White Mughals

William Dalrymple’s ‘White Mughals’ is the love story of James Achilles Kirkpatrick and the Muslim noble woman Khair un-Nissa.

Set in British India, the novel begins in 1798 at the court of the Nizam of Hyderabad, where the British East India Company resident James Achilles Kirkpatrick, gets the first glimpse of his soon-to-be lady love Khair un-Nissa.

The story of their love flows through intricate and vivid visualization of late 18th century India. Dalrymple, in fact, frequently steers away from the narrative as he dives into fascinating historic detail, but this is not unwelcome as he is one of those talented authors who can infuse life into a past that seems impossible to imagine to the reader of today.

Contrary to other popular depictions of the time, ‘White Mughals’ tells of how the British in 18th century India were not a bunch of Europeans in solitary confinement of their staff quarters, but rather a friendly lot who were more than willing to partake in the culture and tradition of the country they had occupied.

So we come across high-ranking East India officials speaking fluent Persian and Hindustani, smoking hookah, dressing like the Mughals, keeping moustaches (borrowed from the Mughal tradition of growing facial hair), getting their palms hennaed, in addition to other less savoury traditions like belching after meals, visiting nautch girls, and keeping a large and flourishing harem.

Frustrated with the treatment meted out to them by senior officials and their poverty in the magical land of plenty, soldiers in the British Infantry, on the other hand, were attracted by the Mughal traditions of being able to marry as many times as one pleased, and soon converted to Islam and joined the armies of the Nizams. The Governor General of Bengal, Richard Wellesley, looked down on such converts, and derided them as ‘Englishmen gone native’ and many high ranking officials of the East India Company had to pay a heavy price for their decidedly ‘Indian way of living’.

James Achilles Kirkpatrick is resident at the court of the Nizam of Hyderabad, ostensibly placed there by the East India Company to further its territories. Within a short span of time, Kirkpatrick finds himself protecting the interests of the Nizam too. The Nizam reciprocates Kirkpatrick’s friendship, and soon we find our British hero turning more and more into a Mughal with every turn of the page. But matters come to a head when Kirkpatrick falls in love with the grand daughter of the Prime Minister of the Nizam of Hyderabad. Captivated by the beauty of the fourteen year old Khair un-Nissa, the dashing Resident embarks on a journey of love, with all the trappings of a Bollywood style love story.

Amidst countless court intrigues, blackmail, and scandal, the love story between the British Resident and the Muslim noble child-woman, grows by leaps and bounds. The Governor General is of course not pleased. In Hyderabad, rumours do the round that Kirkpatrick has raped Khair un-Nissa and an investigation is started without the knowledge of the doomed lovers. When it finally becomes public, Kirkpatrick is forced to give up his meetings with Khair un-Nissa.

But it’s not long before it is discovered that Khair un-Nissa is pregnant and pressure mounts on her to abort the child. Finally Kirkpatrick intervenes, and like a true knight in shining armour, walks away with his Princess into the sunset. Well, almost.

Kirkpatrick’s marriage to Khair un-Nissa, for which he had to convert to Islam, is the last straw on the camel’s back. Wellesley again initiates an investigation against Kirkpatrick, accusing him of treason against the East India Company.

‘White Mughals’ is more than the tragic love story of James and Khair. It is a reflection of a time when the world that was yet to be demarcated by clear-cut lines between East and West. The novel chronicles the intermingling of cultures and traditions of two vastly different countries and is an example of what Salman Rushdie has so aptly termed a ‘chutnification’ of cultures.

Dalrymple’s lively narration makes the book a marvellously entertaining read. The novel’s historic detail is wonderfully romanticised and never for a moment lectures or bores. Vivid description of 18th century India draw you in and transport you back in time. You feel as if you are walking in the streets of Hyderabad privy to hush-hush talks about the scandalous affair of a British Resident with a Muslin noble woman.

Dr Desi rating: 9/10

Review by Medha Dutta

Photo of William Dalrymple by Andrew Stuart