Of Faith and Fate

Series Announcement!

Historical Fictions are special, so here is one, short but special tale close to my heart after a really long time!

This story is a special one because it is completely historical fiction with very little connection to the fan fiction I have written previously. However, I have maintained the sequence of events, reading history books on the context.
This is not a story of a man and a woman, their love and trust. This one is about the tests time often puts people through, forcing them to change.

My protagonists in this one are hence, two princesses of the same age.

Ajabdeh Punwar or Ajbante Kanwar Baisa, as she is locally called is the princess of a very significant district of Bijolia in Mewar. Bijolia lies in the seat of political events, at the border of Bundi and Mewar. Having her lineage from the mighty Chauhans, her forefathers once ruled Mewar. Her father is an officer in the army of Mewar under Rana Udai Singh and she is a lady of principles, mature for her age, eager to learn and serve her people. A marriage full of promises of a bright future as the Maharani to the crown prince is set to change her life completely, in ways she had never imagined.

This is not the first time I will be telling you the tales of these people. Kunwar Pratap of Mewar, his journey from being Rana to Maharana, Maharanisa Ajabdeh Punwar, her faith and support. Their valour, sacrifices and battles. But this is the first time, I decided to omit the drama, and concentrate on who they were and what they stood for. Not much is known about this lady, except that she was the Queen and Mother to the heir. But from Folklores and local stories, Ajabdeh comes alive, as his pillar of strength. In my imagination, she is the perfect reflection of his soul and his mother’s character. Otherwise, he would have never ‘chosen’ to be with her. This is her story.

There are two sides to each story, everyone says. And I agree. We may believe or support one, and discard another. While Rana Pratap’s determination and love for his motherland remains on one, the other side of this coin is the Mighty Timurid Dynasty that struggled to rise to the power of Hind. There is a young thirteen-year-old Prince who suddenly becomes an emperor. Jalaluddin Mohammad becomes Akbar for his people. And amidst the most influential characters in his Haram, is his first wife, Shehzaadi Rukaiya Sultana Begum. Not much has been written about her because she fails to give him an heir. But she remains his chief consort throughout her life. This is her story too.

Rukaiya Sultana Begum, the Princess of the Timurid dynasty has her lineage from Ghengis Khan and Timur the Lame. Babur’s granddaughter from his son Hindal Mirza is all set to become the empress of Hindusthan. She is married to her first cousin. But her innocence is at stake in this dream and power struggle. She is yet to learn how to be politically influential and diplomatic. In her quest for existence, she fears losing herself, or worse, her loved ones. Will she be successful in becoming what her family expected of her or will she be just another forgotten name in the largest harem of Hindustan?

Let's take a short journey through the lives of these two women while their Men made History!

Ps. I will keep adding footnotes of historical references and information throughout the story to keep you updated with the historical events I have used. At the end of the story, I plan to post a chronological table of the chapters as well. Hope that you all will love this tale as much as I do.

Bibliography

The following Books had been consulted while writing this Historical series.

Mewar and The Mughal Emperors by G.N. Sharma
War Strategies of Maharana Pratap by L.P. Mathur
Mughal Empire by R.C. Majumder
Akbar the Great Mogul by Vincent Smith
Daughters of the Sun by Ira Mukhoty
Episodes from the Life of Akbar by Shireen Moosvi
Private Life of the Mughals of India by R. Nath
Maharana Pratap by B.N. Rana
Tuzk E Jahangir translated by Oxford University Press
Shahjahan Nama translated.
Annals and Antiquities of Mewar by Col. James Todd

Index page. Of Faith and Fate

Comments

Towards You

Kunwar Pratap and Ajabde were friends. He didn't feel awkward sharing his plans and thoughts with her anymore. She was more than happy to advise him on everything. She was happy he listened to her advice before taking or discarding them, be it on what to wear to Padmavati's Sagai or how to befriend the revolting Bhils. He loved the way Ajabde always used metaphors from Puranas and Ramayanas to explain the toughest things so easily. She expressed herself so well, so easily that it amazed him. The Afghans were now led by Mehmood Shah. They have made secret territories in the forests and waited to attack. Rawatji and his spies had confirmed the news and Udai Singh had warned Mehmood Shah to withdraw his troops from Mewar in vain. Now, it was time they declared war. Mehmood Shah had limited resources in Mewar. And his spies clearly suggested that in no way could he win, especially with Kunwar Pratap leading his troops. He was having second thoughts about the war. One of his aides

His Wife

" Where is the Kesar, Rama? And the Kalash?" Ajabde looked visibly displeased at the daasi who ran. " They are at the fort gates and nothing is ready yet!" She exclaimed. She was clad in a red Jora and the jewellery she had inherited as the first Kunwarani of the crown prince. Little Amar ran down the hallway towards his mother. " Maa sa Maa sa... who is coming with Daajiraj?" His innocent question made her heart sink. " Bhanwar Ji." Sajja Bai called out to him. " Come here I will tell you." Amar rushed to his Majhli Dadisa. " Ajabde." She turned at Jaivanta Bai's call. "They are here." " M... My Aarti thali..." Ajabde looked lost like never before. Jaivanta Bai held her stone-cold hands, making her stop. She patted her head and gave her a hug. The hug gave her the comfort she was looking for as her racing heart calmed down. Jaivanta Bai left her alone with her thaal. " Maa sa!" Amar exclaimed

The Journey Begins

“Love is best expressed in actions, than words.” Rukaiya Sultana Begum had accompanied her mothers in law Bega Begum and Hamida Banu Begum to the garden of Babur. The occasion was indeed special. After years of struggle, Humayun had won back parts of Lahore, against the Suris. It was a long stretch of difficult days that had finally seen some sunshine. Rukaiya, clad in fuchsia pink silk attire embroidered with gold and pearls, appeared before the marble tomb of her late Grandfather, of whom she had only heard tales. Rukaiya knelt before the tomb to offer her prayers, of thanks and gratitude. She knew that today, Jalal would be happy. He had not accompanied his overprotective father and Bairam Khan at war, but was under the care of his tutors instead, near Lahore. It was he who had sent a messenger with the happy news to his mothers. The ladies were relieved. At last, Babur’s dreams were coming true. Rukaiya Begum was happy for a different reason altogether. The messenger had

Destiny

The war was almost won. A few of Marwar’s soldiers were left on the field along with Rao Maldeo Singh Rathore, their king and leader. He was thinking of retreating at the end of this day. As his sword clashed with one of the opponent generals as he eyed the opponent King now open and prone to attack. A little hope flickered in his mind as his eyes instructed his closest aide. The opponent was quite in a winning situation thanks to their new Senapati. He was just 16 yet his bravery and valour reflected his blood and upbringing. He mesmerised the opponents and even Rao Maldeo with his clever war strategies and sword skills. As Maldeo’s aide swung his sword at a taken aback Udai Singh, someone’s sword defended it as his body acted like a shield for the king. He killed the man in one go. “ Ranaji are you okay?” “ Haan Raoji.” He nodded gratefully. By half the day, the Marwar army had retreated as the air filled with “ Jai Mewar! Jai Eklingji!” From the triumphant soldiers. Rana Udai Si

She Left...

The war was over and so were the hopes of regaining Chittor. The Battle at Haldighati had robbed the Rana of all his wealth, and brave men, and bruised him for life. Trying to match up to Akbar or rather Raja Man Singh's army with one-third its strength had cost his bravery dearly. He had lost his friend and companion. He had brushed past death. The only good thing that this war ensured was that Akbar accepted that he cannot have Mewar. His army retreated and left the country in peace after almost two decades and seventeen wars. This war gave something else too. Kunwar Shakti came to help his brother in his time of need. He lived up to his brother's expectations of being loyal to his family. A heavy-hearted Rana Pratap Singh was overseeing the construction work on his lost friend's memorial right where he died, trying to save his master. The Bronze statue of the life-like Chetak stood tall but was no match for the void Chetak has left behind. He was lost in his thoughts as

My Everything

Kunwar Pratap stormed into the Mahal at Gogunda. Happy faces of the chieftains and soldiers welcomed him as Rao Ramrakh and Rawatji stopped the ongoing Raj tilak. A visibly scared Kunwar Jagmal looked clueless at a visibly angry Kunwar Pratap. Rani Dheerbai Bhattiyani hadn't expected this son of Mewar to show up that too twenty-one days after his father's death. He was not informed as per Dheerbai's instructions. She looked at Rawat Ji. He must have gone to Raoji at Bijolia. No one except them knew where Kunwar Pratap was staying. It was for the safety of his family. " What are you doing Chotima?" A disappointed voice came. She could stoop down so low? " We were about to inform you..." She spoke up in her defence. " When Dheerbai ji?" Maharani Jaivanta Bai, clad in white entered the hall as people bowed before her. " After your son's coronation?" " I did nothing Badima I swear!" A low voice came from Jagmal. " Maha

Eternally Yours

Ajabde woke up to find neither the pillow nor the husband beside her. That was really unusual. Has she overslept? No, it was dark and the first birds were singing. She sat up to find that he had neatly arranged the pillows and made his side of the bed and put his blanket over her. She checked the changing room. No, he was not there, but unlike other days his clothes were not in a mess. She freshened up and reached the dressing table. His brooch was not there. Where is he? Has the war... Her heart skipped a beat. What if he had left and not even woken her up? " Daasi? Daasi?" She called as one of them walked in. " Ji Kuwaranisa?" " Where is Kunwarsa?" " He left early in the morning for Dangal and then a visit to the village. Do you need anything?" " No, You may go now." She put on the sindoor in a worry. Maybe something urgent has come up. She walked to the Puja room and was shocked. Her garlands were made, the Chandan was in place and

Survival

Ye woh dandal hai ke jisse Tu nikalega mujhko Tu hi rakshak Tu hi sathi mera. "Pishima." Prabhavati applied oil on Sadhana Debi's knees as she spoke "I was wondering, now that the Bouma is here to take care of the house, the Roy Chowdhury mansion will no longer miss Didi." She smiled faintly "After her, things would fall apart… if not for Trilochan da…" Sadhana shook her head. "It's been two days. Don't even compare them to Shubhra." She almost snapped. "Especially that girl." Prabhavati looked up. "She acts like she has been caged. She is always interested more in the outside world of men. That's not a good sign." She shook her head. "There is a saying, Khay day Pakhiti boner dike Akhiti ." Sadhana fussed "She is like that." Prabhavati smiled silently. "Mejo Bouma is educated too, isn't she?" Sadhana looked suspicious. "I bet she will also be pushed to it. You know my mo

Unpredictable

" Ohho Dadabhai! I can not walk anymore!" Shakti was panting. Clad in a commoner's attire they had hired a cart for some distance and were now walking to Bijolia. " You have to! We have to go back tomorrow morning otherwise they will be sure we were not at the Kelwara region but elsewhere." He said in an indifferent tone. The stone on the path indicated they had reached Bijolia. " There! Look Dadabhai a mandir!" He smiled. " Thik hai ." Kunwar Pratap shook his head a little displeased. " You can rest a little before going into the main township." " Paani!" Shakti was panting as he sat on a solitary part of the Radha Krishna temple as Kunwar Pratap walked in to seek blessings. At Shakti's cry for water, he started looking around and found a pond visible in the distance. " Stay here!" He ordered his brother even though he knew very well Shakti won't move from his place. He was at the bank looking at the c

Understandings

After counting days, Ajabde was happy that she was going to Bijolia. She knew how eager her mother and Ratan would be to know about her new life. She couldn't wait to hug her mother and feel like... Home. She was selecting gifts for her parents and her siblings as per Ranima's instructions. Then suddenly an idea struck her mind. Her new family welcomed her with so much love and support. Especially Ranima and Majhli Maa Sa. She wanted to give them something. Suddenly she remembered that Ranima had loved her embroidery work on dupattas back in Bijolia so she called a Dasi and ordered some plain Chunris and embroidery threads. She had a lot of work to finish in a day before leaving. Kunwar Pratap came back into the room to see her on the floor, right in the middle of the room with red, green, yellow, and pink all sorts of dupattas scattered. " What's all this?" He asked not sure if he should be asking. " I am making gifts. For Ranima, Majhli ma, Rani Dheer Bai

RAABTA

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