This is Mah Laqa Bai (1768-1824), born Chanda Bibi, (also known as Mah Laqa Chanda). She was an Indian Urdu poet, courtesan, warrior and philanthropist. She was the first female poet in India to have a diwan (collection of poems) published.
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She was born in Aurangabad, present-day Maharashtra. Her mother was called Raj Kunwar and was a courtesan from Rajputana. Her father was a military official at Mughal Emperor Muhammad Shah's court.
Chanda Bibi was adopted by her maternal aunt, Mehtaab Ma, who was a famous courtesan and mistress to Nawab Rukn-ud-Daula, a Prime Minister and Nizam of Hyderabad.
Growing up, the young girl had the finest education available, and she excelled in horse riding and archery. She also studied music, dancing, and poetry.
It was second Nizam (rulers of Hyderabad), Mir Nizam Ali Khan, who have her the name “Mah Laqa Bai", meaning “madam moon face.” Mah Laqa Bai was so skilled in archery & riding that she fought alongside Nizam II dressed as a man. In this painting, she is shown hunting
She never married and was the mistress of the Nizams and various wealthy patrons.
She was rewarded with considerable lands. She was also appointed to the omarah, the highest level nobility achievable, and frequently consulted by the rulers of the state on policy matters.
Mah Laqa Bai built an enviable collection of rare books and commissioned a library. She also founded an education centre for girls. She sponsored and supervised the publication of Mahnama, a historical book about the revival period of Hyderabad State.
She had a significant influence of poetry, dancing, and singing. She performed her poetry publicly, in a mushaira (poetic symposium) - something only men were allowed to do.
When she died in 1824, she bequeathed her most of her vast wealth to homeless women. She was buried with her mother in a tomb she had commissioned in 1792.
On the door of her mausoleum is an inscription in Urdu. It reads...
On the door of her mausoleum is an inscription in Urdu. It reads...
“Cypress of the garden of grace and rose-tree of the grove of coquetry,
an ardent inamorata of Hydar and suppliant of Panjtan.
When the tidings of the advent of death arrived from God,
she accepted it with her heart, and heaven became her home.”
an ardent inamorata of Hydar and suppliant of Panjtan.
When the tidings of the advent of death arrived from God,
she accepted it with her heart, and heaven became her home.”
“The voice of the invisible speaker called for her chronogram,
Alas! Mah Laqa of the Deccan departed for heaven”
Alas! Mah Laqa of the Deccan departed for heaven”
In 2010, Professor Scott Kugle, an academic who has researched the life and works of Mah Laqa Bai, successfully applied to to US government through the Consulate General's office in Hyderabad, to restore her tomb to its former glory.
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thebetterindia.com/119836/hyderab…
