This work is a maiden attempt at research in the hitherto overlooked area of social history of medieval India.It attempts to recapitulate the day-to-day life of the ladies of the seraglio.The delicate and delightful task has been deftly handled and it is hoped that scholars and laymen both will enjoy.
The Women of Mughal Harem: Secrets revealed gives an exhilarating account of the Mughal domestic life. Harem of the Mughals has been a subject of much speculation and debate amongst the scholars and the general public alike. While foreign travelers have painted it as a pleasure house, meant for the sexual gratification of one man-the Emperor. Native chroniclers have called it an abode of quintessential bliss. So what was the reality of harem? Just like any normal household, the life of harem inmates bears testament to joy and pain, hope and despair, love and loss- all the bittersweet emotions that add spice and flavor to human life. In fact the Mughal Harem was a far more diverse and vibrant institution than what it is believed to be- it was a unique all women's world. This book brings to life the trials and tribulations of generations of Mughal women who inhabited a world very different from ours. Today when a worldwide debate is going on to trace women's place in history, this work has become all the more relevant. A peek into the lives of Mughal women would give us a better understanding of an obscured and almost mythical world-the harem of the mighty Mughals.
The present study deals with the royal Mughal ladies in details and is concerned with their achievements and contributions which till today form a part of rich cultural heritage. It provides a detailed account of the life and contributions of the royal Mughal ladies from the times of Babar to Aurangzeb's, with special emphasis on the most prominent among them.
A reminiscence back to the Mughal era which savored the nuances of being one of the most enigmatic ruling periods under Shah Jahan and his clan; eventually burning down to shreds with the inevitable shuffling for the sovereignty of Padshah Begum. Narrated by Firdouz, a mere lady in waiting to the first lady of Hindustan Begum Jahan Ara, this book shall take you on a majestic tour of mystifying incidents and surplus royalty. Notwithstanding the double-faced parallel sister sovereign of Begum Jahan Ara and Roshan Ara who go leaps and bounds to fulfil their uncourteous desires and outrageous lust for supremacy. Ruling far in the Deccan, Shah Jahan’s youngest son Aurangzeb returns with his entire Army not to his own home but on the pretext of arresting his elder brother, Prince Dara marked as the future king of Hindustan and thus, seizing the throne. The palace reigns rightfully fall into the hands of the mighty prince of the Deccan, further house arresting Shah Jahan and his daughter, Jahan Ara till eternity. An anecdote that will braze you over a historic tour from the rising of the mighty empire of the Mughals to betrayal for the prevailing throne, the ominous essence of a lady’s charisma on a ruler’s reign…
Finalist for the 2018 Los Angeles Times Book Prize in History "A luminous biography." —Rafia Zakaria, Guardian Four centuries ago, a Muslim woman ruled an empire. Nur Jahan, daughter of a Persian noble and widow of a subversive official, became the twentieth and most cherished wife of the Emperor Jahangir. Nur ruled the vast Mughal Empire alongside her husband, leading troops into battle, signing imperial orders, and astutely handling matters of the state. Acclaimed historian Ruby Lal uncovers the rich life and world of Nur Jahan, rescuing this dazzling figure from patriarchal and Orientalist clichés of romance and intrigue, and giving new insight into the lives of women and girls in the Mughal Empire. In Empress, Nur Jahan finally receives her due in a deeply researched and evocative biography that awakens us to a fascinating history.
Annemarie Schimmel has written extensively on India, Islam and poetry. In this comprehensive study she presents an overview of the cultural, economic, militaristic and artistic attributes of the great Mughal Empire from 1526 to 1857.
DID YOU KNOW THAT Babur was a drunkard! He loved a boy named Babri! Akbar raped children! Akbar raped his own daughter-in-law! Akbar had Harem of 5000 women! Jahangir blinded his son with his own hands! Shah Jahan did not spare even his own daughter! Aurangzeb beheaded his own brother and sent his head to his imprisoned father! Almost every Mughal king killed some of his sons and brothers! and much more.This book is an eye opener on Mughal history in India. Mughals have been glorified as great rulers in Indian history books despite being maniacs, incest-lovers, rapists and merciless invaders.The book is a compilation of all hidden facts. Straight from their authentic biographies. To make Indians realise, enough is enough.Do not glorify these filthy creatures in the name of preserving the secular fabric of India.Note: This is the latest edition of the book "Great Ruler of India" with different title and few additional chapters.
A self confessed word-a-holic and traveller, Tanushree is sure to be packing her bags and boots to zip around the world not brandishing her pen. With two successful novels, few best selling non fiction titles and a few hundred travel tales under her belt, she is all set to launch into yet another voyage with words. A bundle of optimism with wandering feet and a kaleidoscope of dreams, she loves nothing better than flirting with clauses and phrases. After leading a nomadic life for several decades, thanks to the Indian Army, she has finally grown roots at Pune.
In 1526, when the nomadic Timurid warrior-scholar Babur rode into Hindustan, his wives, sisters, daughters, aunts and distant female relatives travelled with him. These women would help establish a dynasty and empire that would rule India for the next 200 years and become a byword for opulence and grandeur. By the second half of the seventeenth century, the Mughal empire was one of the largest and richest in the world. The Mughal women-unmarried daughters, eccentric sisters, fiery milk mothers and powerful wives-often worked behind the scenes and from within the zenana, but there were some notable exceptions among them who rode into battle with their men, built stunning monuments, engaged in diplomacy, traded with foreigners and minted coins in their own names. Others wrote biographies and patronised the arts. In Daughters of the Sun, we meet remarkable characters like Khanzada Begum who, at sixty-five, rode on horseback through 750 kilometres of icy passes and unforgiving terrain to parley on behalf of her nephew, Humayun; Gulbadan Begum, who gave us the only document written by a woman of the Mughal royal court, a rare glimpse into the harem, as well as a chronicle of the trials and tribulations of three emperors-Babur, Humayun and Akbar-her father, brother and nephew; Akbar's milk mothers or foster-mothers, Jiji Anaga and Maham Anaga, who shielded and guided the thirteen-year-old emperor until he came of age; Noor Jahan, 'Light of the World', a widow and mother who would become Jahangir's last and favourite wife, acquiring an imperial legacy of her own; and the fabulously wealthy Begum Sahib (Princess of Princesses) Jahanara, Shah Jahan's favourite child, owner of the most lucrative port in medieval India and patron of one of its finest cities, Shahjahanabad. The very first attempt to chronicle the women who played a vital role in building the Mughal empire, Daughters of the Sun is an illuminating and gripping history of a little known aspect of the most magnificent dynasty the world has ever known.
‘Despite what we would like to believe, the Mahal was not an exotic sexual playground; it was a family space. And the stories of these women, from queens and princesses to foster mothers and female officers, deserve to be heard.’ In every citadel of the Mughal Empire, there existed a luxurious fortress that housed the women of the court. Known as the ‘Mahal’, this closely-guarded space that few men could enter has intrigued the world for centuries. Uncovering the little-known lives of the remarkable women who inhabited the Mahal, this commanding narrative introduces us to Ehsan Daulat Begum, Babur’s grandmother, without whose enterprise there would have been no Mughal Empire; the Padshah Begums who ran the vast establishment of the Mahal with an all-women team; the female scholars and poets – like Zeb-un-Nissa, Salima Sultan Begum, Zeenat-un-Nissa – who influenced the emperor in matters of diplomacy and state policy; and the queens and princesses who ran vast estates and oversaw fleets of trading vessels, among others. Mahal is a rare peek into life behind the veil, and an illuminating account of the role women played in the courts of the Mughal Empire.