Black and White Picture of Raja Ugar Singh of Hindur, 1840-1850 (from Archer's book on Punjab Hills Paintings) Picture the year: 1795. The foothills of the Shivaliks are tense, echoing with the tramp of armed men and the grinding pressure of regional rivalries. Down in the valleys, Raja Ram Saran Singh Handuriya of Handur (modern-day Nalagarh) is caught in a grinding political bind. For years, Handur has ridden the coattails of Kangra’s aggressive campaigns against its bitter historical rival, Bilaspur (then known as Kahlur). But looking out across his contested borders, Ram Saran Singh faces a heavier, more haunting question: Does he continue serving as a satellite to Kangra’s ambitions, or does he break away, side with Maha Chand and Bilaspur, and reclaim a fractured sense of Rajput honor? The friction between Handur and Bilaspur was rooted in continuous struggles over strategic border zones, crucial river-crossing points, and the Satgarha (seven forts) territory. Because Handur...
Raja Sansar Chand Katoch and his son Anirudh Chand Worshipping at the Gauri Shankar Temple in Sujanpur Tira (from Eva-Seitz Collection) Kangra was one of the most important and largest hill state in Northern India, and held the distinction of perhaps having one of the oldest continuous dynastic lineage without break. The original claim of the Katoch clan of Kangra has been that they were the original rulers of the ancient Trigarta, which extended into Punjab to include the Jalandhar Doab. Moreover, the clan claims to have participated all the way back into the Mahabharata war on the side of the Kauravas. While the Mahabharata clan may be difficult to verify, the antiquity has certainly been unquestionable. Archaeological field reports by Alexander Cunningham among other sources clearly find reference to an ancient kingdom of that extent, with remains of coins having been found in and around the Jalandhar Doab among other remains and excavations, that have been documented in archae...