Sadasivapet - The Sarvatobhadra Town of Telangana

One of the ancestors of Sadashiva Reddy (1632–1650 CE) was Raminedu, a local chieftain who served under the Bahmani Sultanate. After the downfall of the Recherla Nayak Kings who ruled the Medak area, Sultan Ferosah of the Bahmani Sultanate (c. 1400–1450 AD) gifted the Kalpagooru Pargana to Raminedu. This grant laid the foundation for the Reddy feudal presence in the region. Sadashiva Reddy, the fifth ruler in the hierarchy descending from Raminedu, consolidated the territory and established his authority.

Prior to the Bahmani conquest, the Kakatiya kings had reigned over this part of the Deccan, and Andole served as a regional capital. The transition from Kakatiya to Bahmani to the Qutb Shahi and finally the Mughal sphere set the stage for the rise of local Nayak families like the Reddys. By the mid‑17th century, Sadashiva Reddy controlled a substantial fief, but it was his daughter, Rani Lingayamma, who would leave a permanent mark on the landscape.

After the death of her father Sadashiva Reddy (who ruled c. 1632–1650), Rani Lingayamma assumed regency or direct control over the territory. Between 1680 and 1692 CE, she conceived and founded the town of Sadasivapet. The town was named in honour of her father, Sadashiva Reddy. Rani Lingayamma chose a perfectly square site, aligning it with cardinal directions, and implemented the Sarvatobhadra type of town plan — a grid‑iron pattern with ten divisions on each side, creating exactly one hundred wards. A massive fort wall with four gates (east, west, north, south) was erected, and a central Brahmasthana (the spiritual heart) was reserved for a Shiva temple.

One of the most extraordinary features of Sadasivapet is its adherence to Koorma Vrusta Vaastu, an ancient principle where the central point of the town (the Brahmasthana) is at a higher elevation, and the four sides and four corners gradually slope downward. In Sadasivapet, the central point stands 25 feet higher than the periphery (1785 ft at centre vs. 1760 ft at the edge). This contradicts the common modern Vaastu belief that the southwest corner must be highest; instead, the ancient planners designed the entire town as a graduated tortoise‑back (Koorma) shape, allowing natural drainage and symbolising cosmic order.

The plan divides the square into 100 blocks (10 × 10). The central space (block) is called Brahmasthana, which originally housed a Shiva temple. Surrounding this core, roads run exactly north‑south and east‑west. The main thoroughfares passing through the centre are 6 dandas (36 ft) wide, while the secondary streets are 5 dandas (30 ft) wide. A fort wall with ramparts and a moat once encircled the entire town, with four grand gateways leading to: Nandi Kandi (East), Siddapuram (South), Kohir (West), and Atmakur (North).

As prescribed in the ancient texts, different wards were assigned to specific communities. A map prepared by M. Fayazuddin (town planner to the Nizam’s government, 1946) shows: the Gadi (ruler’s palace) occupied the ward southeast of the Brahmasthana; other wards were reserved for Vyshyas (traders), goldsmiths, blacksmiths, stone cutters, Kassabins (butchers), hunters, and a weekly market. This functional zoning ensured orderly living, economic efficiency, and social harmony — centuries before modern urban planning concepts.

Each ward (block) in Sadasivapet conforms to the Nivarthana measurement — a square of 40 yards by 40 yards. This modular unit allowed precise division of the town. Most wards are exactly one Nivarthana, separated by roads of 5 dandas (30 ft). The two central roads are 6 dandas (36 ft). The use of square blocks (rather than the more common rectangular blocks seen in Chandigarh or Jaipur) is a unique concept in Indian town planning. Further study of the sub‑division of these blocks may reveal even more sophisticated ancient planning principles.

Old Jaipur was founded on 17 November 1727 by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh, designed by Vidyadhar Bhattacharya. Scholars attribute its plan to the Prastara type of mandala — square or oblong, divided into 4, 9 or 16 wards by grid‑iron roads. However, Sadasivapet predates Jaipur by about four to five decades (1680s vs. 1727). Moreover, Sadasivapet’s precise 10×10 Sarvatobhadra grid with Nivarthana‑based square blocks demonstrates an even stricter adherence to canonical Vaastu texts. While Jaipur is celebrated worldwide, Sadasivapet remains largely unknown — a forgotten masterpiece of Deccan urbanism.

As seen in the 1946 Fayazuddin map and recent satellite imagery, the cultivated lands in the south‑east and north‑east corners have been filled with buildings. The town has spilled outside the former fort walls in a haphazard manner. The central Brahmasthana no longer contains a temple. The four gateways have vanished. Nevertheless, the elevation profile (centre 25 ft higher than periphery) remains intact, and many wards still follow the original Nivarthana subdivisions.

In independent India, no ancient city other than Jaipur has received so much attention from scholars and planners for its Vaastu‑based design. Yet Sadasivapet, with its earlier and more rigorously canonical plan, deserves equal recognition. The government should take immediate steps to document, protect, and conserve this unique town for posterity. Preservation of the surviving grid, elevation profile, and any remaining architectural fragments would not only honour our ancient heritage but also offer invaluable lessons for sustainable, climatically responsive urban design.

— Avala Buchi Reddy, former chairman, Indian Institute of Architects, A.P. Chapter (1992–94).