“Once the great Maharana Pratap of Mewar came over, wandering through these jungles of the Malwa territory. From here, the mighty Rajput ruler gambades 25 feet long into this deep gorge on his fearless, aloof blue stallion Chetak. This rock right here holds the mark that Chetak set his foot at the spot. The wounded horse bravely carried his master and valiantly marched ahead…”
On goes the tour guide with his hands moving in the air, eyes gleaming with joy, and the ferocious voice refusing to stumble even for a bit, acing his storytelling like never before. This is the most striking tale of the Kakra Khoh waterfall in the fortress town of Mandav, situated 97 km away from Indore city in Madhya Pradesh. Every tourist at Mandu is well known of the famous tale. However much you long to believe, it is just a folklore passed on to generations, since History denies any such record.
Did Maharana Pratap ever visit Malwa?
Maharana Pratap was the ruler of Mewar and surrounding regions in the mid-medieval period from 1540- 1597. A contemporary of the then-Mughal ruler Akbar, Maharana Pratap never professed subjection despite the defeat at the Battle of Haldighati in 1576. He carried on resisting Mughal powers through the guerrilla warfare technique. That’s why he went into hiding in the forests. He continued operating from there and was successful in occupying most of the lost territories. But he never entered the Malwa terrains. History professor Ashok Yadav says, “There’s no point in the Maharana coming here. For Mandav, the capital of Malwa was captured by Akbar in 1561 from Baaz Bahadur. He would never come here, the region being in complete control of the Mughal Dynasty. Even the Gadmandla state of Rani Durgavati was taken over. There’s no mention of his stay in Malwa.”
Haldighati and Chetak's 'giant leap'During the Battle of Haldighati, Chetak was badly wounded and lost one leg. Still, he took the Maharana safely away from the battlefield. It was the strongest of horses from the Marwari breed. Upon this, Professor Shobhna Vyas states, “Chetak crossed a trench that too with three legs. He could save his master but died thereupon. However, the trench was not in Malwa. There is no relationship between the Maharana with Malwa. And no proof of this story.”
Haldighati is a mountain pass situated in the Aravalli hills in Western India. It connects the Rajsamand and Udaipur districts of Rajasthan. The distance between Udaipur and Mandav is around 375 km. Historian Arjun Thakur affirms, “Even if there’s any truth to the story, it is not possible that Chetak would have come this far in such a wounded condition. You see the distance between the two regions, Mewar and Malwa. Also, Haldighati and Mandav are quite apart. It would only reach somewhere near the region of Haldighati. ”Chetak lost his life after helping Rana escape from the battle in the Balicha village of Rajsamand.
Mewar and Malwa did have a relationship during the reign of Rana Sanga. He captured the territory from the Delhi Sultanate in 1519. In the medieval period too, the Rajput army was sought help by the rulers of Raisen, Vidhisha, and other parts to fight against Baaz Bahadur. Although this didn’t turn out to be favorable for them. Vikas Singh Sisodiya, who hails from the Sisodiya clan of Rajputs, says, “It was Rana Sanga’s brother who looked after the Malwa state back then when it was under the Rajputs. Never heard that Maharana Pratap would have come this side.” There is no historical reference that Maharana Pratap had any relations with Malwa. Neither anything mentioned by the Rajput poets nor the chronicles of the medieval era.
Historian Zafar Ansari adds, “There is no connectivity of Maharana Pratap to this region. The said story is baseless. A well-crafted tale that clicks with people and becomes famous. It is believed by many, but is not recorded in the history of Mandu.”
Thus, the story of the great escape or the huge leap of Maharana Pratap in Mandav is more of a story holding no historical value here. Better call it a myth, a legend, or simply folklore…