Bassein Fort, Thane

The Bassein Fort, now referred to as the Vasai Fort is located in the village of Vasai that comes under the Thane District. Bassein was initially reckoned as an old Portuguese settlement by the famous Thane Creek. Before being known as the Bassein Fort, it was known as the ‘Fort of St. Sebastian of Vasai’.

Built in 1532, the fort is almost five centuries old and was constructed by the then Sultan of Gujarat – Bahadur Shah. The Fort was set up by the Portuguese, though its operations were carried out by the Indian ruler then. The Marathas took over in 1739.

The Bassein Fort was responsible for providing protection to the entire province of Bassein. It offered a cover to as many as 58,000 Indian Christians, 60,000 inhabitants and 2,000 Portuguese. Sadly, the fort is currently in ruins. What, however, remain are the gigantic fort walls that ran 4.5 km in length, two doors – the Porta da Terra and the Porta do Mar – and a few remnants of the Portuguese churches and buildings.

The gateways of the fort are very attractive and have beautiful inscriptions adorning them, while close to them are the Portuguese Graves that date back to 1558. The surrounding area that envelopes the fort is very picturesque, and is enclosed on three sides by the sea. This place interestingly makes for a much sought after location as a Bollywood Film Set.