Born into privilege but increasingly defined by purpose, a new generation of royal women is reshaping the meaning of inherited status in contemporary India. Rather than retreating into nostalgia or ceremonial roles, many have become advocates for causes ranging from women’s empowerment and education to conservation, craft revival, community development, and cultural preservation. Their work reflects a distinctly modern form of royal feminism—one that seeks to translate influence into impact, and inherited visibility into public service. Across India, the idea of royalty has outlived the institution itself. Titles were abolished decades ago, privy purses withdrawn, and political authority dissolved into a democratic order that left little formal space for kings and queens. And yet, in cities like Udaipur, in the forests of Odisha, and in the hinterlands of Punjab, the physical and cultural imprint of royal families endures—visible in palaces, archives, and in the expectations that still attach to certain names.
What has changed is how that inheritance is being understood. For a younger generation, it presents itself as a collection of responsibilities and resources. Some have turned to hospitality, opening ancestral homes to paying guests. Others have established foundations, conservation initiatives, educational programmes, or enterprises connected to local economies. Across regions, these women are moving beyond symbolic inheritance to active participation—reimagining heritage through entrepreneurship, cultural work, and community engagement. They are not preserving history behind glass, but placing it in motion: adapting textiles, opening palaces to public dialogue, supporting craft ecosystems, and creating opportunities for future generations. Their legacy lies not in what they have received, but in what they choose to build.
All in One: Mrinalika M Bhanj Deo
Mayurbhanj, Odisha
In Mayurbhanj, where The Belgadia Palace rises against the forests leading to Simlipal National Park, Mrinalika M Bhanj Deo has redefined what inherited legacy can mean in contemporary India. Alongside her sister, she transformed the former royal residence into a heritage homestay. The Belgadia Palace has become a gateway to the cultural, ecological and social fabric of Mayurbhanj, introducing visitors to indigenous food traditions, local crafts, community experiences, and the remarkable biodiversity of the region. Under her stewardship, the palace has evolved into a living cultural space where heritage is not preserved behind glass but experienced through meaningful engagement with local communities. Guests are encouraged to explore the region beyond the palace walls, discovering traditional crafts, local cuisine and the unique relationship between the people of Mayurbhanj and the forests surrounding Simlipal.
Yet it is through the Mayurbhanj Foundation that Bhanj Deo’s vision has perhaps found its most far-reaching expression. Established to create sustainable and inclusive development across the region, the Foundation works across education, livelihoods, environmental awareness, sports development, and craft preservation. Its initiatives are designed to strengthen local communities. “Real change happens through partnership,” she explains. “You have to listen to communities and understand what they need before offering support.”
The Foundation’s work reflects her belief that heritage cannot be separated from the people who sustain it. Whether supporting artisans, creating opportunities for young people, encouraging environmental stewardship or promoting local entrepreneurship, the organisation seeks to build long-term resilience rather than short-term interventions. Its projects embody a model of development that places communities at the centre of preservation and progress alike.
Palace Palate: Seherinder Kaur
Patiala, Punjab
For Princess Seherinder Kaur, heritage is best preserved not through monuments or memorabilia, but through traditions that continue to be lived, practiced, and shared. Among her most meaningful pursuits is the revival of heritage recipes—many of them drawn from royal kitchens and family archives—that might otherwise have disappeared with time. She has spent years rediscovering dishes passed down through generations, tracing the stories behind them and bringing them back into contemporary kitchens. “Each recipe carries a memory attached to it: a person, a moment, a place,” she says.
For Seherinder, recipes are not static heirlooms but living narratives that reveal how families, communities, and cultures evolved over time. By revisiting forgotten dishes and documenting their histories, she is helping ensure that culinary traditions remain accessible to future generations. To this end, she organises talks and workshops to raise awareness about lost recipes. She is now looking forward to one of her most ambitious cultural projects: a coffee-table book dedicated to signature recipes that have been passed down through generations of her family. Through her work in food, Princess Seherinder Kaur is demonstrating that tradition remains relevant only when it continues to evolve.
She and Hers: Mrigesha Kumari
Nagaur, Rajasthan
For over 15 years, the Khimsar Foundation has been quietly transforming lives across the villages surrounding Khimsar in Rajasthan’s Nagaur district. Established with a commitment to community welfare and inclusive development, the foundation has evolved into a multifaceted rural initiative focused on women’s livelihoods, traditional crafts, education, health, environmental stewardship, and social welfare. At the heart of the Foundation’s work is a belief that sustainable development begins by recognising and strengthening the skills that already exist within a community. One of its most successful initiatives emerged from this philosophy through a programme designed to create economic opportunities for rural women. The initiative began with the distribution of sewing machines. “What we realised,” says Mrigesha Kumari, “was that the skill already existed. These women knew tailoring and stitching. What they lacked was a platform.”
The foundation responded by creating a home-based enterprise model that allowed women to work from within their own communities. What began as a livelihood programme gradually became a catalyst for confidence and social change. Women who once hesitated to engage in public spaces now participate in meetings, collaborate with one another, and take an active role in managing their work. The economic stability generated through these initiatives has had a ripple effect throughout the region, improving access to education, healthcare, and nutrition for numerous families while fostering greater financial independence among women.
Helping Hostess: Padmaja Kumari Parmar
Udaipur, RajasthanBhopal, Madhya Pradesh
In Udaipur, Padmaja Kumari Parmar is redefining what it means to inherit a royal legacy. At the heart of her work is Friends of Mewar, the philanthropic organisation through which she has championed initiatives in preventive healthcare, women’s empowerment, education, livelihood generation, and cultural preservation across the region.
For her, heritage is most meaningful when it improves lives. Through Friends of Mewar, she has helped create programmes that expand access to healthcare, support women in achieving economic independence, and preserve traditional knowledge systems that are increasingly at risk of disappearing. Her work reflects a belief that legacy must remain connected to the communities that sustain it. That philosophy is deeply personal. “My grandfather rarely spoke in grand speeches,” she says. “His values were expressed through his choices.” Those lessons continue to inform her own approach to leadership.
While philanthropy remains central to her efforts, Padmaja Kumari has also been playing an active role within the HRH Group of Hotels, helping shape a model of heritage hospitality that is rooted in authenticity and cultural engagement. “Visitors today are not simply looking for opulence,” she says. “They are seeking authenticity.”
She adds that one of the most valuable lessons she carried back from her hospitality career was the understanding that “true luxury is never about indulgence. It is about empathy and consistency.” Those principles have informed experiences across Udaipur’s palace properties, where storytelling, cultural immersion, and genuine human connection take precedence over spectacle.
Growing up within the City Palace also shaped her understanding of responsibility. “The palace was always a living institution,” she reflects. “It instilled in me a sense that legacy is not simply inherited—it must be renewed through actions that honour the past while remaining relevant to the present.”
Riding High: Zoha Jung
Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh
For Zoha Jung, The Backwater Sanctuary is more than a rescue centre—it is a response to a systemic welfare crisis facing horses across India. Nestled on the edge of the Bandipur Tiger Reserve, the sanctuary has emerged as a refuge for abandoned racehorses, injured working animals, and equines that have been neglected, exploited, or discarded when they are no longer considered useful. “Building and running this sanctuary has been both the beauty and the bane of my existence,” Jung says.
What began with the rescue of a single abandoned racehorse named Tsavo has grown into a comprehensive rehabilitation initiative dedicated to giving vulnerable equines a second chance at life. Today, The Backwater Sanctuary provides medical treatment, long-term care, rehabilitation, and safe retirement for horses that might otherwise face uncertain futures. The Sanctuary’s mission extends beyond rescue. Jung has become an outspoken advocate for reform within India’s equine industries, challenging systems that prioritise performance and profit over animal welfare. Through awareness campaigns, education, rehabilitation programmes, and hands-on intervention, she is working to create a more compassionate model for the treatment of horses across sporting, racing, and working environments.
Her vision for the future is ambitious. She hopes to expand The Backwater Sanctuary into a nationally recognised refuge capable of responding to equines in crisis across India while pioneering new approaches to rehabilitation, recovery, and long-term care. Jung’s commitment to the cause is deeply personal. She grew up between the aristocratic legacies of Bhopal, Pataudi, and Hyderabad’s Paigah dynasty and the forests bordering Bandipur, where wildlife and horses were an integral part of everyday life. Among her most cherished childhood memories are her ponies, Shampoo and Chocolate, galloping freely through the wilderness. “Watching them be utterly wild and free,” she recalls, “left a hoof-sized imprint on my heart.” That imprint has since evolved into a life’s mission. “There is never enough we can do when it comes to the welfare of others—human or animal,” she says. “My dream is for us to become the go-to sanctuary for equines in need across the country.”
Revive and Relive: Radhikaraje Gaekwad
Baroda, Gujarat
To speak with Radhikaraje Gaekwad is to encounter someone who sees heritage not as a relic of the past, but as a tool for social change. Her work is guided by the belief that legacy carries responsibility—one that must create opportunities for the communities, artisans, women, and marginalised groups whose lives remain intertwined with culture.
That philosophy finds one of its most visible expressions in Gazra Café, Gujarat’s first café run entirely by transgender staff. Conceived as more than a hospitality venture, the initiative was created to provide dignified employment while challenging entrenched social prejudices. For Radhikaraje, Gazra Café represents the possibility of using privilege and institutional influence to create meaningful inclusion. By offering professional opportunities in a welcoming public space, the café has become both a livelihood initiative and a powerful statement on visibility, acceptance, and social equity.
“For me, it is always about the human story,” she says. This commitment is equally evident in her association with the Maharani Chimnabai Stree Udyogalaya, where she has supported programmes aimed at sustaining traditional crafts while creating economic opportunities for women. Through exhibitions, collaborations, training initiatives, and market access programmes, the institution continues to strengthen artisan livelihoods while preserving skills that might otherwise disappear. “You lose a craft, you lose a community,” she says, articulating a philosophy that links cultural preservation directly to economic resilience.
At the Maharaja Fatesingh Museum, she has similarly worked to broaden public engagement with heritage. Through exhibitions, educational programming, and efforts to make collections more accessible, she has championed a vision of museums as living institutions that connect the past with contemporary audiences rather than simply safeguarding objects behind glass. Her preservation efforts also extend to Lakshmi Vilas Palace, where extensive archival work is underway. “We are documenting everything,” she says, referring to ongoing efforts to catalogue objects, traditions, photographs, and oral histories so they remain available to future generations.
At the heart of her work lies a belief that preservation and progress are not opposing forces. “It has to be both,” she says.
Scarf and Salutation: Sahebzadi Feroze Jahan Begum
Hyderabad, Telangana
Sahebzadi Feroze Jahan Begum is not interested in preserving heritage as a decorative relic. Instead, she is reinterpreting it—reshaping how inherited culture is worn, viewed, and understood in contemporary India. Through her revival of the khara dupatta, her visual storytelling, and her forthcoming fashion label, she is translating a layered Hyderabadi inheritance into forms that feel relevant rather than ceremonial.
At the heart of this effort is the khara dupatta itself. Once part of everyday dressing within her family, it has become largely confined to bridal wear. Begum’s intervention lies in bringing it back into contemporary life through lighter fabrics, modular styling, and adaptable silhouettes. The goal is not preservation for its own sake, but participation. The same philosophy informs her upcoming label, which will span a contemporary line and another rooted in traditional craftsmanship. What unites both is a commitment to authenticity without rigidity.
Her visual language works similarly. While images of khara dupattas against palace backdrops may evoke nostalgia, she resists reducing heritage to aesthetic romance. “For me, legacy is not about preserving a frozen image of the past,” she says. Instead, her work invites audiences to engage with history as something living and open to interpretation. “There’s a lot that today’s generation cannot even interpret clearly,” she reflects, acknowledging the growing distance between younger audiences and the histories they inherit.
Her understanding of legacy is also rooted in responsibility. “If I inherit anything meaningful, it is a sense of duty towards the people of Hyderabad,” she says, framing heritage not as privilege but as obligation. She often cites her great-grandfather’s contributions to education and architecture as examples of lasting civic impact, while warning against the distortions of historical memory. “In today’s world, everything is being manipulated,” she observes.
Even her interpretation of adab reflects this contemporary outlook. Rather than a formal code tied to another era, she sees it as a living ethic expressed through respectful disagreement, digital interactions, and everyday conduct.
“Nostalgia can be comforting, but it can also be limiting,” she says. The remark encapsulates her philosophy: the past is neither something to idealise nor discard, but something to engage with honestly, reinterpret thoughtfully, and carry forward with purpose.