By 1583 he had successfully captured western Mewar, which included Dewar, Amet, Madariya, Zawar and the fort of Kumbalgarh. Maharana Pratap took refuge in the Chappan area and started attacking the Mughal strongholds. The Chavand school of art was developed during the reign of Rana Pratap. Maharana Prataps court at Chanvand had given shelter to many poets, artists, writers and artisans. During this period, he also built a new capital, Chavand, near modern Dungarpur. Taking advantage of the situation, Pratap recovered most of Mewar (except its former capital, Chittorgarh, Mandalgarh and Vagad regions) by defeating Mughal forces there. No major Mughal expedition was sent to Mewar during this period.

In 1585, Akbar moved to Lahore and remained there for the next twelve years watching the situation in the north-west. After this Akbar sent Jagannath Kachhwaha to invade Mewar in 1584. This led to the automatic liquidation of all 36 Mughal military outposts in Mewar. In 1582, Pratap Singh attacked and occupied the Mughal post at Dewair (or Dewar) in the Battle of Dewair. Mughal pressure on Mewar relaxed after 1579 following rebellions in Bengal and Bihar and Mirza Hakim's incursion into the Punjab.But after this Akbar sent Abdul Rahim Khan-i-Khanan to invade Mewar but he, stopped at Ajmer. Subsequently, Akbar himself led a sustained campaign against the Rana in September 1576, and soon, Gogunda, Udaipur, and Kumbhalgarh were all under Mughal control. While the sources also claim that Pratap was able to make a successful escape, Mansingh managed to conquer Gogunda within a week after Haldighati then ended his campaign. Haldighati was a futile victory for the Mughals, as they were unable to kill or capture Pratap, or any of his close family members in Udaipur. He managed to retreat to the hills and lived to fight another day. After a fierce battle lasting more than three hours, Pratap found himself wounded and the day lost. The Mughals were led by Man Singh of Amber, who commanded an army numbering around 10,000 men.

Pratap Singh fielded a force of around 3000 cavalry and 400 Bhil archers. The site of the battle was a narrow mountain pass at Haldighati near Gogunda, modern day Rajsamand in Rajasthan. The Mughals were victorious and inflicted significant casualties among the Mewaris but failed to capture the Pratap. The Battle of Haldighati was fought on 18 June 1576 between Pratap Singh and Mughal forces led by Man Singh I of Amer. When Pratap refused to personally submit to Akbar, war became inevitable. Mughal Emperor Akbar was intent on securing a stable route to Gujarat through Mewar when Pratap Singh was crowned king (Maharana) in 1572, Akbar sent a number of envoys, including one by Raja Man Singh of Amer, entreating him to become a vassal like many other rulers in Rajputana. However, the rest of the wooded and hilly kingdom in the Aravalli range was still under the control of Maharana Pratap. The bloody Siege of Chittorgarh in 1567-1568 had led to the loss of the fertile eastern belt of Mewar to the Mughals. Jagmal swore revenge and left for Ajmer, to join the armies of Akbar, and obtained the town of Jahazpur as a Jagir as a gift in return for his help.

Udai Singh died in 1572, and Prince Pratap ascended the throne as Maharana Pratap, the 54th ruler of Mewar in the line of the Sisodia Rajputs. After the death of Udai Singh in 1572, Rani Dheer Bai wanted her son Jagmal to succeed him but senior courtiers preferred Pratap, as the eldest son, to be their king. He belonged to the Royal Family of Mewar. He was married to Ajabde Punwar of Bijolia and he had married 10 other women and was survived by 17 sons and 5 daughters including Amar Singh I. Pratap also had 2 stepsisters: Chand Kanwar and Man Kanwar. His younger brothers were Shakti Singh, Vikram Singh and Jagmal Singh. Maharana Pratap was born in Hindu Rajput family to Udai Singh II of Mewar and Jaiwanta Bai.

Maharana pratap wives