Michelangelo’s Renaissance designs inspire Vasai Fort’s resilient architecture

Picture this Itrsquos 1739 and the Marathas are firing cannonballs after cannonballs at the Vasai Fort in their spirited attempt to claim the fortress Theyrsquore a tad perplexed to be honest the thick walls and angled bastions fail to budge We canrsquot possibly tell if the Marathas knew but this ordeal was partly at least courtesy of Michelangelo the same Italian artist who famously painted the astonishing frescoes of the Sistine ChapelOne of the existing bastionsKnown to a few Michelangelo took a hiatus to serve as the Governor and Procurator General of the Fortifications of Rome around 1527 ldquoTrace Italienne as we now know the style first emerged in the fortifications of Florence under Michelangelo It is the same style that the Portuguese implemented in the Vasai Fortrdquo says independent scholar Raamesh Raghavan of India Study Centre INSTUCEN This weekend Raghavan will lead a walk through the gates that once opened only after the twoyear bloody Battle of Vasai erstwhile Bassein aka Vasaichi MohimSee for yourselfThe inner citadel one of the surviving structures inside the fortldquoThe walls of the fort were short reinforced with mud and as thick as six metres Unlike forts in the Deccan the bastions were triangular and pointed This design helped it sustain fire from the nearly 10000strong Marathasrdquo says Raghavan Wersquore told that at times Portuguese soldiers would use short periods between Maratha firing to repair the mud walls on the go Therersquos a timely lesson to be learnt there we thinkA dated map of the fort shows the prominent triangular bastions in pink PICS COURTESYWIKIMEDIA COMMONS RAAMESH RAGHAVANWhile most of the fortrsquos interiors are currently in ruins taken over by vegetation participants can still view and touch these walls and a few of the bastions Some remnants of the Portuguese artillery survive albeit far from their original condition ldquoIn their prime the cannons were at least thrice the size of Maratha cannons Some of them were made indigenously in Vasai while others were imported from Goa or shipped all the way from Portugalrdquo Raghavan reveals Maintained by Archaeological Survey of India the fort is ldquonot in shambles But could use some extra care to bring it back to gloryrdquo he admits Whatrsquos in VasaiMichelangelo and Chimaji AppaRaghavan believes the average Mumbaikar today is oblivious to the significance of Vasai And hersquos not talking about the time British band Coldplay brought a whole production crew to the fort to record their 2015 hit Hymn For The Weekend ldquoVasai was home to Portuguese noblemen As the base for their northern territories it regulated much of the trade through the Vasai Creekrdquo he says After all the Portuguese vacated the erstwhile Bandora now Bandra and Versova to focus on protecting BacaimBassein Vasai during the twoyear siegeRaamesh RaghavanThe tale of how the fort finally fell to the Marathas is a story to tell in itself Raghavan adds Fully aware of the strategic and cultural importance of annexing Vasai Maratha leader Chimaji Appa younger brother of Peshwa Baji Rao I stood brave in the face of the Portuguese cannons steadily denting the defence through landmines More than anything it was a declaration of power the symbolic end of foreign rule and the establishment of Maratha pride Marathi Asmita for those keeping up with electiontime lingo ON January 18 11 am to 4 pmMEETING POINT Vasai Fort details revealed on registrationREGISTER 9322273136 Drop a WhatsApp messageENTRY Rs 1416