Kalyan Manikya (d. 1660) was the

Maharaja Mahārāja (; also spelled Maharajah, Maharaj) is a Sanskrit title for a "great ruler", "great king" or " high king". A few ruled states informally called empires, including ruler raja Sri Gupta, founder of the ancient Indian Gupta Empire, an ...

Tripura Tripura (, Bengali: ) is a state in Northeast India. The third-smallest state in the country, it covers ; and the seventh-least populous state with a population of 36.71 lakh ( 3.67 million). It is bordered by Assam and Mizoram to the east a ...

from 1626 to 1660. Reigning in the aftermath of an occupation by the

Mughal Empire The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...

, Kalyan did much to restore the kingdom, though it remained in a continuous state of war with the Mughals.

Reign

Kalyan was born into a branch of the

Manikya dynasty The Manikya dynasty was the ruling house of the Twipra Kingdom and later the princely Tripura State, what is now the Indian state of Tripura. Ruling since the early 15th century, the dynasty at its height controlled a large swathe of the north- ...

, with his father Kachu Fa being a descendant of Gagan Fa, himself a son of

Maha Manikya Maha Manikya (died 1431), also known as Chhengthung Fa, was the Maharaja of Twipra Kingdom, Tripura from about 1400 to 1431. Contrary to narratives provided by early histories, evidence indicates that Maha Manikya was the founder of the kingdom, ...

. Upon the capture of Tripura by the

Mughals The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...

in 1618,

Yashodhar Manikya Yashodhar Manikya (d. 1623), also known as Jashodhar Manikya, was the Maharaja of Tripura from 1600 to 1618. His reign is considered to be the nadir of the kingdom's history, with the temporary overthrowing of the monarchy and the region's incorp ...

, prior to his expulsion from the kingdom, named Kalyan his heir, due to the former's lack of close male relatives. Following the Mughal's retreat after a deadly epidemic in the region, the Tripuri nobles appointed Kalyan as the new ruler in 1626, confirming his previous nomination. During his reign, Kalyan extensively worked to restore order to the kingdom. The administration was reorganised and improvements were made to the military, allowing the recapture of previously lost territory. He was also devoted to religious pursuits, having constructed a temple to

Kali Kali (; sa, काली, ), also referred to as Mahakali, Bhadrakali, and Kalika ( sa, कालिका), is a Hinduism, Hindu goddess who is considered to be the goddess of ultimate power, time, destruction and change in Shaktism. In t ...

as well as donating lands to

Brahmin Brahmin (; sa, ब्राह्मण, brāhmaṇa) is a varna as well as a caste within Hindu society. The Brahmins are designated as the priestly class as they serve as priests (purohit, pandit, or pujari) and religious teachers (guru ...

s. Like his predecessor, Kalyan refused to pay tribute to the Mughals, resulting in repeated attacks against the kingdom, which he was initially able to repulse. However, he was ultimately defeated by Prince Shah Shuja in 1658. Tripura was subsequently added to the Mughal revenue roll under the name "Sarkar Udaipur" and Kalyan was required to give up his son Nakshatra Roy (later known as Chhatra Manikya) as a hostage to Shuja's court. After his death in 1660, Tripura, already weakened by war, was further subjected to a fratricidal succession struggle amongst Kalyan's sons.

References

{{reflist Kings of Tripura History of Tripura 1660 deaths