Begum Sahib: An Introduction and chronology

Jahanara Bangla, Agra Fort

Note to the readers:

Women behind men in history fascinate me. I had been reading about the mothers and wives who changed men’s fortunes. But, what about daughters and sisters? A few months back, I was looking for books on Mughal Ladies, mainly Noor Jahan and her work. In the bibliography credits, I had chanced upon “The Life of A Mogul Princess” By Jahanara Begum, the daughter of Shah Jahan. I had no idea about the book and thought it was another autobiography. Previously, I had read only about how she was imprisoned along with her father at Agra, and her involvement with Dara Shikoh, her younger brother, in connecting the two realms of Hinduism and Islamism and the establishment of Sufism. All of these and the chronological events of history you can find in various books. As I read each page of her diary, cross-checking each point with Jagunath Sircar’s “History of Aurangzib” and R.C. Majumder’s “Mughal Empire” as well as numerous other sources on the Mughal Harem, I discovered shades of her in a whole new light. I have read the Akbarnama, Tuzk e Jahangiri, and Shah Jahan Nama all written to record and glorify the life and times of a Mughal ruler. This autobiography was a diary of personal feelings she did not want to share with the world. The world was neither ready for her thoughts nor her story. Yet, in her own telling, she has touched a very important part of Mughal history with her emotions. The zenana politics, the clash of kins and turmoils of a daughter, and sister. The personal diary starts in the June of the year 1659 and ends on the 17^th of February 1666. It talks of her life from 1631 till the time of her father’s death. It was found in a restoration process of the Agra fort in 1903 by the British. A clear distinction from autobiographies is found in her words. I was so moved, touched and transformed that I decided to share her words with you, but then I took some time to study her whole life.

The parts between her parent's death are mostly from her diary. The rest of the tale I compiled from History. An enigma in life, Jahanara Begum, her parent’s favourite Janni, became the writer of the life-changing book I was always looking for. Mughal Empire’s “Begum Sahib” is hence the topic of my new historical series. The narrative I am telling you is fiction based on the book and the life she led, and what I understood of her character. The historical fiction matches with events and occurrences in history, and the narration and dialogues are made to describe her greatness. All said and done, I will request each one of you if you ever slightly liked the tale I told, please read “The Life of A Mogul Princess” not only for the history but for the great literary richness it holds.

Chronology of Events: (You may need to refer to this while reading)

Jahanara Begum, the first child of Shehzada Khurram and Arjumand Begum was born on 2^nd April 1614 (Julian Calender: 23rd March for Gregorian), at Ajmer’s Akbari Fort. Jehangir’s chronicles “Tuzk e Jahangiri” mentions her birth and the delight of Khurram who was a father for the second time after his first wife Kandahari Begum had given birth to Parvez Banu. She had six other surviving siblings, Dara, Roshanara, Shuja, Murad, Aurangzeb, Gauhanara and a few half-siblings as well.
Jahanara became the Padishah Begum upon Mumtaz’s death in the fourth year of her father’s succession in 1631 and enjoyed her position till their imprisonment in 1659. She rejoined Aurangzeb’s Harem as the Padishah Begum in February 1666 and moved to stay at the grand mansion of Ali Mardan Khan, in October same year, in Shahjahanabad.
She met Raja Chattar Sal on June 1632, and send him with Aurangzeb to war in September same year.
Raja Chattar Sal on behalf of his father provided the imperial army with 40 elephants, of which Shah Jahan took 18, and accepted his services before the Battle of Daulatabad.
In 1634, Raja Chattar Sal was sent to battle at Paranda with Khane Khana (The prime minister) by Shah Jahan after his display of valour in Daulatabad.
On 4^th April 1636, Raja Chattar Sal was injured badly at war alongside Shuja and he returned to Bundi.
8th September 1636, the emperor along with Jahanara travelled to Mandu.
On 26^th March 1644, Jahanara suffered burn injuries.
On 24^th November of the same year, she was declared fit and made a pilgrimage to Ajmer.
In 1647, the war of Balkh was fought by the Imperial Army of which Chattar Sal was a part.
Rao Raja Chattar Sal was crowned king of Bundi in 1648 at the Taragarh Fort.
On 9^th May 1649, he accompanied Aurangzeb to war at Deccan, after Jahanara Begum recommended so to the Emperor.
In the same year of Shah Jahan’s reign, he was sent to Kandahar with Dara. Dara lost to his lack of skill and experience. He was however given a heroic welcome by his father.
In 1654 Jahanara received letters from Aurangzeb that indirectly threatened action for his father’s partiality to Dara.
Jahanara during her father’s reign was attributed to the building of Chandni Chowk and Jama Masjid in Delhi and for the generosity for which she was loved by all. She also built numerous gardens, the “Begum Bagh” being the most famous one.
The Jahanara Pavilion in Agra Fort ( also called Jahanara Bangla) was her house, and in captivity, she stayed at the Jasmine Tower of the Nur Mahal where her diary was found.
On 29^th May 1658, the Battle of Samugarh was fought 10 KMs from Agra between Kota and Agra between the armies of Dara and Aurangzeb who allied with Murad. Chattar Sal died here along with his brother and his son Bharat. Dara fled and Aurangzeb went ahead to capture Agra.
On 8^th June 1658, Aurangzeb seized Agra. On 10^th June 1658, Jahanara met him on behalf of their father and offered peace which was denied and Shah Jahan and his loyal were imprisoned in the fort itself. She had also received the news of Rao’s death on that very day.
Dara was killed in prison on 30^th August 1658 and his severed head sends to Shah Jahan in Agra.
Shah Jahan died on 22^nd January 1666 and Aurangzeb came to make peace with Jahanara on 17^th February and restored her title and honour. She was thus imprisoned for eight years which ended with Aurangzeb’s apology.
On 27^th March Aurangzeb celebrated his coronation at Agra and made her Padishah Begum officially again. She gifted the emperor with jewels and accepted her role.
Jahanara adopted the daughters of her dead brother Dara, and Murad and made sure they had a secure future by marrying them to Aurangzeb’s sons. In 1669 she married Janazeb Begum to Aurangzeb’s third son. Jani Begum was Dara’s daughter who was her favourite.
She also abolished the law of Mughal Princesses not being allowed to marry and got Aurangzeb’s daughters married in 1672 and 1673 respectively.
Jahanara was the only Mughal Princess who had her own trading ship at the Surat Port which was once looted by Shivaji.
She always favoured the Rajputs and Hindus over the Muslim officials against Aurangzeb’s wishes. She played an active role in a failed peacemaking between Rana Raj Singh and her brother.
Jahanara in her last few years took to Sufism and saintly ways and gave away all her riches. Princess Zebunnissa too was influenced by her. She spent her last years writing books on Sufism that still hold high literal values.
She died on 6^th September in 1681 Delhi and was mourned by the Emperor for three days and given the posthumous title of “Sahibat Ur Zamani” or “Mistress of the Age”. She remains buried in the Nizamuddin Dargah in Delhi.

Bibliography:

The Story of A Mogul Princess by Jahanara Begum (often claimed as semi-fiction)
Daughters of the Sun by Ira Mukhoty
Heroines by Ira Mukhoty
Mumtaz Duhita Jahanara by Sreeparabat (Fiction)
Mahal by Subhadra Sengupta
Padshahnama of Inayat Khan
Tuzk E Jahangiri
Short History of Aurangzeb by Jagunath Sircar
A. Bokhari's Thesis of Jahanara Begum
Hada Relation with Mughals by R.S. Sharma
Mughal Empire by R.C. Majumder

READ BEGUM SAHIB HERE

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Protisruti

প্রতিশ্রুতি বন্দিতা মা কে জড়িয়ে ধরে যেন প্রাণ ফিরে পায়। “ভাল আছিস?” জিগেস করে সুমতি। বন্দিতা হঠাৎ খেয়াল করে আগের মতো তার মুখ দেখেই তার মা আর তার মনের অবস্থা বুঝতে পারেন না। তার সাথে হঠাৎ মনে পরে কত অনায়াসে অনিরুদ্ধ বোঝে যে তার মন খারাপ। একবার জিজ্ঞেস করেছিল সে স্বামীকে, কি করে তিনি বোঝেন তার মন খারাপ। ছোট বন্দিতাকে তার মতন করে বুঝিয়েছিলেন তার স্বামী। আজ বন্দিতা বড় হয়েছে কিন্তু সেই প্রশ্ন সে আর করতে পারেনা। বন্দিতাকে খাটিয়ার উপর বসিয়ে এর মধ্যেই সুমতি যায় তার জন্য মুড়ি মুড়কি আনতে। বন্দিতার চোখ পরে পায়ের নূপুরের উপর। তিনি বলেছিলেন “তুমি খুশি হলে তোমার নূপুরের আওয়াজ অন্যরকম হয়, আর তোমার মন খারাপ হলে অন্যরকম।” বন্দিতা নূপুরটা বাজিয়ে দেখেছিল সেদিন। আজকে সে জানে পার্থক্য তার নূপুরের শব্দে নয়, অনিরুদ্ধের পর্যবেক্ষণ শক্তিতে। আবার কেন তার কথা ভাবছে সে? বাড়ি এসেছে মায়ের কাছে। আর ভাববে না সে, হয়তো দু তিন দিন পর ত্রিলোচনবাবু পাঠাবেন বিহারী কে বন্দিতাকে বাড়ি নিয়ে যেতে, ততদিন মায়ের কাছে একটু শান্তিতে থাকুক না সে। দুপুরে আম দুধ দিয়ে ভাত দেয় তাকে সুমতি। “তোর প্রিয় খাবার দেখ, মাম...

Promises

Bondita hugged her mother as if to find herself again. "Are you okay?" Sumati smiled. Bondita suddenly noticed that her mother couldn't understand her state of mind just by looking at her face anymore. With that, she suddenly remembered how easily Aniruddha understood that she was upset. Once she asked her husband how he understood things without her saying it. Her husband explained to little Bondita in a way she would understand. Now that Bondita was grown up she could perhaps never ask him that question again. Meanwhile, Sumati hurried to get her some Muri Murki while she sat down on the bed. Bondita's eyes fell on her feet. He had said, "When you are happy, your anklet sounds different, and when you are sad, it is different." Bondita stirred her anklets unmindfully. Today she knew the difference was not in the sound of her Nupur but in Aniruddha's powers of observation. Why was she thinking about him? She came home to her mother. And she would not th...

Answers

Aniruddha could not work all day. It started raining heavily outside, the curtains of the room swayed in the gusty wind, and things around the room toppled over. Koeli came to pick them up, to see if he wanted to eat anything but Aniruddha wanted to be left alone. Countless questions and fears raced through his mind. Bondita never went home like she did that day. Rather, once a year, even before Jamai Sasti, she checked the household chores a hundred times. If Batuk had a test, if someone was sick, she was reluctant to go. She just packed a bundle so quickly and left for her mother’s place. Had she distanced herself from Aniruddha? Was it his fault? Anirudha started thinking. Could she not take him as a husband because he pushed her away and hurt her? Aniruddha repented for his actions. If indeed Bondita denied their relationship knowing the truth behind it, could she be blamed? But was that why she was pretending to be asleep even though she was awake that night? What did she think ab...

Choices

The winter rains and gusty wind were unpleasant weather for Adhiraja Ishaan Dev. The Suryapalian capital was far more tropical weather of the plain lands than that of Neelambargarh, situated on a plateau rather close to the Heemdevi. It rained more in Neelambargarh, and the winters were cold. The wine did very little to comfort him as he kept the lamps of his chamber lit in an attempt to feel warmer. On the contrary, he observed how Priyambada complained that the winter isn't cold enough. It had been a quarter of the moon cycle since Maharani Priyambada met Kumari Advika of Mait. Although Ishaan Dev was eager to know what the ladies did talk about, he wasn’t sure whether to ask Priyambada. So he waited for her to tell him something, anything! But Priyambada seemed to act like the meeting never happened. She didn’t even disclose anything to Smriti as per Kumar Viraj. Ishaan Dev was perplexed. What was talked of in the meeting? Worse, did Advika mention him? She must have. The last t...

Going Home

Bondita's Mama came to Tulsipur to meet his daughter. He was a poor man and wore a short dhoti and a Batik shirt. It was wrong to come empty-handed to the daughter's house, so two pots of sweets accompanied him. Reluctantly, he had to go to Roy Chowdhury's house. They were the Zamindar of Tulsipur, the master of the father-in-law of Sampoorna, they needed to be respected. Apart from that, the fate of the sister and niece who he was reluctant to shelter and spent day and night rebuking them about had turned, the same sister now handed over some money to him by the end of the month, because of the kindness of Aniruddha Babu. He did not have the luxury of pushing Lakshmi away. Hence it was necessary to come to the landlord's house to meet his niece. In their house servants also dressed better than him; Look at the fate of the girl . Where he had arranged for her to stay in a corner of an old man's house, now Bondita was living a queen’s life. Zamindar Trilochan Roy Ch...

Uttor

উত্তর সারাদিন কাজে মন বসেনা অনিরুদ্ধর। বাইরে অঝোরে বৃষ্টি হতে থাকে, ঝোড়োও হওয়ায় ঘরের পর্দা দোলে , জিনিসপত্র এলোমেলো হয়ে যায়। কয়েলি আসে ছোট মালিকের জিনিস গুছিয়ে দিতে, তিনি কিছু খাবেন কিনা শুধোতে কিন্তু তাকে চলে যেতে বলে ঘরে খিল দেয় অনিরুদ্ধ। একা থাকতে চায়। তার মনে আনাগোনা করে অসংখ প্রশ্ন এবং আশংকা। যে ভাবে বন্দিতা স্বেচ্ছায় মায়ের কাছে গেল আজ, সেরকম সে কোনদিন যায়না । বরং বছরে একবার জামাই ষষ্টিতে যাওয়ার আগেও একশো বার বাড়ির কাজকম্ম দেখে শুনে যায়। বটুকের পরীক্ষা, কারুর শরীর খারাপ হলে তো কথাই নেই। সেই বন্দিতা আজ হঠাৎ বাড়ি যাবে বলে কি তাড়াতাড়ি পোটলা গুছিয়েছে। এতই কি দূরে চলে গেছে সে অনিরুদ্ধের থেকে? তা কি তার নিজের দোষে? ভাবতে থাকে অনিরুদ্ধ। সে দূরে সরিয়ে দিয়েছে বলে অভিমান না কি তাকে স্বামী রূপে গ্রহণ করতে পারেনা বন্দিতা? অনিরুদ্ধ পশ্চাতাপ করে। সত্যি যদি বন্দিতা সব জেনে তাদের সম্পর্ক অস্বীকার করে, তাকে কি দোষ দেওয়া চলে? তবে কি তাই সেদিন রাত্রে জেগে থাকা সত্যেও ঘুমের অভিনয় করছিল সে? কি ভেবেছে সে অনিরুদ্ধের ব্যাপারে? কেন চারিদিক বাছবিচার না করে এমন করল অনিরুদ্ধ? নিজের প্রতিজ্ঞ...

Adornment

The rainy night had given way to a rather pleasant summer morning in Suryapali. The temperature was no longer soaring and a gentle breeze blew through the plains of Suryapali. The sun peeped out through the floating clouds occasionally. Priyambada walked into her chambers after a luncheon to find trays laid with drapes and jewellery, waiting for her. “The Maharani sent this for some celebration in the evening,” Vrinda spoke, bowing at her mistress who nodded silently. Priyambada eyed the trays and exhaled. She wasn’t sure if anyone talked to Ishaan Dev about the rituals. She dismissed Vrinda and decided to read the scripture. As Priyambada sat down on the edge of the bed, scripture in hand, her thoughts travelled to the happenings of the night and she inhaled as her throat felt dry. Why did he stop? Did he feel that he had offended her? Priyambada wondered. She walked up to the attire laid down for the evening and picked up the drape wrapped into a bodice and wrap-around skirt. They w...

Ghore Fera

ঘরে ফেরা বন্দিতার মামা মেয়ের সাথে দেখা করতে আসেন তুলশিপুর। গরিবের ঘরের ছা পোষা চেহারা তার, পরনে খাটো ধুতি ও ছিটের জামা। মেয়ের শশুরবাড়িতে খালি হাতে আসা অন্যায় তাই দুটি মিষ্টির হাড়ি সাথে। অনিচ্ছা সত্তেও রায় চৌধুরী বাড়িতে যেতে হয় তাকে। তারা তুলশিপুরের জমিদার, সম্পূর্ণার শ্বশুরের মনিব, তাদের সম্মান করে চলা মঙ্গল। তা ছাড়া যে বোন ও বোনঝিকে আশ্রয় দেওয়া নিয়ে দিনরাত কথা শোনাতে বাঁধতো না তার, সেই বোন এখন মাস গেলে তার হাতে টাকা তুলে দেয়, অনিরুদ্ধ বাবুর দয়ায়। হাতে আসা লক্ষ্মী পায়ে ঠেলার বিলাসিতা করার মত মুরোদ নয় তার। অগত্যা বোনঝির সাথে দেখা করতে জমিদার বাড়ি আসা। এদের বাড়ির চাকররাও তার থেকে ভাল পোশাক পরে; ভাগ্য দেখো মেয়েটার। কোথায় কোন বুড়োর বাড়ির এক কোণে পরে থাকার ব্যবস্থা করেছিল সে, এখন বন্দিতা রাজরানী। জমিদার ত্রিলোচন রায় চৌধুরীর যাকে পছন্দ নয় তাকে তিনি সেটা বুঝিয়ে দিতে দ্বিধা বোধ করেন না। বন্দিতার মামা তার তেমন এক অপছন্দের পাত্র । বৌমার মুখে তিনি যা শুনেছেন তারপর বৌমার তাদের প্রতি টান দেখে আশ্চর্য হন ত্রিলোচন বাবু। কিন্তু কুটুম্ব তারা। হাতে কর...

Trust

Ishaan Dev woke up at the sound of the hourly bells and trumpets and found himself alone in bed. It took him some time to realise that he had perhaps overslept as he looked confused, half asleep first at the hourglass and then at the sun rays coming into the chambers through the swaying curtains. He sat up to suddenly remember the happenings of the night, as his eyes travelled to the blood stain on the sheet and he sat in contemplation for a good few minutes. He finally had his moment with Priyambada and it was nothing like he had imagined it to be. A part of him that yearned to touch her and taste her was satisfied enough to realise that his longing for her was not only physical. When bodies entwined in the union, and he had pushed himself in, as he had with a hundred other women before her, something in him felt a different sense of completeness and fulfilment that he realised was missing from his life. He had seen Priyambada react to the sensations that were completely new to her, m...

Gratefulness

Aniruddha did not return home that night, he informed on the telephone that he was stuck in urgent work so he would return home the next day after spending the night at the client's house. Bondita spent a sleepless night. What would she tell Barrister Babu? And why would he believe it? She was lost in her thoughts twisting and turning in bed all night. She was hurt. Was her husband so reluctant towards their relationship that he did not wish to return home because of her? Once he was busy with some work and was pacing in the study room. Bondita was a child. Her Jetha Shoshur Moshai had taught her to serve her husband. She used to see Bihari take a cup of tea to the study room every day. Despite Bihari's resistance, she picked up the cup of tea that day. "Don't do this, Ginnima ," Bihari was terrified. “Barrister Babu does not like to talk or be disturbed during his work. If he gets angry, I will lose my job.” Bondita ignored his words and entered the study room w...

RAABTA

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