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Tilu Rauteli (born Tilottama Devi) was a Garhwali Rajput warrior and folk heroine who was born in village Gurrad Talla, Chaundkot, Pauri Garhwal district of Uttarakhand, India during the seventeenth century. [1] She is credited with fighting seven wars between the ages of fifteen and twenty. [2] [3] [4]
Rauteli was born in the latter half of the 17th century according to some legends . She is probably the only female warrior in the world who fought seven wars, starting at age fifteen. She was one of the three children of Bhoop Singh (Gorla) Rawat. The others were her brothers Bhagtu and Pathwa. At age fifteen, her engagement was betrothed with Bhuppa Singh Negi from Ida Talla village (Near Srikotkhal) in Pauri Garhwal district. In those days, Katyuri warriors of Kumaon were continuously attacking the Garhwal Kingdom.
After a few days the annual Kauthig (country fair) was organised in Kanda, Rauteli wished to attend. She was unyielding in her demand. Her mother, devastated by the loss of her husband and sons, stated...
"O Tilu! What are you! Don’t you miss your brothers? Who will avenge your father's death? If you want to go somewhere, it should be battlefield…. Can you go? Can you avenge……..? Enjoy your Kauthig after that!"
This taunt from her mother left an indelible mark on Rauteli's mind, and she pushed aside her wish to go to Kauthig. Instead she began to prepare a battalion with her friends, and she regrouped the army. After some time she departed for the battlefield, riding her horse "Binduli", and accompanied by her friends "Bellu" and "Devali".
According to local folktales the Khairagarh (present day Kalagarh) was her first exploit, where she overwhelmed the Katyuris of Kumaon. Then she attacked Umtagarhi, and after that she marched her army to Sald Mahadev, freeing it from the enemy.
After settling the border line up to Chaukhutia, Rauteli returned to Deghat with her army. In Kalinkakhal she fought the enemy and avenged her father's death by defeating the general of Katyuri army in Saraikhet, where her father had lost his life. Her comrade "Binduli" died after receiving lethal wounds there.
After winning her territories back, she started marching towards Kanda. While crossing the Nayar River she stopped to refresh herself, where she gave ultimate sacrifice of her.
'Ranbhoot' is invoked in her memory in 'Jagars'. 'Thadya' dance songs are performed in her honour across Uttarakhand. [5]
Kumaon is a revenue and administrative division in the Indian State of Uttarakhand. It spans over the eastern half of the state and is bounded on the north by Tibet, on the east by Nepal, on the south by the state of Uttar Pradesh, and on the west by Garhwal. Kumaon comprises six districts of the state: Almora, Bageshwar, Champawat, Nainital, Pithoragarh and Udham Singh Nagar.
Garhwal is one of the two administrative divisions of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. Lying in the Himalayas, it is bounded on the north by Tibet, on the east by Kumaon, on the south by Uttar Pradesh state, and on the northwest by Himachal Pradesh state. It includes the districts of Chamoli, Dehradun, Haridwar, Pauri Garhwal, Rudraprayag, Tehri Garhwal, and Uttarkashi. The people of Garhwal are known as Garhwali and speak the Garhwali language. The administrative center for Garhwal division is the town of Pauri. The Divisional Commissioner is the administrative head of the Division, and is a senior Indian Administrative Service officer. As the administrative head of the division, the Commissioner is overall incharge of the 7 districts in the Garhwal region of Uttarakhand, and is aided in his duties by an additional commissioner and the district magistrates. Sushil Kumar is the divisional commissioner of the Garhwal Division since December 2021.
Uttarakhand, formerly known as Uttaranchal, is a state in northern India. The state is divided into two divisions, Garhwal and Kumaon, with a total of 13 districts. The winter capital and largest city of the state is Dehradun. Bhararisain, a town in the Gairsain Tehsil of the Chamoli district, is the summer capital of Uttarakhand. The High Court of the state is located in Nainital.
Kumaoni is an Indo-Aryan language spoken by over two million people of the Kumaon region of the state of Uttarakhand in northern India and parts of Doti region in Western Nepal. As per 1961 survey there were 1,030,254 Kumaoni speakers in India. The number of speakers increased to 2.2 million in 2011.
The Chand dynasty was a Hindu dynasty that ruled the Kumaon area in present-day Uttarakhand state of India, after the decline of the Katyuri rule. At times, their rule also extended to the western parts of present-day Nepal. Somchand established the dynasty, establishing his capital at Rajbunga in present-day Champawat.
Nainital district is a district in Kumaon division which is a part of Uttarakhand state in India. The headquarters is at Nainital.
Pauri Garhwal is a district in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. Its headquarters is in the town of Pauri. It is sometimes referred to simply as Garhwal district, though it should not be confused with the larger Garhwal region of which it is only a part of.
Uttarkashi District is a district of Garhwal division of the Uttarakhand state in northern India, and has its headquarters at Uttarkashi city. It has six Tehsils namely Barkot, Dunda, Bhatwadi, Chinyalisaur, Purola and Mori.
Garhwal District is a former district in Kumaon of British India of the United Provinces, and had an area of 5,629 sq mi (14,580 km2). It later became a part of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, today it is part of the Indian state Uttarakhand.
Bageshwar is a district of Uttarakhand state in northern India. The town of Bageshwar is the district headquarters. Prior to its establishment as a district in 1997 it was part of Almora district.
Ramganga is a tributary of the river Ganges, originating in Uttarakhand state, India.
Gwaldam is a hill station in India, situated between the Garhwal and Kumaon, 39 km (24 mi) from Kausani.
Uttarakhand is a Himalayan state in North India, nestled between the Tibetan Plateau and the Indo-Gangetic Plains. The name, which means "northern land" or "section" or "northern part" in Sanskrit was made popular in the 80s as part of the wider statehood struggle within the region.
The Garhwali people are an Indian ethnolinguistic group native to the Garhwal, in the Indian state of Uttarakhand, who speak Garhwali, an Indo-Aryan language.
Garhwal Kingdom was an independent Himalayan kingdom in the current north-western Himalayan state of Uttarakhand, India, founded in 823 CE by Kanak Pal the progenitor of the Panwar dynasty that ruled over the kingdom uninterrupted until 1803 CE.
Kumaon Kingdom was an independent Himalayan kingdom in Kumaon, a region located in the eastern part of the present-day Uttarakhand state of India. It was established around 7th century and remained an independent and sovereign kingdom until 1791.
The Uttarakhand movement refers to the events of statehood activism within the undivided state of Uttar Pradesh which ultimately resulted in the formation of Uttarakhand, India as a separate state.
Diba Danda is a peak in the Patti Khatli region of Pauri Garhwal district, Uttarakhand, India. It is 2,670 metres (8,760 ft) high and is a part of the Diba Range, which forms the southern boundary of the Nayar Valley.
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Uttarakhand:
Bironkhal Tehsil is a administrative division located in the Pauri Garhwal district of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is one of the 14 tehsils in the district and is headquartered in the town of Syunsi. It was created in 2016 with 367 villages taken from Dhumakot, Chaubattakhal and Thalisain tehsils. The main languages spoken in the area are Hindi and Garhwali.