Bhavnagar About this sound pronunciation is a city in the Bhavnagar district of the Saurashtra region of the Gujarat state of India. It was founded in 1724 by Bhavsinhji Gohil (1703–1764). It was the capital of Bhavnagar State, which was a princely state before it was merged into the Indian Union in 1948. It is now the administrative headquarter of the Bhavnagar district.Bhavnagar is situated 198 km from the state capital Gandhinagar and to the west of the Gulf of Khambhat.