Poet, Barrister and Administrator

Poet, Barrister and Administrator
By Narendra Luther
Friday, May 09, 1997 Channel 6


One of the notable figures of Hyderabad during the first half of 20th century Hyderabad was Nizamuddin Ahmed. He was born in 1871, to Rafat Yar Jung I, a noble of Hyderabad who served as subebdar (commissioner) of various divisions of Hyderabad. Nizamuddin Ahmed later became famous as Sir Nizamat Jung.

After matriculating in Hyderabad, he went to England where he graduated from the Trinity College, Cambridge, took a degree in law in 1891 and was later called to the Bar from the Inner Temple in 1895 when he was barely 24. On return, he set up practice in Chennai (then Madras) but had to return to Hyderabad because the State government wanted him to serve the State accordingly to the terms of the loan granted for his studies. In Hyderabad , he joined the Hyderabad Civil Service in 1893 and rose to the positions of eminence like the Home Secretary, Judge, and later Chief Justice of the State High Court.

At the time of the accession of Mir Osman Ali Khan as Nizam VII, he along with Maharaja Kishen Pershad was accused of conspiring against him. Nizamuddin was asked to become an approver but he turned down the offer scornfully and had the facts of the case conveyed to the Nizam. Later, it was discovered that the signatures had been forged. In 1920 he became the Political Secretary and later a member of the Executive Council of the Nizam till he retired in 1929. He was given the title of Nizamat Jung by the Nizam and was knighted by the British.

. His great merit is that besides being a distinguished civil servant he was also an outstanding poet in English who was first published abroad and in the Times Literary Supplement and the Poetry Quarterly of England.

Besides writing himself, he also translated some of the ghazals of Nizam VII and the samples given in D.F.Karaka’s book on the last Nizam called ‘The Fabulous Mughal’ were rendered into English by Sir Nizamat. In his Rural Lyrics he says :


“The little bird that made his nest
With its own little beak,
Has taught me more than learning’s lore
And gives me what I seek.

By instinct taught the builder’s art
To use with native skill,
It tells me of the wondrous powers
That God’s creation fill”.


He however, wrote poetry for pleasure not for publication :


“‘Twas not for fame, ‘twas not for praise
I poured my spirit into song.”


Sir Nizamat Jung was the first president of the poetry of Hyderabad which was established in the year 1921 and remained its president for many terms. Incidentally the Society is still alive and holds monthly meetings regularly. It not only encourages local poets but also discusses poems of poets from all over the world.

In 1915 he had an attack of asthma and it was suggested that he should stay in an open and elevated place like the Noubat Pahad which at that time was called ‘Kali Tedki.' Nizamat Jung bought about 5 acres of land from the Nizam for a sum of Rs.100 and started constructing a mansion for himself. It incorporated a combination of the architectural features of the of his college at Cambridge and the castles in Sir Walter Scott’s novels. For that he took a loan of Rs.100,000 from the government. He named it ‘Hill Fort’

In 1931, on retirement Nizamat Jung performed Haj and this caused a deep change in his outlook. He felt that he should not live in such a big mansion. The Nizam, on coming to know of his intention, offered to buy the property and asked about its price. Nizamat Jung replied that he had spent an amount of Rs.1 lakh. The Nizam asked what appreciation he would like to add to that. Nizamat Jung replied that there was no question of making a profit from his master. He further stated that out of the amount of one lakh rupees, a loan of Rs.30,000 for house building and Rs.3,000 for the purchase of the car should be deducted and the balance of Rs.67,000 might be paid to him. The building was therefore bought by the Nizam in 1932 at a cost of Rs.67,000 only.

It was converted into the official residence of the Junior Prince Maozzam Jah, who was the chairman, of the City Improvement Board set up in 1912.

During the period of the occupation of the building by the Junior Prince, the Hill Fort -- now called ‘Palace' became known for the extravagances and indulgences of the Prince which were later documented by Sidq Jaisi in his Urdu book ‘Darbar-e-Durbar’. I have translated it into English and called it ‘The Nocturnal Court’ since the Prince used to hold his ‘court ‘throughout the night and went to sleep early in the morning to wake up again in the evening. Incidentally, the Prince was also a poet in Urdu and sported the pen-name of ‘Shajih’. His poems are very popular and are often sung in evening parties even today

The building was taken over by government in 1948. After the formation of A.P. in 1956, it was leased to Ritz Hotels which has been running a hotel in it till recently when the lease expired. Not much changes have been made in the building after Prince Maozzam Jah left it in 1948.

Sir Nizamat, apart from his official position is known for his interest in poetry, philosophy and religion, his uprightness and austere living.

Sir Nizamat Jung died in 1954. A family wakf was established by him in 1940 and now it runs a library mainly comprising his books in a building in Barkatpura.


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Nimam'z shooting Match with The Archduke

Legends and Anecdotes of Hyderabad : 24

Nimam'z shooting Match with The Archduke
by Narendra Luther

No Nizam ever went out of India. Only the last two Nizams ventured out of Hyderabad to - Calcutta and - to Delhi. The prime minister of Hyderabad had to take special permission of the Nizam even to go out of the walled city of Hyderabad.

Prince Albert Victor visited Hyderabad in 1889. King George V while he was still Prince of Wales visited the State with his wife Mary in 1905. A special shikar trip was arranged for him and he was carried across a stream by an attender on his back.

Another important visitor was the Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria in 1893. He was heir-apparent to the throne of Austria and his murder in 1914 in Sarajevo triggered the First World War. The Archduke kept a diary of his travels and that diary was published in Vienna in 1895. It has been translated by Elizabeth-Al-Himrani.

According to his diary,the Archduke came from Bombay and went to the hunting camp in Tandur for a tiger hunt which, however remained unsuccessful. He says: "The Nizam is a tributary prince supervised by an English Resident and a British garrison under the pretense of protecting him". Anti-British feelings are thus kept under control. He rules over 214,000 square kilometers and eleven and a half million inhabitants.

"The Nizam, ranks first amongst the tributary princes of India. He bears the title of Nizam-ul-Mulk (Regulator of the State) which Aurangazeb, the Mughal King of Delhi (1658-1707) conferred on one of the ancestors of the Nizam. The Nizam and the nobles of his kingdom are of Mohammedan religion, whereas the rural population is mostly Hindu."

After the hunt, the journey continued by train to Hyderabad where Franz Ferdinand was received at the station by the Nizam and the English Resident, Sir Trevor Plouden.

The Archduke continues :

"The Nizam is 28 years old, of small, lean stature, has a black sparse beard and long hair reaching down to his shoulders; his face is yellowish, the small eyes are intelligent. Towards Europeans, he is reserved, even shy and very reticent. But vis-a-vis his subjects he is said to be able to behave very firmly. He is always dressed is European attire, usually in a black coat. The only thing he has retained of his indigenous costume is a turban-like cap of yellow cloth with a golden tassel (dastar). He never goes without this headgear. The Nizam seems to like the European dress and customs, modified in his own way, although in general he is not too fond of the Europeans which is understandable after the experiences he had with them."

At the Nizam's palace the visiting dignitary's staff was presented to the Nizam.

"After the Nizam and I had entered the palace, we sat down on two throne-like chairs which were placed adjacent to each-other. To the right of the Nizam, his staff took seats, and my retinue sat to the left of me, making a semicircle. I and Kinsky did most of the talking by recounting to the Nizam the pleasant stay in Tandur and by talking about Hyderabad and his army - unfortunately without being able to incite the ruler out of his unshakeable reticence, since he limited himself to a saying "Yes" occasionally.

Since both the Archduke and the Nizam were keen marksmen, the latter challenged the Archduke to a shooting competition a day after the tour of important sites.

"The Nizam who took pleasure in accompanying us everywhere had also climbed the (Golconda) fort with us and suddenly proposed a rifle match : to shoot bottles tossed into the air and clay balls. I agreed reluctantly because the Nizam is known as the best marksman in the whole of India. My staff persuaded me to accept the offer. First of all, several bottles were placed at a distance of 30 steps and clay balls the size of small apples were placed on their necks. We had to shoot the clay balls without hitting the bottle. The Nizam shot first and missed four clay balls; I followed, and hit three out of four, whereupon the Nizam and his retinue burst into a loud applause. Next to the bottles meant for the match, there were another 16 bottles. With boosted confidence I undertook to shoot at all of them, one after the other, and I succeeded to hit 15 while the Nizam looked on in growing amazement. Then we had four shots each hitting one bottle with each shot. Similarly, it went with tossed clay balls.

Now came the most difficult part, that is the shooting of rupees thrown into the air which have approximately the same size as our silver guilders. Each marksman had eight shots. The Nizam hit one, but I was lucky to hit three, though I had no experience of that earlier. The Nizam was very sporting and showed his appreciation although it was the first time that he had been beaten at this game. I must admit that deep inside I felt as proud as a lion."

The Archduke then visited the favourite summer resort of Asman Jah (Prime Minister 1884-94). In the courtyard there were 5 chained tiger cubs approximately one year old. Asman Jah had shot the mother-tiger the year before and brought home the cubs. By now they were pretty big, but very cute and lovely. They played like little kittens. They were tame so that one could fondle them. To my delight, the prime minister presented two of them to me, which I hope will reach Vienna alive and safely".

Incidentally, the translator of the travelogue, Ms. Al-Himrani checked the records of the Vienna Zoo and the keeper confirmed that two cubs had been donated to the zoo by the Archduke in 1893.

(I am grateful to Ms. Elizabeth-Al-Himrani for the notes and the diary and to Mrs. Frauke Quader for the translation from the original).

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Chloroform, Malaria And The Nizam

Legends and Anecdotes of Hyderabad : 23

Chloroform, Malaria And The Nizam
by Narendra Luther

The Sixth Nizam was a popular ruler. There are numerous stories and legends about his indulgences and his nocturnal rounds of the city to find out what people felt and talked about him and his rule. He claimed power to cure people of snake-bites and people were free to call for his help at any time of the day or night. Even today you can find people at his grave in the Mecca Masjid offering him floral tributes because someone in the family has been cured of a snake-bite by invoking his name - `Mehboob Pasha ki duhai'.

Two unusual events occurred during his reign. Both related to the field of medicine and for one of them credit must go in a large measure to the interest taken by that otherwise merry ruler.One of them reveals a hitherto unknown aspect of his personality - a patron of the advancement of science.

Chloroform
The first concerned the use of chloroform as an aid to surgery. Chloroform was discovered in 1831 but was first used in 1847 by Dr.James Simpson in Edinburgh. While hailing its advent, the medical men of London expressed a caution that its use constituted a risk to the heart of the patient. The Edinburgh School, on the other hand, held that it was entirely safe for the heart and that the risk of its use was to respiration. If care was not taken of that aspect, it might cause a choking of the breath.

Surgeon Major Edward Lawrie of Indian Medical Service was appointed principal of the Hyderabad Medical School and Superintendent of Afzalgunj Hospital (now Osmania General Hospital) in 1885. He was also concurrently the chief medical officer of the British Residency and personal physician to the Nizam. He served in that capacity upto 1901 when he retired. About 40,000 operations were performed in the Afzalgunj Hospital under his supervision by using chloroform as a general anesthetic. Lawrie was a believer in the theory of Dr. Simpson and was keen to prove its correctness. He persuaded the Nizam to pay for a scientific investigation into the controversy regarding the safety of the use of Chloroform. A Commission was accordingly set up. It consisted of Lawrie and three of his colleagues. They conducted a number of experiments on dogs and they confirmed Simpson's theory.Lawrie publicized the results enthusiastically.

The `Lancet', the renowned journal of the British Medical Association, London, pulled up Lawrie for rushing to conclusion on inadequate evidence.

Thereupon, Lawrie, with the approval of the Nizam, announced that a second Commission would be set up and he invited the editor of the `Lancet' to nominate an expert of his choice to serve on the Commission. The Nizam gave a grant of 1,000 pounds sterling to meet the travel expenses of the expert. The expert was also made a guest of the government during his stay in Hyderabad. The `Lancet' nominated Dr. T.L.Brunton as its representative to serve on the Commission which comprised, besides the members of the first Commission, three new members, one of whom was an Indian, Dr.Rustomji Hakim. The Commission sat for three months and conducted, in all, 600 experiments on different animals.

Such was the keenness of the interest of the Nizam in the project that on 29th November 1889, he himself visited the Afzalgunj Hospital and witnessed the administration of chloroform to three different animals -- a goat, a horse and a monkey.

The second Commission confirmed the findings of the first Commission that it was the care of respiration and not of heart that was crucial in the administration of chloroform. These findings were published in the `Lancet' and, in its issue of 21st June 1890, its editor expressed the gratitude of the medical profession to Nizam Mehboob Ali Khan `for the opportunity of scientific progress which his unbounded liberality has afforded'.

Later, in 1894 Lawrie proceeded to London along with some of his distinguished students - Dr.M.G.Naidu who incidentally, was the husband of Mrs.Sarojini Naidu, the `Nightingale of India', Dr. Mohammed Abdul Ghani and Dr.S.Malanna. The last was the father of General Srinagesh who later rose to become a Chief of Army Staff of India. After his retirement he became Principal of the Administrative Staff College of India and Governor of Andhra Pradesh. This team proceeded to England on 25th May, 1894 when the Hyderabad Chloroform Technique was demonstrated in a London hospital.

Dr. Lawrie retired from service in 1901 and returned to England. He died there in 1915. Nizam VII, Mir Osman Ali Khan sanctioned a life pension of 200 pounds per month to his widow as a gesture of good will and gratitude towards the yeoman's service rendered by the late Dr.Edward Lawrie to the citizens of Hyderabad and to the family of the Nizam.

Malaria Virus
The other event was of far greater significance and the man responsible for that was a multi-faceted genius. He was a poet, a novelist, a musician, a mathematician -- and a reluctant man of medicine. And it was in that last field that he made his great discovery.

Dr. Ronald Ross also a member of the Indian Medical Service isolated the malaria virus and discovered the process of its transmission in 1897. Had a ramshackle laboratory in Begumpet. For this he was awarded a Nobel prize in 1902. We have dealt with his story in earlier instalment (November, 1996 issue).

Mehboob Ali Khan's period thus came to identified with two important steps in the march of man to control disease. Dr. A. Ramachari has done considerable research and work to bring these two cases to the notice of the public.

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A Formidable Noble

Legends and Anecdotes of Hyderabad : 22

A Formidable Noble
by Narendra Luther

Mir Yawar Ali Khan, better known as Nawab Shahab Jung was the minister for police under the sixth Nizam, Mir Mehboob Ali Khan. He was a favourite of his and lived close to the Nizam's palace the `Purani Haveli'.

In the evening the Nawab's palace was lit by hundreds of candles and lamps which would turn night into day. There were two costly chandeliers in the drawing room, each with thirty-two lotuses engraved in gold and silver. They cast enormous light. The reason for such lavish lighting was that Shahab Jung did all his work at night. He received callers, gave interviews, instructed his offices and the managers of his estates only at night. The commissioner of police also briefed him and received his orders at that time.

With such a rush of all sorts of people - applicants, petitioners, respondents, lawyers, job-seekers - the atmosphere in the compound of his haveli resembled a fair. Petty vendors had opened stalls in the compound to cater to the needs of the people. But the thing for which Shahab Jung became a legend was the relay of liveried attendants from his office room to the private apartments to meet his needs. If for example, he asked for water, the order would travel from mouth - to - mouth loudly and in a sing-song manner to finally reach the pantry. The cook would fill a silver tumbler with water, put it on a silver tray and pass it on to the man next to him, announcing : "Water, Sir". This tray would then be relayed back with a loud declaration from each servant right upto the Nawab. The announcement was shrill enough to wake up the dozing lawyers.

After a while, Shahab Jung would ask for a paan. This time the demand would be relayed to the private apartments form where a lady would prepare the special paan and relay it back to the master. A demand for a cigar would be fulfilled similarly. This commotion continued throughout the night.

Early one morning, the Nizam happened to come up to his terrace to enjoy the cool breeze. Suddenly, he heard the shrill announcement: "Water, Sir" being repeated endlessly. The Nizam asked what this racket was all about. Nawab Shamsher Jung explained : "My Lord, Nawab Shahab Jung must have asked for water". The Nizam just smiled and kept quiet.

The next day, the Nizam summoned Shahab Jung. "Because of the din and pother in your mansion throughout the night, I can't sleep. Why don't you shift your residence ?", asked the ruler.

Shahab Jung got up and submitted with folded hands, "This slave has only one humble abode, Sire. If he leaves it, where will he take shelter ? My Lord, on the other hand, has scores of palaces. If this servant of his was in that situation, he would have instantly complied with the orders of His Highness." The Nizam caught the hint and kept quiet.

A Matter of Dignity :
Once a committee of the nobles of the state was slated for meeting under the Nizam. Unable to go, he asked his chief secretary, Moulvi Ahmed Hussain to deputize for him. The Moulvi informed all members of the committee about the Nizam's orders and proceeded to conduct the meeting.

Thereupon Nawab Shahab Jung got up and said it was inconceivable that a paid servant of the State should preside over a committee of nobles. Turning to the chief secretary , he said : "This committee comprises all the leading nobles of the State. You may be getting a salary of three thousand rupees but you are nevertheless an employee. You can't therefore preside over this meeting." The chief secretary protested that he was merely carrying out the orders of His Highness. Shahab Jung said he would answer the Nizam suitably but the chief secretary should withdraw.

The Nizam was incensed on hearing about the incident. He asked the delinquent Nawab in great anger : "What audacity? You did not care for my orders and sent away my representative !"

Bending low, the minister submitted , "My Lord, that committee consisted of all the nobles of Hyderabad. How could this slave allow the indignity of letting a paid employee sit amongst them ?"

The Nizam said, "The nobles are all my creatures. I can put my shoe on anyone's head."

The Nawab persisted, "This humble servant is fully aware of that. But My Sovereign, the only fit place for the blessed shoe is the head of Shahab Jung. Your Highness can't place it anywhere else."

The explanation pacified the Nizam. The Nawab returned home triumphant.

The Police Commissioner Fined

Once, for some infraction on the part of Akbar Jung, the Police Commissioner, the Minister imposed a fine of one rupee on him. The Nizam, on coming to know about it, asked Shahab Jung why he had done that when he knew that the Police Commissioner was his trusty and well-wisher. Shahab Jung said he would reconsider his orders. Coming back to the office, he ordered: " Half the fine remitted. Let him pay half-rupee." And the Commissioner had to comply.

The Fall of Shahab Jung :

Shahab Jung's preeminence did not survive the accession of Nizam VII. The story goes that some of the nobles showed reluctance to acknowledge the authority of Nizam VII. He mentioned about this to Shahab Jung. The latter said not to worry. "I will come to the court late tomorrow. Your Highness may rebuke me for that. That would serve as a deterrent to others." But when, the Nizam started mock-reprimanding him, he really lost his temper and used foul language. Nawab Shahab Jung felt so humiliated that he withdrew completely and never ever came out of his mansion. Having lived out his life in reclusion, he emerged from his mansion enclosed in a coffin and nobody could see his face !

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'JOSH' in Hyderabad

Legends and Anecdotes of Hyderabad : 21

'JOSH' in Hyderabad
by Narendra Luther

Dagh was the first poet of note to come to Hyderabad. He became the poetic preceptor of the Sixth Nizam. Jaleel Manikpuri succeeded him and had the unique distinction of being the `ustad' of two Nizam. Urdu poets and men of letters from `Hindustan', as the British India was then called by the people of Hyderabad, flocked to the city in search of fortune.

That was especially so after the establishment of the Osmania University in 1918 which had Urdu as its medium of instruction. That gave rise to the need for large-scale translation of books from English into Urdu in various subjects. For that purpose a Bureau of Translation was set up in the University.

The last Nizam and Maharaja Kishen Pershad, twice premier of the State, besides being poets themselves, were also patron of letters.So was the Junior Prince, Muazzam Jah. Many poets and literatures were therefore attracted to the city which was referred to as `the bride amongst the cities of India. Some other nobles also vied with each other in extending their patronage to literary figures. In the early part of 20th century Hyderabad could boast of the best roll of honours amongst poets in India.

One of the most famous and interesting poets to come to Hyderabad was Shabir Hasan Khan `Josh Malihabadi'. Born in U.P. in 1898 in a well-to-do landed family, he was descended from a line of poets. He had socialist leanings and was fiercely anti-British. He was known as the `poet of the revolution' in India. He was a fire - brand poet with a rare mastery of vocabulary which he employed to protest against cant and oppression. Given below are two samples from his famous poems :

Ek dil, aur yeh hajoom-e-sogawari, haae, haae!

Yeh sitam, ai sangdil sarmayadari, haae, haae!

(One poor heart, and a flood of sorrows, alas, alas, O God !

How despotic is your reign, O Capitalism, alas !)

Ai khuda, Hindustan par yeh nahusat ta kuja ?

Aakhir is jannat pe dozakh ki hakoomat ta kuja ?

(How long, O Lord, will this land lie under an evil spell ?

How long, will this paradise bear the yoke of hell ?)

(Translation by Prof. K.C.Kanda)

According to his autobiography, `Yadon ki Baraat,' Josh had a dream in 1922 in which Prophet Mohammed, pointing towards the Nizam, told him that he would live under his patronage for 10 years. When his wife heard about his dream, she started coaxing him to go to Hyderabad. In 1924 Josh, armed with letters of recommendation from the leading poets of India, like Dr. Iqbal and Akbar Allahabadi addressed to Maharaja Kishen Pershad landed in Hyderabad. The Maharaja was out of job at that time but he recommended him to Akbar Hydari, then finance minister who had worked under him. When Josh went to see him, Hydari showed him a number of panegyrics which poets had composed on his getting knight-hood. Sir Akbar asked him whether he could also show his poetic skills likewise. Josh was enraged and made a very offensive remark about those who were honoured thus by the British. That killed his chances. But he was able to meet the Nizam through the efforts of Nawab Imad-ul-Mulk who told the Nizam about Josh's dream. Flattered by that, the Nizam appointed him in the Bureau of Translation of the Osmania University. He served there for about 10 years and according to him and contemporary accounts, enjoyed himself thoroughly.

Once, on a birthday of the Nizam, an editor of a local paper asked Josh to write a poem for the occasion. Instead of eulogizing the Nizam, as was expected, Josh concluded the poem by suggesting that he (Josh) should be hailed. This was followed by a poem against the feudal system which was recited in a gathering of some of the leading nobles of Hyderabad. The report of that recitation reached the Nizam. Because of these acts of insolence, Josh was sacked and asked to leave the state within 15 days.

Here the account given by Josh differs from that contained in the archives of the State as revealed by Dr. Dawood Ashraf a former Research Officer in the State Archives. According to Josh, the Nizam was keen to pardon him and sought a formal apology from him. This, the latter declined to tender. The Archives, however, show that though Josh submitted abject apologies and offered what the Nizam called a `lame excuse' of high fever for his impertinence. However, the Nizam did not relent. It was a rule in Hyderabad that those who were expelled from the State were given a pension of Rs.100 a month for life. Josh was also given the benefit of that. However, since he did not have enough money even to meet his travel expenses, an advance of Rs.1000 was sanctioned by the same Sir Akbar Hydari to whom he had been so rude and insulting when he had come to the State a decade earlier.

In 1943 Josh petitioned the Nizam to be permitted to visit Hyderabad. This request was rejected. In November, 1947 he repeated the request in order just to "see his friends and visit places which haunt me in my dreams". This too was rejected. In a `grapes-are-sour' vein, Josh wrote back saying it was all to the good. "In any case a visit before the revolution wouldn't have been enjoyable"

Nehru and Azad were amongst the admirers of Josh. He was given the job of editor of `Aajkal' Urdu monthly of the directorate of publication of the Government of India. He was also awarded Padma Bhushan.

In 1956 he migrated to Pakistan but was disillusioned there since he didn't get the material favours and honours which were presumably promised to him.

He died a frustrated man in Pakistan in 1982 missing both the country of his birth, and his adoption.

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Ustad To Two Nizams

Legends and Anecdotes of Hyderabad : 20

Ustad To Two Nizams
by Narendra Luther

Dagh was the first to become the `ustad' of Nizam VI. His story has been narrated earlier. Dagh died in 1905, but none was appointed to fill his vacancy. Hafiz Jaleel Hassan `Jaleel' Manikpuri came to the city in 1900, and like Dagh had to wait for a long time before fortune smiled on him. The story of his appointment in 1909 is interesting.

Maharaja Kishen Pershad, the Prime Minister of Hyderabad, had organized a mushaira on the occasion of the jubilee of Nizam VI in 1905. The Nizam, Mir Mehboob Ali Khan himself attended it. All the leading poets attended it.

Since it was a special jubilee mushaira, only qasida, that is odes of praise in honour of the Nizam, were to be recited. The length of each poem was restricted to 12 couplets. A tall candle in a gold stand with the personal emblem of Kishen Pershad was brought by a liveried attendant and kept in the centre. Overhead hung a giant chandelier. The walls of the hall had life-size mirrors in gilded frames. The host said a few words of welcome to his ruler, congratulated him on his silver jubilee and wished him many more. After that the master of ceremonies gave a brief introduction of all the poets. As each poet was introduced, he got up and made seven salaams to the royal guest. Then, the proceedings began.

Normally, a mushaira is a loud affair and there is no dearth of praise even from rival poets by way of professional courtesy. But somehow this session was going flat. There was no special applause; no shouts for encore. After a while the Nizam who sat impassively reclining against a bolster, whispered something to the host. Kishen Pershad, in an attempt to enliven the proceedings, broke the order of roll-call and invited the new-comer Jaleel to recite his poem. He was an instant success. The Nizam who was almost dozing off with boredom sat up and uttered an exclamation of praise "Wah. Well done." Everyone else followed him vociferously.

Jaleel could not cope with shouts of praise and he had to stop mid-way at every line to acknowledge the cheers by salaaming with his right hand and in response to shouts for reiteration, he had to repeat his lines - some, many times. When the sitting was over at 4 a.m., and the poets started leaving, Jaleel was asked to stay back. The Nizam wanted to hear the poem again. He liked it very much.

After about a year, at a ceremony in his palace for the start of teaching of the holy Quran to a prince, Mehboob had composed a poem but wasn't satisfied with it. He was stuck on some word. He asked Jaleel for help. Many drafts were made. Only the fourth attempt satisfied him.

A few days later Jaleel was appointed royal tutor on a salary of five hundred rupees a month. He was also appointed a royal companion and given the title of `Fasahat Jung'.


When Mehboob passed away in 1911 and Mir Osman Ali Khan succeeded him, Jaleel's appointment was renewed. So he became the new ruler's tutor and companion as well.

As the official poet, Jaleel was required to attend the court daily and had to compose at least one poem every day and some times more on different occasions of all sorts. The Nizam used to send his compositions to Jaleel's house through a special messenger in a sealed cover. They had to be returned corrected the same day. The bearer would wait on till they were corrected. Some days a dozen poems would come one after the other. The ustad had to be available from around 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. because the special courier could come any time.

The Nizam used to write with a pencil, on scraps of paper and on both sides. Sometimes he wrote on the flap of a cigarette packet if that was the only thing handy at that time. Apart from the needed corrections which had to be made in very respectful terms, the ustad's opinion had also to be given on each couplet and all possible praise showered on those which needed no amendment. Remarks like "Excellent, Congratulations." "Superb. What an idea!" "One in a million; My humble praise", etc. were made in the margin or below a given word or phrase. In addition, a general assessment had to be given on the poem as a whole and it had better be positive. While the poem was written in pencil, the amendments were made in red ink. They were published in the front page of local Urdu papers - corrections and all.

The ustad could not give instructions to anybody else except Kishen Pershad.

In the royal sittings, only the Nizam's poetry was recited and the ustad was expected to make instant corrections, if necessary. Jaleel had also to help Nizam compose chronogram in verse wherever the occasion demanded. Sometimes he would give a line and the ustad had then to compose one or more poems on the basis of the meter and rhyme of the given line.

The job of the ustad was therefore not easy and required perhaps more than the mastery of prosody, a degree of astuteness to survive. But Jaleel did well and served successfully two Nizams from 1909 till his death in 1946. In due course his salary was increased from five hundred to one thousand rupees a month. By a strange accounting procedure, the salary was paid from the State exchequer but routed through the personal estate office of the Nizam -- the Sarf-e-khas. Once, as a measure of economy, the salaries of all Sarf-e-khas employees were reduced by half. Jaleel too suffered the cut. Then, some auditor pointed out that the cut would not apply to Jaleel because he was being paid by the State. The Sarf-e-khas was only a disbursing agency and all the while it was receiving the full amount from the State exchequer. The cut was restored but the arrears were not paid to him. The Nizam told Jaleel not to worry; the arrears some one lakh rupees - were intact; they were with him as his trust, and would be paid to him whenever he needed them. Jaleel never got the amount.

One of his famous couplet is :

Baat saaqi ki naa taali jaayegi,
Ki hai taubaa tod daali jaayegi
(The cup-bearer's offer won't be disregarded My resolve not to drink, shall be violated)

One of Jaleel's sons, Ali Ahmed `Jaleeli' is a respected poet of Hyderabad and has done a doctorate on his father's life and work.

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The Rambagh Temple

Legends and Anecdotes of Hyderabad - 18 :


The Rambagh Temple
by Narendra Luther


We have seen (The Legend of Ramdas - November, 1995 issue) how the temple at Bhadrachalam was built during the rule of last Qutb Shahi ruler, Tana Shah. The Tahsildar of Bhadrachalam had misappropriated some of the state revenues to supplement his resources to build the now famous temple. For this he was imprisoned. But, according to a legend, the dues against him were cleared by Rama and Lakshmana during a nocturnal visit to the Sultan. He therefore, pardoned and released him and also offered to reinstate him. After that a presentation of jewels used to be made to the temple on every Ram Navami day. This practice continued under the Nizams also and even today the chief minister of the State presents the jewels to the deities.

An interesting and indeed surprising incident occurred during the rule of the third Nizam, Nawab Sikandar Jah (1803-29).

The Kayasths were the trusted and prominent civil servants of the Nizams. The Kayasths had come with the first Nizam from the North and settled down in Hyderabad. They adopted the ways of the ruling elite and served as a bridge between the rulers and the subjects in all matters. They made good in their career and some of them rose to high civil and military positions and even to nobility.

One such who rose to nobility in the 19th century was Bhavani Pershad. He was in charge of the salaries of the employees of the royal palaces. When he became prosperous, and was given the title of Raja, he decided to celebrate it by constructing a temple dedicated to Rama. It was constructed near Attapur about 15 kms from the city (off the road which leads from near the Nehru Zoological Park to Rajendra Nagar).

The story goes that the idol of Rama installed there was originally commissioned by Raja Som Bhopal of Gadwal for his own temple. Gadwal was a Hindu samsthan or a tributary estate in Raichur district of the old Hyderabad State. It consisted of the town Gadwal and 214 villages spread over an area of 1384 sq. kms. It is now part of the Mahboobnagar district of A.P. The Gadwal estate had been in existence long before the Hyderabad State came into being. While the idol was being sculpted, the Raja had a dream in which he was told to retrieve an idol from the bottom of a well and install it in the temple.

At the same time, Raja Bhavani Pershad also dreamt of the idol commissioned by Raja Som Bhopal. He told the latter about his dream and made a request for the gift of the idol for his temple. Som Bhopal readily obliged since in his own temple, he had installed the idol which he had been retrieved form the bottom of the well.

When the temple was ready, Raja Bhavani Pershad invited the third Nizam, Nawab Sikandar Jah to perform the ceremony of the installation of the idols of Rama, Sita and Lakshamana. The Nizam agreed and the ceremony was performed in 1812. From then on a regular annual `yatra' takes place there on the Rama Navami day. Not only that, the Nizam also granted a jagir for the maintenance of the temple and sanctioned regular payment for persons who looked after the temple.

The archives of the A.P. Government contain two documents relating to this temple. One is from Daftar-e-Istifa dated 6th Rabi-ul-Awwal, 1231 Hijri corresponding to 1816 A.D. This sanctions a daily grant of two rupees to the persons who looked after the temple. The other, issued on 28th Safar, 1239 Hijri corresponding to 1822 A.D. is in favour of Raja Bhavani Pershad and is for the amount of Rs. 2,093, eight annas and four pies (a little more than Rs. 2,093.50 in today's currency) to meet the expenditure for maintenance on the temple.

Farkhunda Buniyad :

Both these documents refer to Hyderabad as the Farkhunda Buniyad suba (province). This was the title given to the city after it was founded by Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah in 1591 A.D. The original name of the city was Bhagnagar, `Farkhunda Buniyad' was the chronogrammatic title in Persian which connoted the year of its completion - 1596 A.D.Incidentally, both `Bhagnagar' and `Farkhunda Buniyad' mean the same thing - `The Fortunate City'.

It is both surprising and inspiring that a Hindu temple should have been inaugurated by a Muslim. Incidentally, this was not held to affect the faith of either the idol - worshippers (Hindus) or those who professed to be breakers of idols (Muslims). This sort of harmony between the two communities was quite common. This and similar acts reinforced the spirit of tolerance and communal harmony bequeathed to the city by its founder, the poet-king Muhammad Quli Qutb Shah who, in one of his poems, said :

There is no kafir or Muslim;
The basis of all religions is love.

Tana Shah, the last ruler of the Qutb Shah dynasty had a Hindu prime minister. He also granted a jagir for the preservation of the Kuchipudi dance form. That is another story.

This spirit became so characteristic of the city that it was widely cited everywhere. In dress, manner of speaking and general behaviour, one could not make out whether a person was a Hindu or a Muslim. This harmony was disturbed only towards the later part of the first half of the 20th century when some communal riots took place and later the Razakar movement raised its ugly head. That however, is to be seen as an aberration in the harmonious flow of history of this city founded on love and built, in the words of its founder, "as a replica of heaven".

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