Despite nearly two centuries of academic attention focused on Indian megaliths, there remain several aspects of the monuments themselves and the cultures that authored them, that defy a clear understanding. While paucity of clear cut dates is certainly one of the major problems plaguing research on megaliths, lack of consistency in terminology and classification according to morphology, uncertainty in the understanding about the origins and possible spread of megalithism, evolution of detailing of various components of the monuments and possible links with later religious monumental architecture, are all aspects that call for attention. In this paper, the issues outlined above are discussed with specific examples. A case is made for a comprehensive classification scheme, based only on the form of the monuments. It is argued that the absence of wedge marks on the stones comprising megalithic monuments could point to their origin in a period when metal tools were not used in the extraction of stone. With specific reference to megaliths in the Malaprabha Valley in northern Karnataka, it is demonstrated that megaliths are linked to later religious monumental architecture in this region.