Things changed for Bahar when the emperor, besotted with Meherunnisa, started avoiding her. With his visits ceasing, all hopes of a relationship also died and at the age of twenty-one, she found herself bored with the stifling atmosphere in the harem. She longed for adventure and stimulation.
When Zeenat came to her boudoir, Bahar detected suppressed energy in the girl. The girl was full of dreams and hopes; a trait not many harem women possessed. Dreams died too soon within the confines of the harem. The young girl brought a youthful spark of liveliness with her.
Four
Summer of 1611, Agra
The entire city was agog with excitement. Jahangir was marrying the woman he had been pursuing for the past four years. In his excitement he promised the sun and the moon to his bride. Her father, Mirza Ghias Baig, the Itmad-ud-Daula, was given a raise in rank and her brother Asaf Khan was elevated to an important position in the royal court.
All the nobles let out a sigh of relief at the news. Ever since Meherunnisa had arrived at the harem after her husband’s death, Jahangir had thought of little else. Each time she rejected his suit, he turned more violent and aggressive. The sadistic trait he had exhibited as a young prince resurfaced and brutal punishments were meted out for minor offences. Always partial to drinks and opium, Jahangir took to drinking heavily, much to the alarm of his physicians. With Meherunnisa relenting, the emperor became benevolent once again.
The harem bustled with activity as the women prepared for the wedding, selecting dresses and jewellery to be worn for the ceremony. The most famous nautch girls, musicians and singers were called from all parts of the country to perform at the festivities. Relatives and nobles came from distant lands to attend the royal wedding.
Zeenat, who had struck up friendship with a few young girls in the harem, was excited at the prospect of attending the royal wedding. She had never seen Meherunnisa from close quarters. All she remembered was the mesmerizing and haughty personality of the woman during the Nauroz celebrations where she had recited several verses of a famous Persian poet, much to the delight of the emperor.
The wedding was a grand affair. The bride waited for the arrival of the emperor at her father’s mansion, dressed in the finest bridal attire ever seen in the capital. Meherunnisa, resplendent in a crimson silk qaba embroidered with pearls, her slim legs encased in a matching churidar, the radiant face covered in a gossamer veil of pure woven gold, wore the exquisite jewellery gifted by the emperor. Her feet were shod in velvet slippers embroidered with seed pearls and gold thread. A delicate hair ornament crafted out of gold filigree, set with clear blue diamonds and rubies sat on her forehead.
Expensive necklaces adorned her neck. From the emerald and gold choker to the five strings of pearls that hung to her waist, to the dangling earrings that fell to her shoulders, the pearl and gold bracelets and armlets, rings for all her fingers with the crescent shaped ornament that covered the back of her palm, the bride shimmered with each step she took to walk up to the flower bedecked dais, followed by her maids.
Soon, the emperor accompanied by his sons and other relatives arrived in a grand procession on majestic Arabian steeds. Music, lights and fireworks accompanied the royal entourage.
Musicians struck up a joyful note as the emperor walked to the hall, flanked by his sons – the blind prince Khusrau, the drink-loving Parvez, sombre Khurram and the effeminate Shahryar.
Looking at them, Zeenat realized that Prince Khurram was the only mature and serious contender for the throne. ‘He is absolutely adorable,’ she whispered to her friend.
The portly figure of Jahangir was clad in a pure white silk qaba with gold embroidery. A richly embroidered cummerbund held his dagger with its jade handle. A posse of nobles followed the emperor, resplendent in their finery. Dozens of slaves sprinkled rose essence and strewed the path with rose and jasmine petals as the bridegroom approached the dais covered with a golden canopy. Sombre-faced mullahs and qazis began the nuptial rituals as soon as the eager emperor settled down on his seat.
‘Meherunnisa Begum, do you accept the Badshah Nuruddin Muhammad Salim Jahangir as your husband?’ they asked the bride.
The emperor’s heart leapt with pleasure as Meherunnisa whispered her acceptance and the qazi announced the culmination of the wedding rituals. A volley of greetings rose from the spectators. Each noble wanted to be the first to congratulate the couple and offer precious gifts.
Rituals over, the bride and emperor made their way to the palace followed by their retinue. At the Diwan-i-Khas, the nobles and women waited to welcome Jahangir’s bride.
Zeenat jostled the harem women behind the screen who were craning their necks to catch a glimpse of the momentous event.
‘Here comes the emperor with his entourage,’ announced a woman and everyone began pushing their way towards the latticework marble screen to get a better view of the happenings in the hall down below.
‘She is magnificent,’ Zeenat whispered, awestruck. ‘No wonder the emperor is besotted with her.’
‘But she is as old as your mother,’ sneered Razia as she pointed towards a gangly girl who was clutching the hands of an old woman, nervously. ‘That is Laadli Banu, Meherunnisa’s daughter.’
‘She looks pathetic.’
‘The child is petrified of her dominating mother. I don’t envy her. With a mother like Meherunnisa, life can be quite difficult,’ sighed Razia.
‘From this day, Begum Meherunnisa will be known as Nurjahan, the Light of the World,’ in the hall festooned with decorations the emperor announced to the assembled nobles.
‘Light of the World, indeed,’ sniggered Bahar from her post at the balcony. ‘I guess the darkness she spreads will have to be dispelled by someone.’
‘That title is just one of the prices that the besotted emperor has to pay, dear Bahar,’ came the rejoinder from another concubine.
‘Doubtlessly, there will be many more of them.’
They giggled at the thought but jealousy stabbed each one of them as they glanced at the fawning emperor.
Zeenat, resplendent in a turquoise blue outfit bought specially for the occasion, joined Bahar who was regaling other women with her acrid remarks about Meherunnisa. ‘Watch my words, she is a dangerous one. One day the emperor will regret his decision.’
‘Why do you say that Bahar?’ asked another concubine. ‘Is it jealousy that coats your tongue with venom?’
‘It is not jealousy but wisdom that brings out the warning. I have seen that woman at close quarters. There is a slyness about her that suits men more than women.’
The women laughed at her remark. ‘It is whispered that she makes the emperor dance to her tunes.’
‘Good for her! I for one wouldn’t like to cross her path nor will I advice anyone to do so.’ A titter of laughter ran through the women at her observation.
‘From today, Laadli Banu, the daughter of my twentieth wife, will be addressed as Shahzadi Laadli Banu. She will be accorded all respect due to a princess,’ declared Jahangir.
‘What next?’ cried Bahar, her voice strident above the babble. For a moment the women stopped chattering as her words sank in and then there was laughter. ‘Thank God the woman doesn’t have a son or the emperor would have declared him the successor.’
‘The empire is doomed,’ a voice echoed from another end. ‘I can foresee a very turbulent future ahead,’ it predicted.
It was the voice of Sadiqa Bibi, a rammal in the harem.
Unmindful of the undercurrents, Zeenat flitted happily amongst the assembled women as they filed out towards the magnificent banquet hall. She was eager to show off her new dress. Bahar had been generous in her gifts and the beautiful silk attire was yet another proof of her largesse.
The women whispered excitedly as they walked around the Hall of Private Audience inspecting the gifts from the emperor that were on display. Jahangir had been extremely generous with his wedding gifts to Nurjahan. There were caskets full of gold coins totalling to eig
hty lakh gold asharfis. Eunuchs carried in over five hundred sets of exquisitely tailored and embroidered dresses in muslin, silk, velvet and satin, in various colours, for the empress.
There were heaps of priceless pearl necklaces, each pearl the size of a nugget, chokers set with diamonds, rubies and emeralds, gold bracelets and armlets, hundreds of gold rings set with precious stones, countless casks of perfumes, musk and ambergris, satin and velvet slippers embroidered with seed pearls.
Outside the hall stood dozens of caparisoned elephants, purebred Arabian stallions and palanquins ornamented with gold plating and inlays. The royal farman that endowed Nurjahan with jagirs of Rampur, Kannauj and Qandahar, along with a command of thirty thousand troops was read out to the assembled nobles and the women hidden behind the screens. It was the largest jagir ever given to an empress.
With the marriage, everything changed within the harem as well as the empire.
It didn’t take too long for Nurjahan to reveal her ambitious nature. While most women had been content with the jewellery and clothes gifted by the emperor, she desired much more.
Impatient to exhibit her hold, Nurjahan, embarked on a mission of transformation. She designed new attire, jewellery, and cuisine.
‘Nothing is good enough for her,’ remarked Bahar, feeding grains to her favourite white pigeons. ‘The dresses we wear, even the food the emperor eats, everything must be changed to suit Her Majesty’s taste, I guess.’
‘Will she change the rules of the harem, too?’ asked Zeenat, curiously.
‘Who knows what changes she might make in the empire? This is just the beginning,’ predicted Bahar.
Although the women in the harem criticized every alteration Nurjahan made, they aped her style without reservation.
Whatever the empress wore heralded a new wave. She was the emperor’s favourite wife, after all. The enamoured emperor declared that he had relinquished the empire in Nurjahan’s hands and all that he needed was a seer of wine and a seer of meat. ‘I have sold my empire to Nurjahan in return for half a seer of meat and a seer of wine,’ he declared.
Consternation grew amongst the ministers as Nurjahan began interfering in the general administration of the empire. Jahangir had taken to consulting her for every state and administrative decision.
‘This has never happened before,’ the nobles discussed amongst themselves. ‘What next?’
‘He has become a puppet in the hands of that woman.’
‘Never has a Mughal emperor allowed so much power to a woman.’
‘The emperor has begun relying on her for all decisions. It heralds dangerous times.’
‘We have been reduced to following his diktat. He no longer seeks our advice,’ they complained.
The ministers wondered if it had not been better when she had continued to reject Jahangir’s proposal.
The voices that had predicted doom echoed once again, ‘We told you so.’
From the harem to the nobles, everyone resented her interference. Never had a woman been given such power and authority. Women were meant to give pleasure to men, not rule them.
The empress created a caucus of her family members around her, giving them high ranks and unlimited powers over other ministers. Her extreme power allowed her to do the things no Mughal queen had ever done. She appeared at the jharoka with the emperor and conferred with the nobles. For the first time, imperial coins were minted in the name of a woman. Power exhilarated her.
The twentieth wife of the emperor had usurped all the limelight. The other queens hated her guts, but there was nothing they could do. The infatuated emperor was ready to lay his life for the woman.
Zeenat couldn’t help admiring Nurjahan. ‘She is incredible,’ she told her friends. ‘Has any woman ever commanded such respect and awe amongst the nobles?’
‘Nor has any woman attracted so much hatred and jealousy,’ commented Irfana.
‘They are jealous because she has attained what they couldn’t even dream about.’
‘Why are you so loyal to her? Are you seeking a favour from her?’ they ribbed Zeenat.
Nurjahan’s magic lay in her intelligence, artistic temperament and quick wit. She could compose poetry with the fluency of a bard, design a garden with the skill of an accomplished architect, and hunt with the expertise of a huntsman. Her talent in quoting verses and the vast treasure of riddles amused the emperor, as did her dazzling beauty and political proficiency. She could pit her brains against the best politician and emerge a winner.
The emperor, tired of the fawning dumb beauties around him, was enchanted by her intelligence. Nurjahan was different.
Five
News of the emperor’s consent to the marriage of Prince Khurram with Arjumand spread like wildfire in the harem. People had been waiting for this royal wedding for a long time.
Khurram’s love for Arjumand was no secret. She was the daughter of Nurjahan’s brother, Asaf Khan. The romance had begun a long time ago when the young prince set eyes on the girl in the Meena Bazaar at the harem. Five years had passed but his passion for her had not diminished one bit.
All royal marriages had to have the emperor’s concurrence. The enamoured prince had requested the emperor’s permission to marry the girl several times in the past five years but Jahangir had refused him each time. Frustrated at his own failure to marry Meherunnisa, he wouldn’t allow the marriage of her niece with the prince. Instead he forced Khurram to marry a Persian princess.
‘Why did he take so long to give his approval?’ asked Zeenat, bewildered that it had come so many years after the betrothal.
‘What else did you expect when Meherunnisa continued to spurn his proposal for four years? He was extracting his own sweet revenge,’ said Razia, the know-all of the harem. ‘Besides, it was a clever ploy to bring pressure on Meherunnisa. And it did work, didn’t it?’
Now that Jahangir was married to the woman of his desire, he no longer had any objection to Khurram marrying Arjumand. Besides, Nurjahan had also been pressurizing him to agree to the match. The marriage made way for her family to rise to unprecedented position in the empire.
The wedding was as grand as that of the emperor with Nurjahan taking an active part in the preparations, from designing her favourite niece’s bridal attire to selecting jewellery for her.
On the day fixed by the royal astrologers for the wedding, the bride’s father sent the henna in a grand procession for the ceremony of hennabandi. With the henna came expensive gifts for the bridegroom.
In the Diwan-i-Khas, the harem ladies applied henna on Khurram’s hands and feet. He was then dressed in clothes sent by the bride’s father, amidst much jesting and singing.
The gifts were displayed in the hall for everyone to see and comment upon. Dancing girls twirled merrily, their anklets resounding in the vast hall. A grand feast followed the henna ceremony. The wedding would take place the next day.
Almost all the high-ranking concubines were invited for the wedding at the Itmad-ud-Daula’s house. Zeenat also accompanied Bahar for the happy event.
As the procession left the palace for the bride’s house, a loud gasp went up behind the screen where the women had assembled to watch the event. The grandeur left them breathless. The emperor, attired in a resplendent sherwani rode at the head of the procession with Khurram by his side. Zeenat watched Prince Khurram, magnificent and proud, riding a bejewelled white stallion.
Her heart skipped a beat. If only I were a princess, she sighed. Lucky Arjumand! She has found a prince who is a committed lover.
Slaves strew his path with rose petals, spraying it with perfumed water from the silver sprinklers. A band of musicians dressed in brilliant uniform, followed the royal groom. The crowd cheered lustily and scattered petals in the path of the long wedding procession with hundreds of horses, elephants, soldiers and nobles.
The pageant wound its way through the streets of Agra towards the bride’s mansion leaving clouds of dust and dazzle in its wake. The story of Khurr
am and Arjumand’s romance had captured the imagination of the people for a long time. Speculation on whether they would ever marry had consumed many hours spent over endless cups of steaming tea in the wayside food kiosks.
Aware of the people’s interest in the wedding, the emperor decided that the procession would take a winding route through the main streets of the city before it arrived at the Itmad-ud-Daula’s house for the ceremonies. ‘Agra must see the spectacle so that people can narrate it to their grandchildren,’ he declared.
No expenses or efforts were spared to make the occasion a memorable one. Magnificent processions by the day gave way to exotic fireworks at night. The entire city of Agra was lit up in celebration. The celebration lasted for a month, each evening more spectacular than the previous. Entertainment, feasts, recitals, there was no end to the rejoicing at the palace. The empress was delighted with the match; her family’s ascendancy confirmed her power.
In return for the lavish gifts, Khurram offered expensive presents to his father, jewels to the begums, and dresses of honour to the nobles who attended the wedding. From the concubines to the slave girls and eunuchs, everyone received expensive gifts from the prince.
Ruquaiah Begum threw a grand party to welcome the new bride into the harem. There was music and dance to entertain the royal guests. Zeenat participated in the arrangement with enthusiasm.
Happy events have a way of appearing in a cluster just as unhappy ones do. Two grand weddings in the course of a year seemed to usher in a happy mood in the royal household. Unending festivities reverberated through the empire, heralding happy times.
Like everyone in the harem, Humra and Zeenat joined in the revelry. For some weeks Humra had been suffering from excruciating stomach-ache but the woman did not confide in her daughter for fear of spoiling her happiness.
Women of the royal harem were not allowed to seek the services of male hakims. The harem had its women healers who were trained in dealing with common ailments. For any specialized treatment, when the assistance of male physicians was required, the symptoms were conveyed to them through the eunuchs. The physicians then prepared the medicine and sent it to the harem.
Escape from Harem Page 5