This is the maqbara of Syed Shah Raziuddin or Shah Raju Qattal-II – the Sufi mystic who predicted and later placed the last king of Qutb Shahis, Abul Hasan aka Tana Shah on the throne. It soars into the sky and can be spotted from Chandulal Baradari and most of the Old City areas near Bahadurpura.
The noise and hub-hub of the chaotic streets of Misrigunj outside the periphery of the graveyard recedes and then disappears altogether as we pass by the rows of rose petal sellers. The air smells of jasmines, lilies and roses. Surrounded by graves and tombstones the dome is the centrepiece of attention. Men and women come park their vehicles and walk inside the tomb to pray at the grave of the mystic for wish fulfillment.
Inside, lit by CFL lamps that cast an eerie orange and yellow glow, is the grave proper covered with a green chader with red border. Raised around it is an open quadrangle of exquisitely carved wooden pillars painted in pink, white, yellow and green. Even the unlit Bohemian chandeliers look colourful. The women stay outside, except for an occasional older woman who walks in and sits in one of the corners. There are other men, reading or reciting a prayer with rocking motion.
Shah Raju II belonged to the Khwaza Bande Nawaz silsila (tradition). His father had a bitter fallout during Mohammed Qutb Shah’s time when he played a role in courtly intrigue. Shah Raju played it safe. He kept to himself in the dargah when Abul Hasan walked in and started playing the errand boy for the Sufi mystic. And one day, Shah Raju ensured that Abul Hasan was married to the last daughter of Abdullah and ascended the throne.
The grand tomb is Abul Hasan’s tribute to his master who passed away on March 13, 1681.
From inside, the dome is resplendent and grand on the outside, is the square covered area raised on 110 stone pillars that rise to nearly 30 feet. Here people come, stay, cook, eat and soak in the atmosphere. The tomb itself soars to a height of over 90 feet and at one point of time it used to be topped by a golden spire (kalash), reportedly donated by Asaf Jah-I Nizam Ali Khan. Nizam Nasir Ud Dowlah’s mother Fazelat Unnisa Begum paid for the wooden chabutra that surrounds the grave of Shah Raju.
The smell of ood (agarwood) wafts in and a gentleman starts talking about Shah Raju as if he just left the building. “This is 334 years old. The Urs will be celebrated in a few days between November 28 and 30. People from across the country come for the Urs and this place becomes a universe of wish fulfilment,” says Chotey Miyan, the caretaker of one of the tombs outside the dome, as he points to an open tomb which has a green grilled opening. “He was a pupil of Shah Raju and was a Sanskrit scholar,” says Chotey Miyan.
But as you raise your head, all the thoughts of piety and spirituality disappear after seeing the condition of the dome. A layer of plaster has collapsed raining debris all around. “See that huge rock on the slab? We removed a few lorry loads of the debris. While the inner portion has been repaired, the outer portion is awaiting repairs,” says Chotey Miyan.
A huge swarm of feral rock pigeons have made the rocky crevices their home, a few raucous parrots join in the squabble for one of the homes. When the pigeons fly and wheel around the dome, it is a sight. But their droppings create a noxious odour that refuses to go away.
Near the graves, where once there was flower bed of abbas (Mirabilis Jalopa or Chandrakantha in Telugu), there are weeds. Reportedly, Shah Raju picked up henna leaves from here, ground them and applied to Abul Hasan’s palm to suggest his impending marriage to the princess. For good measure, he used the crushed flowers of abbas to add a dash of violet to the red. Now there are only weeds and gravestones between which there is no space to walk.