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics or IUCAA has put Pune on the astronomy map of the country for over 30 years. The radio telescope at Narayangaon (GMRT) is another feather in the astronomy cap. But, while these are well-known recent modern day developments, what is... Continue Reading →
Originally published in DNA on 20 Jan 2019 Many of you must have read about the first train in India — the famous 1853 run from Boribunder to Thane. It heralded a new dawn for communications, industry and transport in India. An equally important event happened 30 years prior to that, in 1825 in Calcutta.... Continue Reading →
“We must leave office; all the bungalows are being burnt down by the sepoys of Meerut. They came in today morning. Mr. Todd, we think, is dead. We are off.” – This short message sent on a telegraph line from Delhi into the Punjab in 1857 probably changed the course of India’s First War of... Continue Reading →
Originally published in DNA on 8 Sept 2019. When things had reached the breaking point between the East India Company and the Peshwa Baji Rao II in 1818, the British set out on a campaign to capture the forts in the Sahyadris. Purandar, along with Sinhagad, Raigad and Trimbak, commanded a status of importance even... Continue Reading →
This article shall explain how, from the time of Babur to that of Aurangzeb, foreign born nobility always formed the major component of Mughal nobility. No, not descendants of the original bunch who accompanied Babur or Humayun, but fresh recruits or their sons, arriving at every Mughal’s court. This component was very high during the reigns of... Continue Reading →
A piping hot cup of tea is something we routinely drink and also offer any and every guest. In fact, it is so common a courtesy, that not being offered a cup of tea would seem rude to many people! Let us see how tea began it’s journey in the jungles of Assam as a... Continue Reading →
The Peshwa was a fifteen-year-old boy named Sawai Madhavrao. For the entertainment of the young Peshwa, a menagerie — a collection of birds and animals — had been set up in the jungles near Parvati. It housed a large collection of fauna — tigers, lions, a lynx and even a rhino! Read more about this... Continue Reading →
