“The royal mind…pays full
attention to the planning and construction…the majority of buildings he designs
himself, and on the plans prepared by skilful architects, after long
consideration he makes appropriate alternations and amendments…..” Abdul
Hamid Lahori, chief historian of Shahjahan’s reign. (p.3 Chandni Chowk)
Mirza Shahabuddin Baig Muhammad Khan Shah Jahan, third son
of Jahangir, also known as Salim, and grandson of the great Mughal emperor,
Akbar, ascended the throne on 14th February 1628 in Agra. Akbar had
presided over some remarkable developments in arts, paintings and architecture,
but his grandson Shah Jahan, was obsessed with monuments and architecture, like
his great grandfather Timur, who built the city of Samarkand.
It is during his reign that Shah Jahan commissioned a number
of buildings, best known among them the Taj Mahal for his favorite wife, Mumtaz
Mahal. Once the Taj Mahal was completed, Shah Jahan’s attention went on to
build another monument like the Agra Fort, but at a much larger scale. A
mission was sent around to find the next spot and Delhi, by the Yamuna River
was chosen to be where the Red Fort was to be constructed. On 12th May,
1639, the foundation stone was laid, exactly 368 years ago!
In her book, Chandni Chowk, author and historian Swapna
Liddle recounts with vivid detail the making of the historic, now an UNESCO
World Heritage Site from 2007, Red Fort , and the growth of the area around it
to be known as Shahjahanabad, which is now called Chandini Chowk. The book has borrowed from her unpublished Ph.D
thesis in some chapters like 4 and 5. The scholar and historian of the 19th
Century, Delhi, has in this book, covered the entire period of Shah Jahan’s
reign in Delhi and the final take over by his own son Aurangzeb, when Shah Jahan
fell quite ill and died on May 9, 1666. Mayhem ruled thereafter, as Aurangzeb
beheaded Dara Sikoh, the eldest son and heir apparent of Shah Jahan much to the
grief and disgust of the people of Shahjahanabad. Then until 1809, a reign of
instability continued till the British take over in 1809.
What I especially liked in the book, is the ‘feel of Shahjahanabad’ and it gave me a
taste of the culture of the place and although the Mughal women were much in
pardah then as well, when you look at this fact that the area called Chandni Chowk, was designed
mainly by Shah Jahan’s favourite daughter, Jahanara.
“All the important
mosques in the city were built by members of the royal family. Somewhat to the
west of Fatehpuri mosque…which was built by Fatehpuri Begam, was Sirhindi
Masjid, built by Sirhindi Begam. At the northern end of Faiz Bazar was the
Akbarabadi Masjid, built by Akbarabadi Begum. All the ladies were wives of
Shahjahan, and were known by appellations that referred to the towns where they
came from, instead of having their personal names taken in public.” (p.17,
Chandni Chowk)
There was a general hustle bustle around Shahjahanabad,
alive from morning to night with activities – jewellery, elaborately
embroidered clothing, horses, horse-cart, entertainment halls, rich men’s
havelis, and the like. As the Mughal empire weakened over the years more people
came from outside and made their living quarters there. It was however, Nadir Shah,
who traveled from Turk and decisively defeated the Mughal force. Since Shah
Jahan, it really never was the same. Gradually, in 1809, the British wanting to
increase their territory came into Red Fort and took the last Mughal emperor
Bahadur Shah and put him in exile in Burma. After many years of ups and downs,
an era of stability reigned under the Company’s Rule, to be disturbed by the
1857 Mutiny, which started in Meerat and continued briefly in Delhi at Chandni
Chowk. Soon the British were to make their new Capital City in Delhi and they
would put a cover on Shahjahanabad as ‘unfavourable’ for their Imperial capital
city.
The author, Swapna Liddle, has packed in a lot in this one
book and really it must be read, if you love Delhi. But more so, if you want to
preserve in your mind and on your bookshelf/Kindle, the history which is fast
erasing out as new politics spread across the country.
I quote from a review which best describes what has gone
into the book, “Swapna Liddle draws upon
a wide variety of sources, such as the accounts of Mughal court chroniclers,
travellers’ memoirs, poetry, newspapers and government documents, to paint a
vivid and dynamic panorama of the city from its inception to recent times.”(Ref:
HERE )
Parting lines, I would so much love to quote from the book –
“A famous courtesan of
the times was Nur Bai, who enjoyed a rich lifestyle ….Apart from being an
accomplished singer; she had a critical taste for poetry, brilliant
conversational skills and an extremely sophisticated manner… It is rumoured
that many had squandered their fortunes for the pleasure of her company. Those
less talented could rely on sensationalism. One courtesan was notorious for her
style of dress, for instead of wearing any garment on her lower limbs, she
would have her skin painted to mimic fabric. This would then show through her sheer
outer clothing, and until closely scrutinized, would give the appearance of a
garment.” (p.59, Chandni Chowk)
Just imagine! She had set up a fashion we are following now,
368 years later!
Publisher: Speaking Tiger
