Nawab Wajid Ali Shah once gave a kathak recital in Metiabruz, on the southwest fringes of Kolkata, where he had recreated his own mini-Lucknow after being exiled from that city. He danced energetically on a muslin sheet, and once the performance was over, he removed the sheet to reveal the impression that his steps had caused on the ground: Krishna playing the flute. The awestruck crowd cheered.
The same crowd, however, had remained silent when, on another occasion, he told them that anyone who had not missed a single day’s fajr (morning namaaz) should step forward and lay the foundation stone for the mosque he was to build in Metiabruz. Finally, the nawab himself did the honours, because it turned out that he was the only one qualified to do so.
These are two stories that, like family recipes, have descended through generations in the family of the Nawab of Awadh. These stories, the family insists, show that he was a devout Muslim and a Krishna-fan at the same time, and also a ruler who loved his people. “People assume he was a debauched ruler who overlooked his duty towards religion and people — that’s a wrong notion,” says Manzilat Fatima, 54, the great-great granddaughter of Wajid Ali Shah and his wife Hazrat Mahal, who, as a foodpreneur, has emerged as the face of the family in Kolkata.
