Bhadrakali Temple Ahmedabad

Getting there

• By air

  Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International Airport is the principal airport of Ahmedabad.

• By train

  Ahmedabad Junction, known locally as Kalupur station, is the city's main railway hub and the busiest in Gujarat.

• By road

  Prominent bus stops are at Gitamandir, near Kalupur Railway Station, and at Paldi.

Why devotees come here

Bhadrakali Temple is a shrine inside the Bhadra Fort complex, in the walled city of Ahmedabad. It holds a black statue of Devi Bhadrakali with four hands. Many people believe the fort took its name from this temple.

The temple stands in Bhadra Fort, which Ahmad Shah I built in 1411. Devotees believe the fort took the name Bhadra from the Bhadra Kali temple, a form of Laxmi, though a plaque at the site tells a different story. The shrine itself is a room in the north wing of Azam Khan Sarai, turned into a temple during Maratha rule. Inside is a black statue of Devi Bhadrakali with four hands.

A local legend explains why Laxmi stays in the city. It says she came to the fort gate one night to leave Ahmedabad, and the watchman Siddique Kotwal stopped her and recognised her. To keep her in the city he beheaded himself, and the city is said to have prospered since. A tomb dedicated to Siddique Kotwal stands near Bhadra Gate, beside the temple.

The fort is in the Indo-saracenic style, with carved arches, balconies and fine latticework on the windows. Azam Khan Sarai now houses government offices, an ASI office, a post office and the city's civil courts.

Tips for your visit

• A lamp in Teen Darwaza, near the fort, has reportedly been kept lit for over six hundred years by a Muslim family, dedicated to Laxmi.
• The fort and the open space before Teen Darwaza were renovated as a cultural centre by the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation and the ASI, finished in 2014.
• The Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation heritage walk starts every day at 7:45 AM from Kalupur Swaminarayan Temple.

Questions people ask