Mughal PeriodShivaji was born on February 19, 1630 at Shivneri fort, Junnar, about 60 kilometers north of Pune. His mother Jijabai named him Shiva after the Goddess Shivai. At this time the major players in the Deccan were the Nizamshahs of Ahmednagar, Mughals of Delhi and the Adilshah of Bijapur. Shah Jahan, the Mughal emperor attacked Nizamshah. Nizamshah was defeated and the war weakened the Ahmednagar kingdom. Shahaji tried to raise the banner of his independence but was crushed by the combined forces of Mughals and Adilshahi. After the defeat, he was inducted into the Adilshahi and was allowed to keep his old land tenures around Pune. Shivaji was born during these turbulent times. At the age of 17, Shivaji carried his first attack on Bijapur and captured the Torana fort in 1645. By 1647, he captured Rajgadh and Kondana forts and had complete control of Pune region. Of all his exploits my favorite has always been the Battle of Pratapgadh when he defeated and killed Afzal Khan.
In the olden days, artists often visited various cities and showed their skills at town squares or market places to informally gathered crowds. It was in a way similar to the concerts and the tours that most recording artists do today, except it wasn't at such scale and was not professionally managed as it done today.
This artist called 'bahuroobiya” or a mimic. He was no ordinary mimic just doing voices or different personalities but could mimic even animals. He was an expert performer and an entertainer too. Soon, a crowd began to gather at the market place. People were soon talking about his skill and he was the talk of the little town Tiwkapur.
The mookhiya - local head, heard about this artist and arranged for a performance. The whole village was invited. Men and women, old and young, everyone gathered for the performance. The show began and as the artist had mastered his craft very well, everyone watching was engrossed. The climax of the show reached when the Bahuroobiya turned himself into a bull. The imitation of the bull was so good, the crowd was spellbound. The mookhiya gave the artist a bag of gold coins.
A little boy in the crowd threw a small pebble at the bull. The bull quivered just as a bull. The boy was so pleased, he could not contain his admiration. “Wow, what great imitation!” he exclaimed. He had nothing to give other than his old battered topi (cap). He took his topi off and gave it to the artist, “ take my reward.”
The crowd began to laugh and giggle at the boy. “Who cares for the old battered cap. What use is it to the artist. It will not even fit his head.” they said. The boy came forward and said very courageously, “ The real appreciation is in testing and finding the real value, not just giving away expensive rewards. I threw a stone at the imitation bull and he shivered just like a bull. It was a true test.” The artist agreed with the boy. “He is right. He alone tested me and I treasure this dirty old cap. It will remain as one of my prized possessions.”
The little boy was Maheshdas who grew up to be Birbal.
One hot summer day, Emperor Akbar and his friends had gone on an hunting expedition. They did not find any game and were very thirsty. “Let us go to the nearest village and get some water.” On their way they saw a young boy carrying twigs for firewood on his head. They approached him, “we are very thirsty and want to go to the nearest village for some water.” The boy replied, “there is a lake near my house. You can drink some water and so can your horses.”
When one hears of Birbal the next name that comes to mind is Akbar. The two were very close
and had a great rapport and friendship between them. Birbal was also known as Raja Birbal and amusingly both were titles conferred to him and were not his real name.Birbal's real name was Maheshdas Bhatt and he was bron in the city of Trivikrampur or Tiwkapur in 1528 to brahmin couple Gangadas and Anabhadevi. His grandfather Rupdhar was a great Sanskrit scholar and resided in Patrapunj. Maheshdas was the third child and at a very young age lost his father Gangadas. His mother sent him to her father Rupdhar at Patrapunj.
