Jindan Kaur was the youngest wife of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the first Maharaja of the Sikh Empire, and the mother of the Empire's last Maharaja, Dalip Singh. She was renowned for her beauty, brain and brawn and was popularly known as Rani Jindan. After the demise of Ranjit Singh's first three heirs in quick succession, Dalip Singh was enthroned in September 1843 at the age of six. Jindan Kaur became Regent on her son's behalf. The wily Ranjit Singh could keep at bay the looming British expansonist threats to the Sikh kingdom that extended from the Hindukush to Kashmir. But that was not to be after the Mahraja passed away. The Sikhs lost the First Anglo-Sikh War and Rani Jindan was replaced in December 1846 by a Council of Regency under the control of a British Resident in Lahore.
Wary of her continued power and influence, however, she was imprisoned and exiled by the British, separating her from her son and deporting him to England where he was converted to Christianity. Rani Jindan was meanwhile viciously maligned by them who described her as a prostitute, seductress and the ‘Messalina of the Punjab’, a reference to the promiscuous third wife of Roman Emperor Claudius. Over thirteen years passed when Dalip Singh was finally allowed in January 1861 to meet his mother in Calcutta who then took her with him to England and where she remained until her death in Kensington, London on 1st August 1863 at the age of 46.
Though there have been a few books on this leg of history yet it seems that Rani Jindan hasn’t found more than a passing mention in popular historical narratives. She escaped attention of Late Khuswant Singh in his exhaustive works on the history of Sikhs. Navtej Sarna’s 'The Exile: A Novel' (2008), based on the Life of Maharaja Dalip Singh, only passingly referred to the protagonist's mother. William Dalrymple and Anita Anand’s 2016 book Koh-i-Noor, however, has a few pages on the enigmatic Jindan.
When in India for the release of her last book in 2020, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni could read William Dalrymple and Anita Anand's book which left an indelible mark on her: "I kept thinking about this woman. What bothered me was that so much has been written about her husband Ranjit Singh and their son Dalip Singh but they completely left her out of the stories." It was about time Divakaruni conceived the plot of her next book.
Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni has majorly been interested in woman-centric mythological fiction -- with Draupadi in ‘Palace Of Illusions’ (2008) and Sita in ‘The Forest Of Enchantments’ (2019). With 'The Last Queen' she has moved from mythology to history.
Narrated in the first person, The Last Queen paints Jindan as an inspiring figure.
A large part of the book is about palace intrigues and political manoeuvres. Rani Jindan’s impulsiveness and vow for vengeance probably led to the destruction of the Khalsa army, some even holding her accountable for the fall of Punjab. Divakaruni is aware of the challenges in writing the story of a heroic but flawed historical figure: "From the beginning, I was very aware of the fact that Rani Jindan Kaur is a flawed character, and part of my attempt, along with showcasing her courage and spirit, is to present her faults honestly. Her passionate desire for vengeance, after the Khalsa army brutally kills her dear brother Jawahar, leads her to make some unwise decisions and ultimately precipitates the First Anglo-Sikh War and the defeat that follows."
Jindan’s flaws, nonetheless, make her more human as well as tragic. Reading the book the reader is bound to admire the protagonist for her heroic determination, while also relating to her on a whole other level because of her flaws. After all, who among us is perfect?
The Last Queen
By AJAY KUMAR SINGH
Jindan Kaur was the youngest wife of Maharaja Ranjit Singh, the first Maharaja of the Sikh Empire, and the mother of the Empire's last Maharaja, Dalip Singh. She was renowned for her beauty, brain and brawn and was popularly known as Rani Jindan. After the demise of Ranjit Singh's first three heirs in quick succession, Dalip Singh was enthroned in September 1843 at the age of six. Jindan Kaur became Regent on her son's behalf. The wily Ranjit Singh could keep at bay the looming British expansonist threats to the Sikh kingdom that extended from the Hindukush to Kashmir. But that was not to be after the Mahraja passed away. The Sikhs lost the First Anglo-Sikh War and Rani Jindan was replaced in December 1846 by a Council of Regency under the control of a British Resident in Lahore.
Wary of her continued power and influence, however, she was imprisoned and exiled by the British, separating her from her son and deporting him to England where he was converted to Christianity. Rani Jindan was meanwhile viciously maligned by them who described her as a prostitute, seductress and the ‘Messalina of the Punjab’, a reference to the promiscuous third wife of Roman Emperor Claudius. Over thirteen years passed when Dalip Singh was finally allowed in January 1861 to meet his mother in Calcutta who then took her with him to England and where she remained until her death in Kensington, London on 1st August 1863 at the age of 46.
Though there have been a few books on this leg of history yet it seems that Rani Jindan hasn’t found more than a passing mention in popular historical narratives. She escaped attention of Late Khuswant Singh in his exhaustive works on the history of Sikhs. Navtej Sarna’s 'The Exile: A Novel' (2008), based on the Life of Maharaja Dalip Singh, only passingly referred to the protagonist's mother. William Dalrymple and Anita Anand’s 2016 book Koh-i-Noor, however, has a few pages on the enigmatic Jindan.
When in India for the release of her last book in 2020, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni could read William Dalrymple and Anita Anand's book which left an indelible mark on her: "I kept thinking about this woman. What bothered me was that so much has been written about her husband Ranjit Singh and their son Dalip Singh but they completely left her out of the stories." It was about time Divakaruni conceived the plot of her next book.
Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni has majorly been interested in woman-centric mythological fiction -- with Draupadi in ‘Palace Of Illusions’ (2008) and Sita in ‘The Forest Of Enchantments’ (2019). With 'The Last Queen' she has moved from mythology to history.
Narrated in the first person, The Last Queen paints Jindan as an inspiring figure.
A large part of the book is about palace intrigues and political manoeuvres. Rani Jindan’s impulsiveness and vow for vengeance probably led to the destruction of the Khalsa army, some even holding her accountable for the fall of Punjab. Divakaruni is aware of the challenges in writing the story of a heroic but flawed historical figure: "From the beginning, I was very aware of the fact that Rani Jindan Kaur is a flawed character, and part of my attempt, along with showcasing her courage and spirit, is to present her faults honestly. Her passionate desire for vengeance, after the Khalsa army brutally kills her dear brother Jawahar, leads her to make some unwise decisions and ultimately precipitates the First Anglo-Sikh War and the defeat that follows."
Jindan’s flaws, nonetheless, make her more human as well as tragic. Reading the book the reader is bound to admire the protagonist for her heroic determination, while also relating to her on a whole other level because of her flaws. After all, who among us is perfect?