A ruined fort built in the fourteenth century, sitting on a low forested hill about 20 km west of Vijayawada. The fort changed hands repeatedly — Reddy kings, Vijayanagara, the Bahmani Sultanate, the Qutb Shahis, and eventually the British — and what remains is an atmospheric scatter of walls, gates, and a darbar hall on a wooded ridge.
The real reason to go is the village of Kondapalli at the foot of the hill, famous for its painted wooden toys. The artisans' workshops are open to visitors and the toys make a genuine local souvenir, not the usual tourist tat. Allow half a day for the fort and village together.