The Mighty Moghals demystified!

History happened to be one of my favorite subjects in school. The full credit of which goes to my adorable History teacher, Mrs. Nair. Originally from God’s own country, her personality was a great influencing factor in my life. Tall persona with mother like softness in her words, she used to create magic in the classroom by making the history characters come alive from the text books. Be it Babur, Akbar or Shahjahan, each one of them became awe inspiring figures, the way she narrated their heroics in the battlefield. When I went to Class 10^th, she left my school and went back to Kerala. And I was too timid then, to inquire about her whereabouts…though till date, I associate History with her.

Now before you start wondering, about the cause behind the sudden remembrance of Mrs. Nair and History, let me tell you upront, that today’s blog is going to be an ode to a fantastic book that I browsed recently.

“Empire of the Moghul, the tainted throne” by Alex Rutherford.

Empire of the Moghul

From the first page to the last, the book is an experience to behold, to cherish and to reminisce. Alex has described beautifully Jahangir’s rise to power and pitiful demise, followed by Shahjahan’s rise again as the ultimate Mogul of Hindustan. The proxy ruling by Jahangir’s ruthless empress Mehrunissa (Noor jahan, light of the world) and the empathetic personality of Shahjahan’s wife, Arjumand.(Mumtaz-mahal)

Mehrunissa, the empress who ruled Hindustan behind the veil and jaali of Diwaan-e-aam of Agra Fort, after making Jahangir ever-dependent on opium laced wine. She was the brain behind Jahangir. An envy of his vazeer, courtiers and British noblemen ‘coz of her proximity to Jahangir, she survived great odds to safeguard her selfish lust for power. It was love at first sight for Jahangir, when he saw her dancing in Kabul during his punishment stay there. (After the Anaarkali debacle, when he lured his father’s favorite concubine, and thus was sent to Kabul to recover from his foolhardiness)

Author: Alex Rutherford

Subsequently, Mehrunissa got married to another nobleman and had a daughter from him, couple of years later, the nobleman was murdered brutally. It was Jahangir’s strategy again, to win back his long lost love, by hiring a Supaari killer (An English gentleman). So this is how, she became the proxy empress of Hindustan. Blessed with a brain that worked faster than Chacha Chaudhury, she became the chief advisor of Jahangir. Her influence grew to such an extent that, she was bestowed with the title of Noor jahan and a seal of her own, to issue farmaans n diktats (official rulings). She was considered an ace shooter, who went on shikaars and killed tigers with one single shots. (Unheard of, during that era). At a later point in the story, when Jahangir was captured by the enemy, she led the official army sitting on elephants with muskets and grenades to free him back, and succeeded too! Calculative and shrewd, she poisoned her husband’s mind against his favorite son (from another wife), Shahjahan, which led to his exile. The end of the story shows us how Shahjahan wins back the throne from Mehrunissa.

Now, why did I like the book so much? Great story telling on a topic that is very close to my heart. When I was a kid, I got many opportunities to visit Agra Fort, Red Fort, Itmad-ud-daulah (Tomb), Fatehpur Sikri. On each of my visits, I used tp pray, to be transported to that world and get a fleeting glimpse of the magnificence of Mughal era. The history books also gave a very brief and clinical description of events. Now here arrives a book, that tells me the minute and intricate details of the everyday lives of the Mughals, starting from the battles, court affairs, marriages, food, clothes, palaces, leisure activities etc. Most importantly, the softer aspects, how they thought, what they thought, how they felt, the strategies they devised to win wars, to win their love, to win the throne etc etc. I could actually imagine myself in that era, in their world for some moments of blissful magnificence. 90% of the book is fact and rest 10% is embroidered story to link events and characters.

The most winsome aspect of the book is the way Alex has breathed life into the card board Moghal characters and brought them alive and kicking in complete 3D avatar. You can actually visualize the blood and gore in the battlefield, the sword fighting and the riches of the Moghals. The shower of gold, diamonds and pearls when they used to return to Agra after winning battles, the glory of the peacock throne, the dazzling tiaras and the food! Murgs stuffed with gemstones along with dry fruits! J (That sure made me salivate :P)

The book has only one drawback though. No pictures L

After I finished it, I googled for the pictures of Mehrunissa and Peacock throne J And I was not disappointed at all!

Alex has written 3 more books on the same theme. And this one happens to be that last of the series. My goal now, is to get my hands on the other 3! J

My suggestion to you all, if you want a piece of heaven to drive away the monotony of your lives, this is the book to read. J

Cheers!

Cya next Saturday! 

Weekends, Coffee, books and me.

Saturday Morning

Post breakfast, Coffee/Tea + Gupshup Session with Parents :

My mom was just discussing how they never used to fall prey to common sickness like cough and cold during their childhood, unlike us. Every other day, we suffer from some common ailment or the other. The most haunting of all is Headache and body pain. I usually call up my folks, during weekdays, when I am in FC, having coffee. And most often than not, headache is the precursor to my urge for coffee. I was really stumped once, when my mom retorted, “Give me the days, when you don’t have headache?” I was really lost for words. And then the feeling actually sunk in, there is seriously something wrong with Gen X kids. May be it has something to do with the IT sector, the constant exposure to the harmful rays coming out of the laptop screens, and the over-use/abuse of cell phones ‘coz of incessant calls, or our erratic work schedules. Anyways, whatever the trigger maybe, now that we are in here for good, we might as well learn to live with it. Just be careful about your diet (Avoid deep deep-fried stuff, sweets and aerated drinks), 20 mins of cardio daily and you are good to go!

My Addiction

Why is it so difficult to give up coffee? The caffeine addiction is worse than smoke addiction. ‘Coz its directly related to your productivity. One heavenly cuppa…and I am ready to take on the world, actually! J The moment I take the first sip of coffee, its like a row of tiny Jasmine buds start blooming in slow motion in my forehead, just above my brows…during this blooming process, all my tensions and worries ebb away, leaving me in a calm and placid state, somewhere at the top of a hill, where I find myself standing blissfully and looking at the horizon.. with miles and miles of glorious daffodils stretched across all around me…And no, I am not over-exaggerating. This is actually my state of mind then.

This week was very happening for me. Got an opportunity to witness a book launch and signing event, first time in my life. I will avoid mentioning the title of the book and the author, ‘for my own safety :P

So this book (supposedly, a best seller), had a very clichéd title. It tried to leverage on the success of a popular social networking site and of course the eternal topic of romance. So the session started with a short speech by the author, followed by an even shorter speech by the Publication Head. Then the book unraveling and interactive session. The author was not a great speaker, let me warn you at the outset. So all my hopes of inviting him/her for “The Speaking Tree” forum took a deep dive into the dismal depths of shock and disappointment. The setting of the book was the city of Cuttack. (Yes, you read it right!) The first question thrown at the author was, “Mam, what is the linkage between you and Cuttack.” The author was taken aback and recovered somewhat to reply, “I have crossed Cuttack, couple of times, while traveling in train!, and my grandfather also used to visit it sometimes, I find the name very musical, hence I selected Cuttack, moreover, all these small sleepy towns are much of the same, Jayshree cinema hall and places like that, can be found in most of the cities etc etc”. And sitting in the front row, I almost dropped my cup of coffee and “Naankhatai”, to hear the ridiculous and superficial/fake reply. Oh c’mon! You are a writer! You are supposed to be blessed with lil bit more of thought, creativity and brains! How can you give such an moronic answer! Heights! This was not the end, though. The author continued in the same vein for the next 20 mins or so. Finally, I had to walk out of  the room with a sagging spirit but with a very renewed determination to turn into a full-fledged author, someday. And definitely, this wouldn’t be the way, I would handle my book launch. There was absolutely no energy, no humour, and no spark in the room, thanks to the great author. I have met lot of authors and attended innumerable talks by them, and they might be quiet, low-key, but never exude such dead vibes, as this one. You are a celebrity now, you have to inspire people, you have a great responsibility on your shoulders now, how can you turn up for a session, dressed up shoddily! Just a simple Fab India Kurti with Jeans would have done wonders to your personality, but no, you would prefer coming to a book launch as if it’s a wedding! In all your dhinchak glory!

Well it goes without saying, that the only silver lining of the session was the cuppa! And yes, no prizes for guessing, that I didn’t buy the book. J

Have a great weekend!

Cheers! :) 

Nazia's life...her own way!

Good morning World!

Feeling blessed on a Sunday morning. Reason? 

You.

I was inundated with pings yesterday, with only one question. “Nazia, where is your Saturday morning blog?”, “Why didn’t you write today?” J

Finally at the fag-end of the day, I had to put up an explanation as my status update on FB, narrating why I couldn’t write J Nonetheless, I am really overwhelmed with the response my blog has been getting lately. Some of my besties have confided in me that, its become an integral part of their weekend now, kind of a ritual…wake up late on sat, log in to the net and read my blog with their refreshing cuppa! J This is how they kick start their rocking weekend! So thrilled to be part of all your lives, not physically but yet through a very profound medium…through words! Let me borrow Ronan Keating’s lines here, to express myself… “Its only words….words are all I have…to take your heart away!”

I am not sure, how many of you have browsed through the Sunday column titled, “Single girl in a city” on TOI. That column (Now defunct) was the inspiration behind this blog of mine, specially the decision to blog on Saturdays only. (That was by design not by default). And that is exactly where the similarity ends. In that column the girl is a model in Mumbai, its about her life and daily happenings.  My job might not be as glamorous and happening as that, but its definitely more satisfying and involves multidimensional shades of different personalities. I take great pride in the fact that I have influenced (unintentionally, of course) some of my closest friends to get into HR profession J. Now even my roomie is all set to tread on the road not taken! J So it goes without saying, that I love my job and am extremely passionate about it. I face this oft-repeated question, “Nazia, why do you always end up bringing your organization/job related stuff into your blogs?” How can I NOT? Tell me? I live, eat and breathe my work, my org, my profession. And I feel, this commitment really helps me to excel at my work. Doing my work half-heartedly, has never been my prerogative. If I am doing something, I give it my 200% and if possible more. I would be completing 3 years at Infy on 27^th July. 5 individual awards, 4 team awards. And yes, I am not ashamed to say, “Yeh dil maange more!” J Yes, I yearn for more…lots more J

Ok, now that I have laid the doubts of my loving critics to rest, let me discuss about the movie, Spidey. J

I am a complete movie buff. I enjoy all kinds of movies, especially in theatres. Spidey was one of the best that I have watched in recent times. The protagonist is definitely a notch better than the earlier chocolate boyish, Peter. And more believable. The girl is mesmerizingly beautiful! With those huge saucer like ocean blue eyes, how can you not fall in love! J Special effects simply mind blowing and loved the naughty last line of the movie, “Promises are meant to be broken” Youngsters these days, want to keep life simple, make promises…break it too as per their convenience. Now that might open up issues of ethics etc, but frankly speaking…who has got the time? More so, when the promise you made it to, is dead. (Father of the girl).

My beloved critics have raised one more point. That I need it to keep it short. So closing this at 600 words. J

Love you all, stay cool and yes…keep it simple!

Cheers!