FORGOTTEN FOOTNOTES IN HISTORY - 2: MURSHIDABAD

"We look before and after, and pine for what is not."

                                                                        

                                                                
                        -   Shelley, To a Skylark

Murshidabad is about 200 kilometres away from Calcutta, but it takes you around 9 hours by road. The road to Murshidabad is about as uncared for as the history the town contains. 

Between the time that Bengal was a subah (province) under the Mughals and again a province under the British, it was a principal sovereignty. The period is early 18th century, just around the time the British had purchased the three hamlets of Sutanuti, Gobindapur and Kalikata to establish their hold in the province. The subahdars of Bengal are seen to set up their own establishment up north, in Murshidabad. 

Murshidabad could well be said to be a city of disloyalties. Murshid Quli Khan, the diwan of the erstwhile subah under the Mughals, transferred his capital from present day Dhaka into a city he named after him, and established his own reign there. Towards the half of the century, Murshidabad had seen two other nawabs after Murshid Quli Khan's death, who exchanged the throne between them intermittently. Murshid Quli Khan's Nasiri dynasty was finally toppled by Ali Vardi Khan in 1740, who ruled till his death in 1756, and his 23 year old grandson, Siraj-ud-Daulah ascended to the throne. This was around the time the British were increasing their political stronghold to further trade. Animosities grew between Siraj and the British, resulting in the Battle of Plassey ("Paulahshee", if you want to get that correct). 

On June 23, 1757, Siraj with his army of 60,000 men was defeated by the British army of 3,000 soldiers. The most famous conspiracy for betrayal in the history of the Indian subcontinent involved Robert Clive, Ghaseeti Begum, Siraj's grand aunt, Mir Jafar, Siraj's commander-in-chief, and Jagat Seth, an influential Jain Marwari businessman, who can be seen to have had importance since Murshid Quli Khan's time. Siraj's defeat on June 23, 1757 marks the beginning of British rule in India. 

Time tells its own stories in Murshidabad, among the derelict mansions, mosques and mausoleums. In fact, the most famous historical building in Murshidabad is the one that is the latest addition and deserves the least historical merit and I shall therefore deal with it last.

I suggest you enter the town through the broad archway called the Nemak Haram Deori, the traitor's gate. Most instructively, it was the gateway to Mir Jafar's house. Siraj-ud-Daulah was executed at the gateway soon after his defeat in the battle of Plassey. Jafar himself ran into animosities with the British, which led to his abdication and installation of Mir Qasim. Mir Qasim's conflicts with the British led the battle of Buxar, resulting in his defeat in 1764 and the reinstatement of Jafar, who remained faithful to the British thereafter till his death.

The decrepit Nemak Haram Deori, Traitor's Gate

The house of Jagat Seth is near the Nemak Haram Deori. A visit to the house would highlight the importance Seth commanded 300 years back. A Marwari businessman, Seth was one of the most influential financiers of the time in Bengal and beyond, and this gave rise to his political importance. Jagat Seth's family was beheaded in 1763 during the reign of Mir Qasim.

The entrance to Jagat Seth's house. There is a museum inside with artefacts from the time

Locks from the time have retained their importance 

Marwari businessmen seem to have had flourishing businesses in Murshidabad right up to the 20th century. In addition to the Seths, the Dugars had their mansion located closeby. The Kathgola Bagan Bari is reminiscent of the architecture and the financial flourish of the times. The place is so named since black roses ("Kaath golaap") are said to have been cultivated in the gardens in the past. Its historical importance lies in the fact that it was in these gardens that Mir Jafar met the British after the battle of Plassey to receive payments promised to him as part of the conspiracy to overthrow Siraj-ud-Daulah. 

The Kathgola Bagan Bari

The older parts of the Bagan Bari

The bagan bari is still a beautiful mansion to visit, and has preserved the baoli, a stepwell in typical Rajasthani architectural style. The Jain temple of Paras Nath here is a later construction.

The Baoli, or stepwell at Kathgola

The next stop is another mansion, the Nashipur Rajbari, built by Maharaja Debi Singha. Debi Singha had migrated from Panipat in Haryana to Murshidabad around the time of the battle of Plassey. Having come to Murshidabad for the purposes of trade, Debi Singha soon earned the reputation of a stern tax collector. The Nashipur dynasty was thus formed, under the patronage of the British. The Rajbari was the palace of the Nashipur Raj family. The palace as seen today was completed around 1865. 

The entrance of the Nashipur Raj Palace 

The palace compound at the Nashipur Rajbari

Despite dilapidation, the colors at the courtyard retain their vibrancy 

We move on to graver structures now. The Katra Masjid (translating to "market mosque", since it was located close to a market) houses the tomb of Murshid Quli Khan, the founder of Murshidabad. The imposing mosque was constructed in a way so as to house 700 Quran readers in its domed cells. Much of the mosque was destroyed by an earthquake in 1897. 

The entrance to the main mosque is through a flight of fourteen stairs, under which lies the tomb of Murshid Quli Khan. An old, repentant Murshid Quli Khan had desired to be buried in the place which would be trodden upon by people entering the Holy Mosque.  

The tomb of Murshid Quli Khan at Katra Masjid

The tomb of Azimunnisa Begum has an equally interesting story. Azimunnisa was the daughter of Murshid Quli Khan. Prescribed human liver to cure her of her illness, she became addicted to the dish, and killed numerous children in the deal to get her medicine. When her father found out, he buried her alive. She too lies under a flight of steps to be trodden upon. 

The town of Murshidabad is situated on the banks of the Baghirathi river. The remaining points of historical interest require travelling to the opposite bank on a boat. 

The Khosh Baag cemetery lies on the western bank of the Bhagirathi. It is the resting place of the Nawabs of Bengal, including Ali Vardi Khan and Siraj-ud-Daulah. Despite being associated with motifs of death, the place is called Khosh Baag, or the garden of happiness for a reason I guess. With the breeze from the Bhagirathi and the warmth of the setting winter sun, the garden assures a tranquillity which makes you feel almost glad to guess that the young, betrayed, defeated Siraj finally rests in peace here. 

A few miles away from Khosh Baag and closer to the Bhagirathi River is Roshan Bagh, the 'illuminated garden'. It contains the grave of Shuja-ud-Din, Murshid Quli Khan's son. Roshan Bagh is in an utterly dilapidated condition, left to be taken care of by time and nature. A forlorn mosque is adorned by an unkempt garden. It derives its name from the fact that on a full moon night, the white mosque seems almost illuminated. If you are one of those people who do not like people, and would like to travel back in time, I suggest you visit Roshan Bagh, on a full moon winter night. 

We now cross the river back to the eastern bank to arrive at the least relevant and most advertised historical structure, the Hazarduari Palace. The palace was constructed by the British in the 1830s, and is therefore a much more recent structure. The name would mean, a Palace that has a thousand doors. That is misleading, since almost 900 doors are false. Hazarduari has an imposing structure and a sprawling garden. The museum inside seeks to provide a brief history of Murshidabad and mainly contains relics from the Nawabs, the Zamindars and the British. Hazarduari has the maximum footfall, and sadly the history of Murshidabad has perhaps now come to be identified with the Hazarduari Palace. 

Opposite the Palace is the Nizamat Imambara, which was built in the 1840s, after the old Imambara constructed by Siraj-ud-Daulah caught fire. The Nizamat Imambara is the largest in India. Entry is restricted. 

The Hazarduari Palace

The Nizamat Imambara Murshidabad's history is the immediate precursor to the British dominance in Bengal, and consequently India. Yet, the histories are neglected, the structures abandoned. In its abandoned state, Murshidabad quietly narrates the story of betrayal, to those who care to listen. Post Script: A slightly longish, unconnected story about roti-tadka. On the way from Murshidabad to Calcutta, I happened to cross Dankuni, the suburb I spent my childhood in. Back in the 1990s, there would be a Dhaba in Dankuni from where my father would get roti-tadka on Friday evenings. The 'anda tarka' is a Bengali-Punjabi fusion food, that has developed on the highway dhabas of Bengal. I would wait for Fridays, to watch Alif-Laila and have roti-tadka.  We have since moved to Calcutta and I have unsuccessfully tried to locate the familiar smell of that tadka in every tadka that I have had. On my way back this time, I saw the dhaba. On impulse, I asked the car to stop. I was in two minds however, whether to get down and go to the dhaba, or to carry on, lest history is spoilt. I decided to do the former.  Almost nothing had changed. The same photos of Guru Nanak hung on the walls, the cash counter and kitchen looked just the same. The walls had probably not been colored since. There was the same darkness of the 90s, and the lorries were parked in the same way as they were earlier. That gave me hope. The cashier had changed. There were plastic chairs in place of khatias now.  I ordered roti-tadka. Prices had gone up by about eight times. I was now eager to go home and find out if the tadka still tasted the same. And it didn't. In one bite I realized the fallacy behind my hope. Everything had remained the same about the dhaba, except what I had loved about it. The roti-tadka. The taste would just continue to be part of my memory from now on. The taste, along with Alif Laila on my black and white television.