A Potpourri of Vestiges Feature
By Murtaza Ali Khan
By Murtaza Ali Khan
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| Image Courtesy: Times of India |
Karan Johar is planning to make a film on the rivalry between
Aurangzeb and Dara Shikoh called Takht. It's scheduled to release in 2020.
While Ranveer Singh will play Dara Shikoh and Vicky Kaushal will essay the part
of Aurangzeb. The part of Jahanara Begum will be portrayed by Kareena Kapoor Khan.
Anil Kapoor will play Shah Jahan. The film will also star Alia Bhatt, Bhumi Pednekar and Janhvi Kapoor. But before that movie comes out let's try and
understand the life and times of the 6th Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb aka
Muhi-ud-Din Muhammad aka
Alamgir.
During
his 49 year long reign Aurangzeb imprisoned his father, sister, and daughter,
executed his brothers, and exiled his son. Seeing his younger son's frail
figure, Emperor Shah Jahan often thought that he may die early but Aurangzeb
outlived almost everyone. He lived till the age of 88 but it is said that he
died a very painful death. Such a advanced age at the time was not only rare
but nothing less than a curse. He spent the 20 odd years of his life wandering
in the Deccan, away from orchards of Shahjahanabad. It is said that he was
haunted by the visions of those whom he got murdered, in particular the Armenian mystic and poet named Sarmad who was very close to his elder brother and rightful heir to the
throne, Dara Shikoh. Crown prince Dara Shikoh being Shah Jahan's favorite was
always on Aurangzeb's hit list and after his win in the war of succession he
got him executed with the consent of his younger sister Roshanara who had grown
up hating both her elder sister Jahanara and eldest brother Dara because they
were the closest to the Emperor. With Dara out of his way he wanted to get rid Sarmad as well. But the execution of the mystic would haunt him forever.
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| Shirine of Hazrat Sufi Sarmad Shaheed |
Here I must talk about Shah Jahan's eldest daughter Jahanara who
was easily one of the most educated persons in the Mughal court. Shah Jahan had
entrusted her with all the proceedings of the court and the British envoys in
the Mughal court were greatly surprised to see a woman in a position of such
immense power. Shah Jahan was never fond of Aurangzeb and would often post him
to remote areas of his empire and whenever Aurangzeb would be in grave trouble
he would write to Jahanara who would in turn appeal to her beloved father on
her 'dutiful' brother's behalf. But unbeknownst to her and the Emperor,
Aurangzeb was busy looking for an opportunity to seize power. Surreptitiously
helping him in his quest was Roshanara who would regularly provide intelligence
to him about the latest developments in the Mughal court. So when Aurangzeb
finally seized power he elevated the status of Roshanara even as Jahanara gave
up on power and all the worldly comforts to serve her father who remained
incarcerated in the Agra Fort for 8 years until his death. It is
said that Aurangzeb even sent his ailing father the beheaded head of Dara
Shikoh as a sadistic gesture.
Having given everything to her father during his
last years, Jahanara was quick to accept his death after which she entered into
an agreement with his emperor brother who once used to be at her beck and call.
But now the tables were turned and Aurangzeb had already rejected all her peace
offers to divide his empire equally among all his brothers. With Shah Jahan
finally dead, Jahanara managed to produce a letter of pardon for his brother
Aurangzeb. No one can tell for sure if Shah Shah actually pardoned Aurangzeb
but the letter ensured that Aurangzeb's claim to the throne was no longer
disputed. In return, Aurangzeb once again made her the Padshah Begum, the first
Lady of the Empire, a position he refused to offer to Roshanara despite
everything she did for Aurangzeb. In fact Aurangzeb wasn't too pleased with her
conduct (as Mughal Princesses were obliged to remain single) and later on even
had her exiled to her garden palace outside of Delhi. As for Jahanara, she
remained the most popular lady in Aurangzeb's court till her death. A disciple
of Khwaja Moin-ud-Din Chishti, Jahanara had her tomb built during her lifetime
after Aurangzeb fulfilled her wish to be buried next to Sufi Saint Nizamuddin
Auliya's shrine. Her tomb is situated in the Nizamuddin Dargah complex and
stands out in terms of simplicity.
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| Tomb of Jahanara Begum |
After
Jahanara's death, Aurangzeb elevated his daughter Zeb-un-Nissa to the position
of Padshah Begum but she fell out of favor when he caught her conspiring
against him in favor of her younger brother Muhammad Akbar who was subsequently exiled to Persia where he later died. As for Zeb-un-Nissa, Aurangzeb imprisoned her at Salimgarh fort until her death. The imprisonment
lasted for 20 years. A few years after her death, her writings and ghazals were
compiled in form of a book. Salimgarh fort and the surrounding area is said to
be haunted with stories of Zeb-un-Nissa's ghost singing her poems while wearing
a black veil on moonlit nights having become a part of folklore.
After
Zeb-un-Nissa's fell out of Aurangzeb's favor he elevated his second daughter
Zeenat-un-Nissa to the position of Padshah Begum. Being Aurangzeb's favorite
daughter, she could gain pardon from her father on several occasions for anyone
she pleased. She continued to enjoy the trust of Aurangzeb's successors and
during her long life was closely involved in charity work. She also bore witness
to the decline of the Mughal empire which although was expedited by Aurangzeb’s
death but had actually begun as a result of his belligerent and aggressive policies
and an endless lust for power in the first place. India is a land of knowledge,
wisdom, discourse and diversity and anyone who has tried to rule over it with
an iron hand has perished. Had Aurangzeb resorted to the same levels of
tolerance as shown by his great grandfather Akbar he could have easily
prolonged the life of Mughal Empire by another couple of centuries or so. His descendants such as Bahadur
Shah Zafar wouldn’t have been crushed so easily by
the British.
Given Karan Johar’s track
record he is known to make romantic dramas and so there is a great possibility
that Takht would be made in the vein of a romantic period drama that would be high
on emotions. In other words you can expect a lot of melodrama but minimal action
and violence. Johar himself has described it as “K3G of Mughal era”.
Readers, please feel free to share your opinion by leaving your comments. As always your valuable thoughts are highly appreciated!
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