Shivaji - Founder of the Maratha Empire

Shivaji was the founder of the Maratha Empire, and he is considered to be a proto-nationalist and advocate of Indian independence. His father was a general employed by one of the Islamic Deccan Sultanates, and at the age of 15 Shivaji began his own military career by taking possession of forts in his region. He won battles against numerically superior forces by utilizing irregular tactics, and eventually was able to recover territory from the Mughal Empire. The rise of the Maratha Empire was also the turning point of the Mughals, and from then on they would go into a continual decline. Today Shivaji is considered to be a hero of India, as it was mainly due to his efforts that the Islamic conquests were turned back, and statues of him can be found all over the country. There have also been shows, movies, and songs written about him.

Sources:
https://www.culturalindia.net/indian-history/shivaji.html
https://www.liquisearch.com/deccan_sultanates/cultural_contributions/bijapur_sultanate
https://byjus.com/free-ias-prep/deccan-sultanate/ - Deccan Sultanates
https://www.mapsofindia.com/who-is-who/history/chatrapati-shivaji.html
https://military.wikia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Pratapgarh -Battle of Pratapgarh
https://battlesofbharat.com/2020/08/battle-of-kolhapur-the-impossible-victory-of-shivaji-maharaj/