The Bhangarh Fort

Bhangarh fort is one of the top 4 most haunted places on Earth. Legend has it that there was a tantrik(magician), Singhia, who wanted to marry the princess of Bhangarh, Ratnavati, but knew that the match was not possible. One day, Singhia came up with a cunning plan. He used his black magic in the oil which the maid of the princess was purchasing. The princess saw this and foiled his plans by throwing the oil on the ground. As the oil struck the ground, it magically turned into a boulder that crushed Singhia. Before dying, he cursed the Bhangarh fort and those who dwelt in it. This theory was proved by the war in Bhangarh next year in which the princess perished. Since then, the place is in ruins because whoever tries to
make a living there, perishes and his/her house falls down on its own. The entry to this fort is prohibited before sunrise and after sunset by the government.


This is the story of one such boy whose curiosity got the better of him and his friend went with him. His name was Rithvik and the friend was Chandar. They lived in Alwar(close to Bhangarh) along with their family. The story of the cursed fort was revolving around the village. There were many tries to get in the fort at night but none succeeded because of the tight security there.

"How are you going to do it?" asked Chandar.
"Do what?" Rithvik asked again.
"Well, achieve your life's goal. The goal you are always talking about. Get in the fort at night to see the what happens."
"I've made many plans and all have failed but this time is different. We're not going to try to get in from outside  as we did many times before. This time, we are going to go visit the fort in the morning and stay there till night!! Hide anywhere in that giant fort. I don't think they check the whole fort after visiting time. What do you think?"
"I've got to admit that this could work. But we have to be fast and quiet like secret spies" he replied.
"Don't worry.They haven't seen our faces till now. We put our plan in action tomorrow morning 11am. Understood?"
"Yeah sure, but do you think we will need any extra equipment?"
"Only our face masks and torches and gloves to avoid any fingerprints."  Rithvik replied.
"OK. See you tomorrow, then. Bye."
"Bye"
That night was sleepless for both the boys. They were too excited to sleep. The plan for next morning went as planned. They reached the fort at the appointed time.
They entered the fort and searched for a place to hide till night. After a couple of hours, they found a place they saw fit to hide. It was on the seventh and topmost floor. They found a small room in
which every piece of furniture was covered with dust and cobwebs. They dusted off a charpai(sort of a bed but with a network of jute ropes) and lay on it for some rest.
"Now what?" asked Chandar.
"Now we wait." replied Rithvik.

The waiting turned out to be sleeping because of the lack of sleep from the previous night and boredom that the boys had beared from the waiting.They got up at 2am from the hooting of the owls outside and got ready to explore the fort at night.

"We made it!! Chandar exclaimed with joy.
"It seems as my plan worked out after all" agreed Rithvik.

They roamed around the fort and discovered many unusual things.They went in prohibited areas and locked rooms.Their first shock was when they were in the old king's room. Something rustled past them. There was a shadow. Chandar turned immediately. Saw nothing. He called Rithvik but he denied it as just a trick of his eyes. When they were roaming around the corridors, Rithvik screamed.

"What happened?" asked Chandar.
"Look there." said Rithvik as he pointed a finger to the wall ahead them.
The words "You just made a big mistake coming here. GO BACK!!" were printed on the wall with blood!!!!!

Chandar shouted in pure horror as he saw the words.

"We should get going from this place. Now" said Rithvik when he got his voice back.
"Yes we should" said Chandar as he turned down the corridor.
"Something is wrong.This isn't the corridor we came here from. That painting of the king wasn't there and the carpets were not of this color." said Chandar the moment he looked towards the corridor.
"What are you talking about?" asked Rithvik but as he turned down the corridor, he also saw the miraculous change in the corridors.
"But how?" asked Chandar.
"I don't know. The corridors must've changed while we were looking at those words."

They looked back but the words were no longer there. It was just a blank wall.They both shrieked with terror.
"What is happening?!" said Rithvik, shivering.
"I don't know but we should just get out of here as fast as we can." replied Chandar.
"Yeah you're right. Come on!"Said Rithvik as he led the way, ghosts still haunting his thoughts.

They walked for many minutes but the corridors kept changing as if something was trying to stop them. Then, Chandar heard a voice in the air. It was like listening to a soul screaming in his ears telling him to get out of the fort. He pressed his hands on his ears and fell down on his knees.

"What happened? Are you okay?" asked Rithvik when Chandar had calmed down.
"You didn't hear that soul?" asked Chandar.
"I heard no soul, Chandar. Maybe you were just imagining things......."
"I heard what I heard!!" shouted Chandar."It was a screaming soul and was telling me to get back to wherever I came from. It was like listening to the most horrified voice!"
"I'm sorry Chandar. After seeing those words on the wall I'm very worried and scared...I don't know what to think."said Rithvik.
"We must get going if we are to survive this place. Time is of the essence" said Chandar encouragingly.
" You're right. Let's go." replied Rithvik.

Then they continued their trip. Voices were whispering in the corridors. Swords were hanging as if threatening to cut their necks.Every once in a while, one of them would start crying and the second would urge him to go on. It was like the whole fort had come alive!

"What is that?" Chandar asked, terrified, as he saw a statue moving on its own.
"Oh shit, DUCK!!" exclaimed Rithvik as they both ducked and an arrow passed where their neck was one second ago. The statue had shot the arrow and was loading another one.

"Run!" shouted Chandar as they both ran, arrows whistling past their ears.

They both stopped in a room, breathing heavily and fell down on the charpai, tired from the recent events.

"OK, I got a plan, sort of." began Rithvik. "We get some swords to protect ourselves from whatever's out there. We move when the coast is clear. We have to find a way out even if the corridors are shifting. If we lose hope, we lose everything. Got it?"
"Great plan." muttered Chandar.
"You got anything else?" asked Rithvik sarcastically.
"No"
"Then let's get going!"

They fetched some swords and moved on, trying their best to find a familiar corridor. But in vain.
A shadow passed over them. Both of them turned wildly, slicing their swords in plain air. After a while, a soul appeared in front of them, telling them to follow it. They were mesmerized. They followed it blankly. It led them to a huge room and the doors were shut and bolted by themselves. The walls of the room were covered in blood and the air was filled with howling and screaming voices. They regained their senses and rushed towards the door, crying from fear, trying to open it but all in vain.

The soul of a tantrik appeared in front of them, laughing his head off....

In the morning, there was no one in the fort. The two boys had disappeared. Their families searched for them for years to come but they didn't find them.
The souls of the boys were trapped in the Bhangarh Fort forever......