CHENNAI: “People revered his father as the Lion of Punjab, but his mother is the only one they should have called Lioness. In her way, wasn’t she braver than Ranjit Singh? Didn’ t she fight greater obstacles?” The penultimate page of The Last Queen by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni carries this excerpt on Maharani Jindan Kaur, as her son Maharaja Dalip Singh reminisces her.
And it is this thought that stays with you long after you finish the book on one of India’s valiant queens, who has been buried in the dusty pages of history. Chitra takes readers on Jindan Kaur’s journey from being the daughter of a kennel keeper, a disregarded queen to becoming a fierce woman who got entangled in revenge and political power play. Excerpts follow:
When did you hear about Jindan Kaur?
I had not known anything about Maharani Jindan until a few years ago, when I came across her portrait, commissioned by her son Maharaja Dalip Singh, which I also have on the cover of The Last Queen. That portrait mesmerised me. I felt, here was a strong woman, tragic but indomitable. I wanted to find out more about her, and when I discovered how valiantly she fought the British, I wanted to make her the heroine of my next novel.
Did you find any Indian history texts that detail her valour during your research process? How much of the story is fiction?
I researched Maharani Jindan’s story and also the Sikh history of the period in general for about three years. I did not find too much about her directly in the contemporary history texts, though references are made to her life at the Lahore Court, which I then wove into my novel. There is a discussion of her involvement in the First Anglo Sikh War in the contemporary Jangnama by Shah Mohammed, and later history books such as those by Khushwant Singh do mention her. I learned some more things about her through British correspondence of the time. For instance, Dalhousie feared her influence over her people and wrote, “She has the only manly understanding in the Punjab and her restoration would furnish the only thing which is wanting to render the present movement [Second Anglo Sikh War] truly formidable.” That is why the British kept her in the high-security prison in Chunar Fort. I also looked at Lady Login’s diaries for information on Maharani Jindan’s stay in England. Based on these historical sources, I created her story. I drew upon my imagination to portray her emotions when she falls in love. I also imagined details of her daily life in the zenana as the new queen of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, whom most of the other queens hated because she was his favourite. I imagined how she must have felt as a young widow when the Maharaja dies, leaving her with a child who is barely a year old. I also imagined her anguish when the British separated her from her young child without even allowing her to say goodbye and exiled and imprisoned her.
What are the challenges behind retelling a not-sofamous story?
The challenges lie in being able to balance history and imagination, as I discussed, and also in keeping the story moving briskly while focusing attention on the main character and the special moments of her life, which show how she changes and grows. There were so many wars and intrigues in the Lahore Palace, but I had to present all of them as Maharani Jindan would see them. I had to allow her to be confused and show the reader why she makes mistakes at times.
Would you agree if I say that she is a flawed queen? Yet, what makes her a great queen, in your opinion?
Yes, she is definitely a flawed, very human character. Yet, the mistakes she makes come out of love or family loyalty. For instance, after the Khalsa Army executes her dear brother Jawahar ruthlessly, in front of her, she is determined to make them pay. Unfortunately, this leads her to push Punjab into the first Anglo Sikh War. But, throughout her life, she is brave and forthright. She breaks many of the customs that bound women of her time. She dispenses with the veil, sits in open court, and deals directly with the army. She is outspoken in her criticism of the British, and even when they imprison her in Chunar Fort under terrible conditions so that she falls ill, she does not lose heart but creates an escape plan. I was very inspired by her indomitable spirit.
Why do you think brave queens like Jindan Kaur have never found the spotlight?
In the case of Maharani Jindan, one reason might be that the British created a huge and rather successful smear campaign against her, putting out stories about her immoral and lascivious lifestyle and her many lovers. They even suggested that Maharaja Dalip Singh was not the son of Maharaja Ranjit Singh but a palace water-carrier! Maybe these lies made people shy away from examining her life in detail.
Your books often revolve around female characters. What about these women like Draupadi, Sita and now Jindan Kaur, draw you to them?
I feel that putting the spotlight on strong, complex women who can be inspirations for us today is very important and also healthy for society. This has often been lacking in the past. Our Indian mythology and history have so many wonderful female role models — it is a pity to not make the most of them. I am particularly interested in presenting them as real women who have their strengths but also their weaknesses, who do amazing things but also make mistakes. Therefore, Draupadi in The Palace of Illusions is courageous but driven by revenge. Sita-ji in The Forest of Enchantments is a most loving and supportive wife but gets obsessed by the golden deer. And in The Last Queen, Maharani Jindan, though courageous and spirited, is blinded by her desire for revenge and plays into the hands of the British and her own treacherous generals. But, when disaster strikes, all of them draw on their deepest strengths and refuse to give up. They are the kinds of realistic role models that we need today.
Will we see you tell a story from a male character’s point of view?
Maybe! (Smiling). But, at the moment I am already researching another historical novel, based around India’s independence, with an intelligent, idealistic strong and stubborn woman at its centre.
What, according to you, constitutes a strong woman?
A strong woman is one who faces the difficulties that life hands her, with courage, who doesn’t waste her time bemoaning her fate, who intelligently takes stock of her options and puts her energies into making the best choice. Sita’s behaviour after she is banished to the forest while pregnant is a great example. She is heartbroken but does not waste her energies in lamenting or hating Ram. She focuses on bringing up her sons in the best possible way — and without bitterness. I learned a great deal from her as I wrote The Forest of Enchantments.
What amused me in the book is that the politics and the regressive ideologies continue to this day. What qualities of a leader make history?
You are right, so much time has passed, so much blood has been shed, and yet we don’t seem to have learned from our past mistakes. A great leader is one who not only puts the good of the country ahead of what he or she wants, but also has the foresight to see what dangers are lurking ahead. This is something Maharani Jindan learned from her husband, Maharaja Ranjit Singh, but unfortunately, she was not always able to employ it.
If Jindan Kaur was alive in present-day India, how would you envision her? How do you think she would have rewritten history?
One thing that Maharani Jindan, who truly loves her land and her people, realises (and discusses with Maharaja Ranjit Singh) is that if a kingdom is not united, if people of different backgrounds cannot come together in a common cause, then outsiders can take advantage of that. I think if she were alive today, she would speak out strongly about this and try to unite Indians of different backgrounds, classes and beliefs so that they can prosper together.
Is there any character from history or mythology you wish to write about?
There are so many. I am fascinated, for instance, by the character of Radha, who is mysterious and beguiling. I am also interested in women who took part in India’s struggle for independence, or women who are pioneers in their field, such as Kadambini Ganguly, one of the first women physicians of modern India.
Book: The Last Queen
Publisher: HarperCollins India
Pages: 354
Price: Rs 599
Chitra’s choice
For fun, I love reading mysteries and adventures. I also love historical fiction. When a book weaves all these together, I enjoy that greatly. For instance, Amitav Ghosh’s Ibis Trilogy, Eleanor Catton’s
The Luminaries and Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall have all given me many hours of pleasure.