Shri Akkanna Madanna Mahankali Mandiram, Hyderabad, Telangana

Akkanna Madanna Temple is located in Shalibanda, Hyderabad. The presiding deity in this temple is Lord Mahankali. It is popular during the festival of Bonalu that is celebrated in the twin cities of Hyderabad and Secunderabad. The temple is known for the Ghatam procession during Bonalu.

History of the Temple
Akkanna and Madanna were two brothers who rose to prominence in the Sultanate of Golconda between 1674 and 1685. Towards the end of their lives in October 1685 they came to dominate state affairs in Golconda. This is remarkable because they were administrators and ruled it and a large part of the elite of the sultanate were Muslims. Akkanna and Madanna were born in Hanmakonda into a Telugu Brahmin family of four brothers and some sisters, among whom, according to a Dutch contemporary source, Akkanna was his mother’s favorite. Madanna was more talented. There has been some discussion in the historical literature about the question whether they were Telugu or Maratha Brahmins. It is probable that they were Smarta Brahmins, who honored not either Lord Shiva or Lord Vishnu, but both gods, along with Lord Surya Bhagwan.

Madanna started as a clerk with the Golconda Sultanate and moved higher up through talent. At some point Madanna and Akkanna came into the service of Sayyid Muzaffar a nobleman of Persian descent. After sometime Sayyid Muzaffar had brought Abul Hasan to the throne. Then official Madanna and brother locked him up in his house and took over the charge of the treasury. As a treasurer Madanna became more and more powerful until he practically ruled the Sultanate in all but name till his death assisted by his brother Akkanna and his nephew Rustam Rao.  Akkanna was less important but was appointed General of the Army not so much to conduct military operations, but more to keep it from waging war.

Akkanna and Madanna heads were cut off by a mob by Mughals in October 1685. Their murder is surrounded by much intrigue and mystery but according to Mughal historian Khafi Khan they were seen by the Mughals as the cause of the troubles the Sultanate of Golconda was creating for them. Less than two years after their death the Sultanate finally fell to the Mughals. Already in the eighteenth century their rule was remembered as a golden age by the Brahmins who drew up the local histories found in the Mackenzie collection. The brothers are remembered as just administrators and as ‘martyrs’.