igrms home

In addition to the great reservoir, Raja Bhoj also created the upper and the lower lakes in Bhopal. By the end of the seventeenth century, Bhopal continued to be a humble Gond village ruled by Rani Kamlapati of Ginnaur. The beautiful Queen wanted to avenge the murder of her husband from her enemies. For this, she hired Dost Mohammad Khan, a fugitive from Afghanisthan who along with his gang of few hundred Afghans had earned himself the reputation of a ruthless killer in central India. (‘Begums of Bhopal’ by Shaheryar Khan). Dost Mohammad quickly finished the assignment to earn the price of 50,000 currency then. However, he had set his eyes on the Queen’s Kingdom in the process. He looted the Royal treasury and sent a message to Rani Kamlapati asking her to marry him. (‘Banganga se Halali’ by Niranjan Verma). Left with no options, Queen Kamlapati along with her two aides committed suicide in the upper lake in the year 1723. Dost Mohammad Khan became the undisputed ruler of Bhopal. He made his permanent residence in the fort located on the bank of the upper lake and thus started the rule of the nawabs in Bhopal. This also was the beginning of Islam and Islamic culture in Bhopal. However, a few generations later, owing to the absence of male heirs, Bhopal came under the rule of Begums. The last ruler however, was Nawab Hamidullah Khan(1926-1949). In 1947 he refused to align with the Indian republic and supported Pakistan. Later under the fear of military action by Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel, he surrendered and Bhopal became a part of independant India on 1^st June 1949, almost two years after the country’s independence from British rule.

An important feature of the Afghan dynasty was that the Begums ruled Bhopal state for a considerable time.

The culture and tribal life in Bhopal flourished under the Parmar and Gond rulers. It was after 1723 that the Afghans setup their kingdom here and the Gonds were marginalised. The modern city developed after Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel compelled the Nawab to surrender his state to the Indian Union. Bhopal changed with the changing times. Today, there are hardly any impressions of the Gond culture left here, except for some extremely beautiful rock paintings around the city. One such rock painting located in the rock shelters in Manav Sangrahalaya Bhopal shows the tribals celebrating and performing around a bonfire. This area, it seems was a stage for cultural expression thousands of years ago, and continues to be the same till date. Displaced completely from their original habitat sparse Gond populations now survive in villages around Bhopal and a pinch of Gond art, culture and tradition can be seen in their villages and lifestyles. Another important hunting tribe, the ‘Pardhi’ who assisted the royals in their hunting expeditions have also lost their home terrain and now survive in few villages leading an uncertain and difficult life.

Dost Mohammad Khan once invited local rulers for a party, where he drugged and assassinated them after a celebration on the banks of the Thal river near Bhopal. (‘Begums of Bhopal’ by Sheharyar Khan). Since then he named the river ‘Halali’, meaning a place were non Islamics were sacrificed. His grandson Faiz survived by surrendering territories to the Marathas. His grandson Nazar ensured harmony with the British by signing a treaty on 8^th May 1818. During the 1857 revolution, the Begums in Bhopal maintained their loyalty to the British by announcing extra incentives to their army ranks for not joining the freedom struggle. The rulers in Bhopal also send a contingent of their army to fight for the British in the first world war as inscribed on the gate near the Hamidia hospital.

In early history, Bhopal was a small village in the great Gondwana Kingdom. Like most parts of central India, Bhopal was largely inhabited by Gonds who were a ruling tribal community in ancient India. The area, gained significance in the eleventh century when the region came under the rule of the Parmar dynasty, who had their capital in Dhara Nagri (now Dhar district in western Madhya Pradesh). The famous Parmar King Raja Bhoj found the area suitable for his dream water harvesting projects and thus laid down the foundations of a great civilization to prosper here. The great Bhoj reservoir (648 sq.kms.) changed the eco system and the destiny of the area forever. The areas around the reservoir became ideal for agriculture and human settlements. Forests developed, and so did wild life. With human settlements and agriculture flourishing, art and culture found their way to expression. The great Bhoj temple setup by Raja Bhoj on the bank of the great reservoir became the centre for human devotion, culture, and spirituality. When the great reservoir was destroyed by Hoshangshah Ghauri in the 15^th century, its area of 250 square miles became a settlement for more than 300 villages and is still the most fertile agricultural belt in central India.

The initial art and architecture in the Bhoj era is largely Hindu architecture with very large domes and arches with extreme detail on the walls. The mesmerising plans are marvels of engineering and design. The only surviving palace from the Gond era is the Kamlapati Palace, built above the wall built by Raja Bhoj in Kamla Park. The Fatehgarh was not completely built but only modified by Dost Mohammad Khan and his inheritors. The palaces and monuments created in the Afghan dynasty include the Gohar Mahal, the Benazir mahal and the Taj Mahal. Most Begums of Bhopal were aligned with the British for security of their state and hence a clear impact of English architecture can be seen in their palaces.

The Bhoj temple continues to be a spiritual and cultural icon for Bhopal

Like most tribes, the Pardhi of Bhopal are still searching for their identity and relevance in their own homeland.

The eco system of Bhopal has greatly benefited from its lakes.

Upper lake is now a popular international venue for water sports.

A view of Bhopal city from Kamlapati Palace

In the times of the nawabs, Begum Shahjahan made some efforts for empowering women incuding an Islamic school for muslim women and a market called Pari Bazar. Post independence, Bhopal was declared the capital of Madhya Pradesh and Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd. was the first major industrial investment here. Several institutions for education, art, culture and governance were setup here. This changed the entire cultural and social demography of the city and people from all parts of the country gave a multi cultural identity to Bhopal. Today a fast growing industrial and educational hub, Bhopal has more than eighty engineering and medical colleges. It is a multi lingual and multi cultural icon with only a small part of the old city as a reminder of the days of the Nawabs. The upper lake created by Raja Bhoj still remains the largest source of water supply and biodiversity to the city.