Kim's Review : The Mountain of Light (Tale of the Kohinoor Diamond)

The Mountain of Light is Indu Sundaresan's sixth title after her Taj Trilogy : The Twentieth Princess, The Feast of Roses and Shadow Princess. She has also written a book of short stories - "In the Convent of Little Flowers" and an independent novel "The Splendor of Silence"

The only reason, I haven't read The Splendor of Silence yet, is that it is not yet being printed in India.

"The Mountain of Light" is Sundaresan's latest novel, which follows the trail of the Kohinoor Diamond across geographies and potentates from 1817 to 1854 from Afghanistan to Britain via Lahore.

While most characters in this book are based on fact, she has played around with the timelines a bit and given identities to characters deemed to have been minor players in the history books - this is almost standard procedure for works of historical fiction, which some readers fail to realise and accept as fact, even though authors give disclaimers in their books.

Indu's story starts with a deposed Shah Shuja and his wife Wafa Begam seeking refuge from his brother at the court of Maharaja Ranjit Singh at Lahore. To entice Maharaja Ranjit Singh into protecting him, Shah Shuja promises him the 186 carat Kohinoor diamond. However, he takes his time handing the pricelss gem over, meanwhile enjoying the hospitality of the Punjab Empire, until Maharaja Ranjit Singh literally forces his hand.

Shah Shuja consequently is reinstalled on the throne of Afghanistan by the British. With the death of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, a fight erupts for the control of the Punjab empire amongst his sons. The British step in here too and install the Maharaja's youngest son - the 10 year old Dalip Singh as a puppet ruler, while they carve up the Punjab empire and loot the Royal toshakhana (treasury is a simplified translation)

The Kohinoor is sent to England by Lord Dalhousie (one of the most hated and resented Governor Generals of India) in the hopes of utter secrecy, but in Indu's book turns into an open secret.

The story ends extremely pitifully for the Maharaja Dalip Singh who dies in penury in an Artists loft in Paris.

Indu's tale not only brings alive the Political and Economic Machinations of the East India Company, it also tells the tales of minor characters (who while not critical to the story line, is an interesting insight into relationships between people of various social strata who might not have ever interacted if not for the tumultuous events in India.

It is very easy to hate the officials of the East India Company as described in Mountain of Light, but Indu has a much more sympathetic outlook for Queen Victoria. Given that until 1857, it was the East India Company that was running amok in India and claiming all its riches in the name of the Queen. While she wasn't consulted before any action taken on her behalf, she was only informed of events after they had taken place and that too via an extremely long drawn out voyage of the post from India to England via Egypt.

The first part of the book describing the rule of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, is quintessential Indu. Rich descriptions of the court, its customs, its jewelry, the status of women and foreigners are easily woven into the narrative.

The second part starts with the annexation of the Punjab Empire and the "crowning' of 10 year old Dalip Singh under the "guardianship" of Henry Lawrence and the tale moves along with brief romances and the dismemberment of Punjab.

The third part for me, especially the voyage by sea and land from India to London seemed to be more in the Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot style rather than Indu's usual style and it is a great contrast to the rest of the story.

The final part which takes place after Dalip Singh has been removed to London is painful. While the Queen acknowledges him and fetes him (unlike the later treatment of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah of Lucknow) and grants him peerage equivalent to a Royal of Europe, financially, he is still at the mercy of the East India Company's pension and faced with racial discrimination because of his origins even to the extent of being nicknamed "The Black Prince of Perthshire".

Queen Victoria tries to make a match between him and Princess Victoria Gowramma of Coorg (also an Indian Royal, converted to Christianity), which he isn't interested in. At the same time, his desire to be married to a British Lady (of meager fortune and from a non-Royal family) is turned down and the only reason seems to be his non British background.

Its a very well written story and I consider Indu Sundaresan one of the best authors in the Indian Historical Fiction genre.

Rating : 3.8 / 5

Kim's Review: Shadow Princess

Another brilliant book by Indu Sundaresan, following in the footsteps of  The Twentieth Wife and A Feast of Roses.

This book tells the tale of Shahjahan's daughters Jahanara and Roshanara and their brothers fights for their fathers throne. The British & Portuguese fight also gets more violent and it seems to reflect in the violence between the princes too.

Shahjahan who loses his wife Mumtaz Mahal within 4 years of being crowned emperor, begins to depend on his elder daughter Jahanara completely. Since his mother Jagat Gosini is long dead and he has exiled his fathers favourite wife Nur Jehan and his refusal to marry anyone else either when Mumtaz was alive or dead leaves a huge vaccum in the role of Padshah Begum of the zenana. Jahanara is forced to step up into this role too, which makes her sister Roshanara resent her all the more.

Given his complete depedence on his daughter and her resemblence to her mother whom he loved passionately, he refuses to let her marry out of fear of losing her too. And thus both the princesses are forced to remain spinsters inspite of being daughters of the most powerful man in India.

Thrust into these responsibilities at the age of 17, Jahanara is forced to sacrifice her love, ambitions, wants and desires for the sake of her father and be there for him at all times. This gave rise to a lot of gossip in that age which has been recorded by travellers to the Mughal darbar.

However, Indu Sundaresan as usual humanises her characters and you can't help feeling for the plight of these 2 princesses who should have had the world at their feet but couldn't. It just brings home the fact that being born a princess isn't the start or end of a fairytale, it could very well be an unending nightmare.

I heavily recommend this trilogy for anyone visiting the Mughal Monuments of Delhi, Agra and Fatehpur Sikri. It just helps set an atmosphere that you can then use to let your imagination run wild while taking in the beauty of these monuments.

Also read my reviews of The Twentieth Wife and A Feast of Roses.

Rating: 4 / 5
 

Kim's Review: Feast of Roses

The Feast of Roses begins where The Twentieth Wife ended. Mehrunnisa is now Empress Nur Jahan. Her daughter Ladli is also adopted by Emperor Jehangir and her life seems to be much better on the surface after the trials of the last few decades.

While she constantly rises to Jehangirs expectations and her mother-in-law Ruqayya Begum is willing to teach her all she needs to know about trade and politics, she has a formidable rival in Empress Jagat Gosini, Jehangirs first wife. She finds supporters amongst the courtiers who are angered by Mehrunnisas influence over the Emperors thoughts & actions in court.

The long dangling engagement of Prince Khurram (later ShahJahan) to her niece Arjumand Banu Begum (Mumtaz Mahal) is finally converted into a marriage because of the efforts of Mehrunnissa and Ladli. But once Arjumand is secure in Khurrams affections, she too begins to resent her aunts influence over the Emperor. Khurram who was brought up by Mehrunnissa is besotted by his wife and refuses Mehrunnissas offer of Ladli's hand in marriage at her insistence.

Thus begins the split between Khurram and Mehrunnissa and Jehangir. Mehrunnissa who wants a Royal husband for her daughter is forced to settle for Shahryar even though Ladli is in love with Khurram. This makes her take up Shahryars cause as heir to the throne.

In the background is the ongoing tussle for supremacy between the Portuguese and the English.

This story ends with Jehangirs death and Mehrunnissa being banished from court by Emperor Shah Jahan and Empress Mumtaz Mahal.

The book is very well written like The Twentieth Wife. There are so many similarities in the life stories of Mehrunnissa and the Chinese Empress Orchid. Strong women, married to the Emperor, having to face internal politics of the harem and external politics of men who resent the womens influence on matters of trade and politics even though the women were both well informed and skilled tacticians. Both had to face the British incursions and machinations and both were widely reviled by the public. I also see a bit of similarity with the story line of Mastani. I wonder how many more women had similar story lines in the days of kings and queens in societies where women were expected to neither be seen nor heard.

I do wonder how things would have turned out if Khurram had actually married Ladli and continued to live under the benevolence of Mehrunnissa. There was so much more that she could have taught him and guided him through. Maybe Aurangzeb would never have been able to come to power, maybe Jahannara and Roshanara would have been able to lead normal lives. Maybe Arjuman would not have died within 4 years of being crowned Empress. Maybe together as a united front they could have kept both the English and the Portuguese in their places. Maybe. . . .

Rating: 4 / 5

Also Read My Review of The Twentieth Wife.

Kim's Review: The Twentieth Wife

Everyone who has heard of the Taj Mahal is familiar with the name of Mumtaz Mahal, but what do we know about the women from the Mughal era. Especially those women who played an important part in the Mughal Empire and its politics? Virtually nothing! Unlike the Royal women of the Tudor court or the French Revolution, nothing is known of the Royal women in Indian history save a few like Jhansi ki Rani, Kittoora Chenamma or Mirabai.

It is this gap that Indu Sundaresan's books seek to fill and do an admirable job of it.

The Twentieth Wife is the story of Mehrunnisa later titled Nur Jahan. Starting with her father Ghias Beg's fall from grace in the Persian Court, his impoverished flight to seek refuge in Emperor Akbar's court and the ignominious birth of their 4th child - Mehrunnisa at Qandahar along the route.

A chance encounter with Mirza Masud - a trader soon to become benefactor, enabled Ghias Beg to complete his journey with his family and gain audience with Emperor Akbar. After a few initial meetings, pleased with his intellect and learning, the Emperor appointed him as a courtier and his fortunes again began to rise.

When Mehrunnisa is 8, the whole of the Mughal court at Lahore gathered to celebrate the wedding of
Prince Salim to Princess Man Bai of Amber and at the celebrations, she comes to the attention of Padshah Begum - Ruqayya Sultan Begum who demands her regular presence at the harem for conversation. In love with Prince Salim and in the eternal hope of glimpsing him, she is only too happy to comply with the Empress wishes.

This routine continues through Prince Salims next 2 marriages, until her father is appointed Diwan of Kabul for the next 4 years before being recalled to Lahore.

But in the meanwhile Price Salim now 22, is goaded by courtiers into thinking he deserves to be Emperor and his father who has ruled for 35 years should step down. Unlike in Europe and similar to Pharaonic Egypt, primogeniture does not entitle succession and all 3 sons have an equal claim to the throne. Impatient to rule, Prince Salim bribes Akbar's physician to poison him enough to incapacitate but not kill him. Akbar who hitherto did not even send his Sheiku Baba, away on military/political missions because he could not bear to be away from him, is shattered when he realises that the same Salim has poisoned him and their relationship deteriorates from this point. However Khurram, Salim's son with Jagat Gosini is a firm favourite with the Royal couple and is brought up by Ruqayya Begum as her own son.

On her return from Kabul, Mehrunnisa returns to her companion duties with the Empress and takes responsibility for Khurram when his nurse is away on personal business. All the time, she keeps watching and learning and waiting for an opportunity to capture Prince Salim's attention.

However fate intervenes, in an attempt to keep Ali Quli Khan Istajlu, a brave Persian soldier anchored to the Mughal court, Emperor Akbar commands that he be married to Mehrunnisa. Ruqayya who hopes that Mehrunnisa will be left with her when Ali QAuli goes on campaign, is only too ready to endorse the decision.

Her life with Ali Quli is not an easy one. And with Emperor Akbar's failing health, Prince Salim has to contend with his eldest son Khusrau's desire to rule. However on Akbar's death it is Salim who is crowned Nuruddin Muhammad Jahangir Padshah Ghazi.

For his alliance with Prince Khusrau in his rebellion, Ali Quli is exiled to Bengal where Mehrunnisa after many years of childlessness and 2 miscarriages, finally gives birth to a daughter - Ladli Begum. And while she is in exile, Jahangir betrothes his son Khurram to Mehrunnisa's brothers daughter - Arjumand Banu.

Mehrunnisa travels with Ladli to Lahore for the engagement and the Emperor who spots her, is so enamoured with her all over again, that he invokes the tura-i-chingezi - asking Ali Quli to divorce her, so he can marry her himself. Ali Quli refuses and starts another plot of dissent, but is killed in the madness that follows.

She is forced into hiding with her daughter and inspite of commanding her return to Agra, Jehangir does not even attempt to meet her for over 4 years. But instead of returning to her parents house, she takes up a position as the dowager Empress Ruqayya's lady-in-waiting.


In the meanwhile the Portuguese Jesuits come to Mughal India to convert and then merchants from England come to trade.

Mehrunnisa again comes to Jahangirs attention and this time he isn't willing to let her go as easily. She holds on, until he promises marriage and thus she becomes the twentieth and last wife of Jahangir. The only one of the Emperors wives whom he marries for love and not as a political alliance.

It was very interesting for me to notice the commonalities and differences between the harems in the Mughal court as evidenced in this book and the Chinese court as seen in Empress Orchid and The Last Empress.  Hoshiyar Khan (Emperor Jahangirs eunuch) and those in the Chinese Court have so much in common.

Indu is an engrossing writer and seems to have done a lot of reaerch into culture, customs, costume and food habits of those times. While many facts are historically know, there is a lot of fiction thrown in and that is what makes this book so enjoyable.

I can't wait to read The Feast of Roses, but I don't have that book yet, so I will have to skip a generation and read Shadow Princess instead.

Rating: 4 / 5