Mandasa

Mandasa sits among paddy fields and coconut groves in Srikakulam district, close to Mahendragiri, a high Eastern Ghats peak across the border in Odisha. Once called Manjusha, it traces its past to about 1200 AD. Legend says Raja Vaman Singh Deo, a northern prince, came to the Mahendra hills to do penance and was promised a sign; his gold ring fell into a stream, and where it was found downstream he founded his kingdom. The stream is still called Suna Muddi.

The old fort of the Rajamani dynasty has wide courtyards built in an Odia-Dravidian style. A Vaishnava temple to Lord Vasudeva, said to be over 700 years old and once under the Mandasa zamindari, was restored in the early 2000s and holds a Brahmotsavam in the Magha month.