There is a small town in the North West of India called Burhanpur, hidden from the Tourist map of India. Usually tourist flock to Delhi, Rajasthan and Agra to soak in the rich Mughal and Rajputana history, and its vestiges, while this place remains largely unvisited. This is the place where Taj Mahal and it‘s Inspiration took shape. I waved at the auto-rickshaw as it tried to sped past me, and asked if I can get a ride to Shahi Qila (Royal Fort). “400 rupees“ was the Driver‘s terse reply, I agreed since I had a short day ahead with no time to engage in traditional bargaining. The rickshaw made its way through dusty bylanes and narrow bazaars, making me wonder how such narrow lanes could lead to something grand such as a Royal Fort?
Here it was, after half an hour of inhaling the smoke and dust. This was the fort once occupied by Shahjahan, when he was the governor. He lived here with his beloved Mumtaz Mahal. This was all before he became the mughal king and ruled from Agra.
The most striking thing about this fort is the Royal Bath, where Emperor Shahjahan’s beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal used to bathe. The Royal Bath with its honeycomb ceilings and intricate drawings, still survives. This was made in the seventeenth century and follows Turkish architecture. There was an elaborate setup to bring in hot and cold water from either side of the bath which was subsequntly mixed inside the tub at the centre of the bathroom. The ceilings have the drawings of a structure, which was the inspiration of Taj Mahal at Agra.
The rampart of the citadel overlooks the river Tapti. Today most of the structure below is in ruins, but it was used to station the cavalry. The rampart not only protected the fort from enemy attack, it also prevented flood waters inundating the city. The Fort has a Diwan-e-aam and Diwan-e-khaas (court for the common people and for royals) on the terrace, and a garden. It is believed that Mumtaz Mahal passed away in this citadel, while she was delivering her 14’th child.
A famous past time for most indian is either betel leaves or gutka. Gutka is a mixture of tobacco and some flavory things and is highly addictive and carcinogenic.
It was time to head to the next destination and kids around were having a gala climbing up and down much to the chagrin of the autowallah. It took a while, for him, to shoo them away, but that did not stop them from chasing the dust cloud behind our auto rickshaw.
We reached the place which was the initial resting place of the queen Mumtaz Mahal. This place is known by many names, prominent among those are Aahukhana. This was originally built by Shajahan’s uncle as an outpost for hunting and relaxation. It has elaborate water canals and an intricate underground pipe system to bring in water from the river Tapti. In its hey days it had lush gardens and fountains. Now all it remains are the empty waterways, fountains and the structures. When Mumtaz Mahal passed away she was buried here for 10 months, before she was moved to Agra, the capital of the Mughal Sultanate. Thus began the 22 year of construction of Taj Mahal in Agra, where Mumtaz Mahal was finally buried. Shahjahan after his death was also buried next to his beloved. It is said that after Mumtaz’s death, Shahjahan went into isolation for a year and when he came out, his hair turned grey and he looked older than his age. Love transcends everything, time, distance, and stature.
Lucky are those, who have loved and lost, since without this, life is a meaningless repetition of the same moments. How else can we make our Taj Mahals?
Burhanpur, Madhya Pradesh, India
