Black and White Picture of Raja Ugar Singh of Hindur, 1840-1850 (from Archer's book on Punjab Hills Paintings) Picture the year: 1795. The foothills of the Shivaliks are tense, echoing with the tramp of armed men and the grinding pressure of regional rivalries. Down in the valleys, Raja Ram Saran Singh Handuriya of Handur (modern-day Nalagarh) is caught in a grinding political bind. For years, Handur has ridden the coattails of Kangra’s aggressive campaigns against its bitter historical rival, Bilaspur (then known as Kahlur). But looking out across his contested borders, Ram Saran Singh faces a heavier, more haunting question: Does he continue serving as a satellite to Kangra’s ambitions, or does he break away, side with Maha Chand and Bilaspur, and reclaim a fractured sense of Rajput honor? The friction between Handur and Bilaspur was rooted in continuous struggles over strategic border zones, crucial river-crossing points, and the Satgarha (seven forts) territory. Because Handur...
A possible portrait (dated 1730) of Raja Jagat Singh Pathania (from the Eva and Konrad Seitz collection) History is a subject of speculation as much as it is about evidence. The more you read, the more you see gray areas everywhere. However, certain fields of history, like that of the Himalayan states for instance, is a rather problematic subject. Insufficient publicly available evidence, lack of local interest, and 'remoteness' from the larger picture has often rendered the subject to ignominy. However, it is a small but earnest attempt of this blog to keep exploring and writing on the subject in one way or the other. A few months ago, I had talked of the Brajraj Panchashika, and seen the trends of Braj bhasha kavita in the region serving as evidence to suggest certain historical trends. However, there was definitely a broader trend in the region of such Braj bhasha ballads. The ballad of Raja Jagat Singh by Kavi Gambhir Rai is another example of this, and the more you read...