Pune, formerly Poona (pronounced [puɳeː] ( listen)), is the eighth largest metropolis in India, the second largest in the state of Maharashtra after Mumbai, and the largest city in the Western Ghats. Once the centre of power of the Maratha Empire, it is situated 560 metres above sea level on the Deccan plateau at the confluence of the Mula (Marathi: मुळा) and Mutha rivers (Marathi: मुठा). Pune city is the administrative capital of Pune district.

Pune is known to have existed as a town since 937 AD. Pune was originally called Punawadi. In 1730, Pune became an important political center as the seat of the Peshwa, the prime minister of the Chhatrapati of Satara; it was during this era that Pune became the centre of Indian politics. After the town was annexed to British India in 1817, it served as a cantonment town and as the "monsoon capital" of the Bombay Presidency until the independence of India.