Bidar is city and a Taluka head quarter with a population of about 180,000 in the northern part of Karnataka State in southern India. It is located at an average altitude of 615 meters or 2,017 feet above sea-level. Manjeera is the main river that supplies drinking water to Bidar and Hyderabad. Kannada is the administrative and main spoken language in the city though Hindi, Dakhini Urdu, Telugu and Marathi are also widely spoken languages in the city and in the region around it.

Important rulers of Bidar:

Chalukya Dynasty
Rashtrakuta Dynasty
Western Chalukya Dynasty
Kalachuri Dynasty
Qasim Barid Shah I from 1492 to 1504
Amir Shah I 1504 to 1542
Ali Shah 1 from 1542 to 1579
Ibrahim Shah from 1579 to 1589
Amir Shah II from 1589 to 1601

Mayurkhandi was the the first Rashtrakuta capital in Bidar district. Amoghavarsha I subsequently moved the royal capital to Manyakheta in the present day Gulbarga district. Modern day Basavakalyan in Bidar District that was named after Basaveshwara was originally called Kalyani, was the capital of Western Chalukya Rulers who were also called Kalyani Chalukya Dynasty. Kalyani remained the capital under the Kalachuri Dynasty Rulers. Later Sevuna Yadavas of Devagiri and Kakatiyas of Warangal ruled Bidar before Islamic invaders, Allauddin Khilji, Malik Kafur and Muhammad bin Tughlaq took the territory over. The commanders of Muhammad bin Tughlak who were his viceroys in the newly conquered Deccan areas declared themselves sovereign monarchs and established the Bahmani Sultanate under Allauddin Hasan Gangu Bahman Shah. The Bahmani rulers moved their capital from Ahsanabad, also called Kalburgi or Kalugaruge (now called Gulbarga) to Bidar and named it Muhammadabad in 1425. The name Bidar remained popular even after the Sultanate disintegrated after 1518. It was then taken over as capital of Barid Shahi Rulers who were one of the five Deccan Sultanate kingdoms. These five Deccan Sultanates were the successor kingdoms to Bahmani Dynasty. In 1619 the Sultan of Bijapur conquered Bidar who in turn was defeated by Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb in 1686. After the death of the sixth Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, the Mughal Empire dwindled. In Deccan the Nizam of Hyderabad became the predominant kingdom. The Nizam took over Bidar in 1724 and ruled the territory until the independence of India in 1947 when all princely states were merged into the Republic of India. Bidar was part of Mysore State in 1956. Mysore State was subsequently renamed Karnataka State. The regions of Bidar, Gulbarga, Raichur, Koppal and Bellary are collectively called Hyderbad Karnataka because of their association with the Nizam of Hyderabad. The British East India Company annexed Bellary in 1796. Bidar is famous for its intricate Silver jewelry and handicrafts.

Nearest Airport is Rajiv Gandhi International Airport at Begumpet, Hyderabad at a distance of 120 kilometers or 75 miles.

Places and items of interest:

Narasimha Zara (Lord Narasimha Temple)
Papa Nashini (Shiva Temple)
Guru Nanak Jhira Gurudwara
Bidar Fort at Bidar
Great Friday mosque at Bidar
Nayee Kamaan Madarsa (university) of Mehmood Gawan
Choubara (watch tower ) at Bidar
Several Dargahs or mausoleums of local Islamic Sufi saints
Basvesvara Temple
Barid Shahi garden
Tomb of Mehmood Gawan
Kalyani Shariff
12th Century Cave
Kalyan shariff
Kalyan Fort
Kalyan Sharif
Bidri Artifacts in Bidar Old city

Hotels in Bidar are 1-star category only.

Distances from Bidar:

Gulbarga – 110 kilometer or 68 miles
Hyderabad – 136 kilometers or 85 miles
Bijapur – 246 kilometers or 153 miles
Bangalore – 669 kilometers or 416 miles