Patna-native Apoorva Raj (19) reminisces about a time she went to the Red Fort as a child though she was unaware of the history of this monument, she was fascinated by the sheer magnificence of the structure.
Her father's passion for the past fuelled Raj's interest in Indian history which only grew with time. Hoping to share her love for India's opulent past with like-minded history enthusiasts, she launched 'The Wonder of Hindustan' (@thewonderofhindustan), a micro-blog on Instagram, in 2019.
Raj - a history student from Dyal Singh College, Pragati Vihar - had only one aim: to create a narrative of Indian history that goes beyond textbook facts and myths. "People have wrong notions about history. There are popular myths many believe in instead of the truth. I felt I needed to show people what real history looks like," she says.
India in her entirety
The Badshahi Masjid in Lahore, the architecture of which had been inspired by Delhi's Jama Masjid; Jodhpur's Mehrangarh Fort and how Maharaja Gaj Singh II had opened it to the public - these are just a few interesting facts you will be privy to after scrolling through this blog.
While many of these monuments have been visited by Raj herself, a few posts are the result of extensive research on history topics by referring to books and heritage websites, or post conversations with historians.
Mediaeval marvels
Raj mentions that her focus, in several vignettes, remains the 16th Century Mughal Emperor, Akbar. The third Mughal to rule mediaeval India, Akbar was famously known for his secular ideologies such as the abolishment of the Jizya Tax (a tax levied on non-Muslims residing in an Islamic state) and propounding the 'Din-i-Ilahi' (a syncretic religious tradition that focuses on a tolerant God).
Such aspects of this emperor are often highlighted in her blog. 'The Wonder of Hindustan', therefore, is a medium that encourages the reinforcement of secular beliefs. "There is a play at trying to remove Mughals from the country's history. How is that possible for people who ruled over India for about 300 years? A part of Indian history cannot be deleted just because some people are not in favour of it," she concludes.