| Dilras Banu Begum | |
|---|---|
| Safavid Princess Consort of the Mughal Empire Zan-i-Kalan | |
 | |
| Born | c. 1622[1] |
| Died | 8 October 1657 (aged 34–35) Aurangabad, India |
| Burial | Bibi Ka Maqbara, Aurangabad |
| Spouse | |
| Issue | |
| House | Safavid (by birth) Mughal (by marriage) |
| Father | Shah Nawaz Khan Safavi |
| Mother | Nauras Banu Begum |
| Religion | Shia Islam |
Dilras Banu Begum (Urdu pronunciation: [dɪlrəs ˈbaːnuː ˈbeːgəm]; c. 1622 – 8 October 1657) was the first wife and chief consort of Emperor Aurangzeb,[2][3][4][5] the sixth Mughal emperor.[6] She is also known by her posthumous title, Rabia-ud-Durrani ("Rabia of the Age"). The Bibi Ka Maqbara in Aurangabad, which bears a striking resemblance to the Taj Mahal (the mausoleum of Aurangzeb's mother Mumtaz Mahal), was commissioned by her husband to act as her final resting place.[7]
Dilras was a member of the Safavid dynasty of Persia and was the daughter of Mirza Badi-uz-Zaman Safavi (titled Shahnawaz Khan), a descendant of Shah Ismail I, who served as the viceroy of Gujarat. She married Prince Muhi-ud-din (later known as 'Aurangzeb' upon his accession) in 1637 and bore him five children, including: Muhammad Azam Shah (the heir apparent anointed by Aurangzeb),[8] who temporarily succeeded his father as Mughal emperor, the gifted poet Princess Zeb-un-Nissa (Aurangzeb's favourite daughter),[9] Princess Zinat-un-Nissa (titled Padshah Begum), and Sultan Muhammad Akbar, the Emperor's best-loved son.[10]
Dilras died possibly of puerperal fever in 1657, a month after giving birth to her fifth child, Muhammad Akbar,[11] and just a year before her husband ascended the throne after a fratricidal war of succession.
- ^ Paranjape, Makarand R. (2016). Cultural Politics in Modern India: Postcolonial Prospects, Colourful Cosmopolitanism, Global Proximities. Routledge. p. 32. ISBN 9781317352167.
- ^ Eraly, Abraham (2007). The Mughal World: Life in India's Last Golden Age. Penguin Books India. p. 147. ISBN 9780143102625.
- ^ Chandra, Satish (2002). Parties and politics at the Mughal Court, 1707-1740. Oxford University Press. p. 50.
- ^ Koch, Ebba (1997). King of the world: the Padshahnama. Azimuth Ed. p. 104.
- ^ Nath, Renuka (1990). Notable Mughal and Hindu women in the 16th and 17th centuries A.D. New Delhi: Inter-India Publ. p. 148.
- ^ "Aurangzeb". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 18 January 2013.
- ^ Eraly, Abraham (2008). The Mughal world: India's tainted paradise. Weidenfeld & Nicolson. p. 376.
- ^ Sir Jadunath Sarkar (1925). Anecdotes of Aurangzib. M.C. Sarkar & Sons. p. 21.
- ^ Krynicki, p. 73
- ^ Sir Jadunath Sarkar (1919). Studies in Mughal India. W. Heffer and Sons. p. 91.
- ^ Krynicki, p. 3