u/BKPatil1

In 1763, Hyder Ali of Mysore, Karnataka, in order to expand his kingdom, invaded the Kannadiga Keladi(Bednur) kingdom and annexed it. This marked a dark period for Karnataka, as Hyder Ali overthrew the native dynasty and imprisoned the Keladi queen Virammaji and her adopted son, Somashekhara III. Confined in the formidable, monolithic Madhugiri Fort, the royal family remained captive for four years while local chieftains (Paleyagars) and citizens suffered under harsh taxation and military occupation.

Determined to check Hyder Ali’s aggressive northward expansion and reassert control in the region, the 22-year-old Marathi Bramhin Peshwa Madhavrao I launched his Karnataka campaign in 1767. Demonstrating exceptional military genius, Madhavrao swiftly dismantled Hyder Ali's defensive outposts, culminating in a fierce, multi-pronged assault on Madhugiri Fort. On March 4, 1767, the Maratha forces breached the fortress, securing a decisive victory and discovering the captive royal family alive in its prison cells.

Madhavrao immediately liberated Rani Virammaji, treating her with royal dignity and providing a protected escort. As news of the queen's rescue spread, the local Kannadiga populace and regional lords hailed the young Peshwa as a liberator. The victory drastically weakened Hyder Ali's hold on the region, restored local stability, and cemented Madhavrao I’s legacy as one of the Maratha Empire’s finest commanders.

In the early 1680s, Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj had formulated a plan to collaborate with Durgadas Rathore and the Moghul prince Akbar to march Northward through Gujarat, join forces with Ram Singh Kachhawa of Jaipur and attack the Moghul capital of Delhi itself, in order to dethrone Aurangzeb and "end" the persecution of Hindus under his rule. He wrote a letter to Ram Singh, specifically in Sanskrit, conveying his plan. However, Ram Singh Rajput, being a loyal Moghul servent, never reciprocated, and this plan never materialized unfortunately.

Link to the original source: https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.32141/page/n314/mode/1up?view=theater