How will you turn the events of 1857 a revolt or a war of independence
Answers
As you said it yourself that they were fought by rulers and during that time it wasn’t a big deal for common people that rulers are fighting with someone as that’s all they do to target some or the other region and then fight to expand their rule more……
That means the common people didn’t exactly get the feeling that the rulers were protesting or fighting the Britishers for their good or betterment at all as they do it to make emphasis of their rule actually and nobody cares for the peasants, artisans, etc (common man) So, its natural that they didn’t thought that the rulers were fighting for them (somewhat which is true to great extent…. )
But 1857 revolt was fought and started by the Sepoy who were though working for Britishers but still they were the common man who were frustrated by the repressed condition and doing work against their own will…….. So, peasants join them and later on many people so, it converted to mass revolt and with the inclusion of The Emperor of Mughal Sultanate (Badhadur Shah Zafar) though on Sepoy’s insistence only still it made the revolt more popular and patriotic then any revolts fought earlier by any rulers individually.