A B H J M N P Q S Z

Abida Sultan Begum

Her Highness Suraiya Jah, Nawab Gowhar-i-Taj, Abida Sultan Begum Sahiba (1913–2002) was a towering figure of South Asian royalty, the eldest daughter and heir apparent of Nawab Hamidullah Khan, the last ruling Nawab of Bhopal. A woman of fierce independence and...

Akhtar al-Nisa Begum, Nawab Sarbuland Jung

Akhtar al-Nisa Begum, Nawab Sarbuland Jung (1875–1956) was a pioneering literary figure and social reformer from one of colonial India’s most distinguished aristocratic families. Born into Mughal nobility, her life and work represent a unique intersection...

Begum Hazrat Mahal

Begum Hazrat Mahal, born as Muhammadi Khanum around 1820, stands as a formidable figure in India’s first major struggle for independence, the 1857 Rebellion. As the second wife of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah, the last ruler of Awadh, she was thrust from the confines of...

Begum Maimoona Sultan

Begum Maimoona Sultan (1900-1982) was a prominent figure of the Bhopal royal family, remembered as the consort of Nawab Hamidullah Khan, the last ruling Nawab of the princely state. Belonging to an illustrious lineage and possessing literary talent, she embodied the...

Begum Samru

Begum Samru (c. 1753–1836), born Farzana, was one of the most powerful women in 18th and 19th-century India. Beginning her life as a nautch (dancing) girl in Delhi, her intelligence and ambition led her to become the companion of Walter Reinhardt Sombre, a...

Her Highness Maimoona Sultan

Her Highness Maimoona Sultan (1900-1982) was a prominent figure in the royal family of Bhopal, best known as the wife of Nawab Hamidullah Khan, the last ruling Nawab of the princely state. A woman of royal lineage and literary talent, she was a noteworthy personality...