Ramnagar Fort has hosted royalty for nearly three centuries. In 1961, Queen Elizabeth II was welcomed through its gates in a royal elephant procession. Heads of state and dignitaries have passed through its courtyards for generations. This November, for the first time at this scale, it opens its private ghat to host a Dev Deepawali celebration — Akashganga 2026.
A fort built for the river
Ramnagar Fort stands on the eastern bank of the Ganges, directly facing Varanasi's ghats across the water from Tulsi Ghat. It was built around 1750 by Kashi Naresh Maharaja Balwant Singh, in cream-coloured Chunar sandstone, in the years when the Benares estate was establishing its seat on the river. Nearly three centuries later, it remains what it was built to be: an active royal residence. Its Saraswati Bhawan museum still holds vintage cars, lotus-shaped palanquins, and a century-old astronomical clock, and its temples and courtyards remain in daily use.
The golden era
The fort's — and the Benares estate's — peak came under Maharaja Sir Prabhu Narain Singh, who reigned from 1889 to 1931. In 1911, he became the first Maharaja of the recreated Benares princely state. A scholar of Sanskrit, Persian, and English, he donated 1,300 acres to found Banaras Hindu University and established Ishwari Memorial Hospital to address maternal and child mortality in the region — a legacy the region still benefits from today.
A living tradition, not a museum
What sets Ramnagar apart from most historic forts is that its traditions were never retired. At Varanasi's Nati Imli Bharat Milap, the Kashi Naresh still appears on a caparisoned elephant, exactly as his ancestors did. The royal family of Banaras continues the rituals its predecessors maintained, and teaches each new generation to carry them forward. To Kashi's residents, the Kashi Naresh remains the city's foremost devotee of Lord Vishwanath and the ceremonial centre of its major festivals — not a historical figure, but a living one.
The fort is also home to the Ramnagar Ramlila, a re-enactment of the Ramayana begun around 1830 by Maharaja Udit Narain Singh. Where most Ramlilas run ten days, Ramnagar's runs thirty-one — staged across roughly twenty locations around the town in a form of environmental theatre recognised by UNESCO as intangible cultural heritage in 2004.
Why it's hosting Akashganga
Beginning Dev Deepawali at Ramnagar Fort roots the evening in the same riverbank tradition the festival has always belonged to, rather than staging it as a separate event. Guests board Akashganga's private cruise from the fort's own ghat — away from the public crowds — carrying centuries of Kashi's history onto the water with them, before the boat even reaches the first of the 84 illuminated ghats.
It is, by the fort's own long history of receiving royalty and heads of state, a fitting way to welcome guests to Dev Deepawali 2026.
Akashganga 2026 is held at Ramnagar Fort on Tuesday, 24 November, under the patronage of the royal family of Banaras. Reserve your place →
FAQ
Who hosts Akashganga at Ramnagar Fort? Akashganga is hosted under the patronage of the royal family of Banaras, whose ancestral seat Ramnagar Fort has been for nearly three centuries. It's jointly run by Kashi Riders and Ghat Travels.
When was Ramnagar Fort built? Ramnagar Fort was built around 1750 by Kashi Naresh Maharaja Balwant Singh, in cream-coloured Chunar sandstone, on the eastern bank of the Ganges facing Varanasi's ghats.
Is Ramnagar Fort easy to reach from Varanasi city? Ramnagar Fort sits on the eastern bank of the Ganges, roughly 20-30 minutes from central Varanasi and the main ghats by road. Akashganga guests receive check-in and arrival details after booking.