“India is not the only country where momentous events are too often caused by insults to honour, or as a result of envy. Historians ignore this truth and indulge in vain speculation as to the causes and courses of agitations that shake up empires.” says Nicolass Manucci, one of the book's narrators.
Against the backdrop of 17th century India, we witness, in grand and simultaneously minute detail, the succession struggle following (and, in fact, during) Shah Jahan’s rule between his two worthy sons Dara shiloh and Aurangzeb.
“Your birth starts the process of dying”, prophesizes an ancient crone about the mighty Mughal empire. We follow the events of the struggle from two voices both prescient about the imminent demise of the empire, and who touch their accounts with a sense of the importance that will be placed on the events surrounding them in the pages of history. Nicolao Manucci and Francois Bernier, our narrators, are as starkly contrasting as can be, both in their personalities and in the sides they choose to align themselves with, united only by their naked ambitions and their colonial outlook on India.
Both these narrators take turns to provide narratives that fit into the jigsaw of the royal succession. While they have sworn to their honesty of their accounts, the authos beautifully brings out the unconscious manner in which our prejudices colour the way we view incidents. While Manucci is a carefree liberal who regards native Indians with mild amusement, Bernier is a serious, often pompous conservative who talks about Indian ‘idolators’ with open disdain. One for Prince Dara, and the other for Aurangzeb, the story of a bloody overthrow is no longer the dull uni-dimensional collection of facts presented to us in history textbooks.
What the author brings forth the best is his attention to detail to the lives and customs in times of the Mughal empire. From the windowpanes of the gentry's houses, attitudes to sexuality, religion and societal structures are presented in a manner that is understated yet precise. Royal harems are the hotbeds of gossip and palace intrigues, and homosexuality is widespread and accepted, even encouraged. When Bernier adopts an African boy for companionship, the prevailing assumption is that the act is primarily for sexual purposes. The game of political intrigues is less riveting, yet provides glimpses into the foibles and personal rivalries of Mughal royalty which are captivating and another rejoinder to history textbooks.
The text can be plodding, the story more interesting than its telling, with vast swathes of the book laborious to read. This makes what could be a possibly engrossing book closer to ordinary.
No comments:
Post a Comment