UK royal court’s Indian munshi finds rightful place in Raj history
The first Indian to ever hold an important position in the royal court of Britain has finally been restored to his rightful place in history, says the UKbased author who unearthed the story of Abdul Karim - a humble servant who went on to become Queen Victoria’s “munshi” during the Raj era.
Shrabani Basu’s book titled ‘Victoria and Abdul: The Extraordinary True Story of the Queen’s Closest Confidant’ formed the basis of a new UK box-office success ‘Victoria & Abdul’, which has now opened in cinemas across India.
“It is great to see the picture of Abdul looming over Leicester Square and looking down from the famous red London buses. This was the man that the British establishment wanted to erase from history, but he’s out there now, and they are packing the cinemas to hear his story. It is very satisfying,” said Basu.
The historian-author had stumbled upon the curious friendship between the British monarch who ruled over India and an assistant clerk from Agra Jail sent to her court in the late nineteenth century while researching a previous book on the history of curries in Britain.
She discovered that Abdul had also succeeded in carving out a niche in the royal kitchens to cook halal Indian food, which was enjoyed by the ageing monarch and also served to visiting dignitaries.
“Abdul brought curry to the royal kitchens. With Queen Victoria as his patron, curries became fashionable. Today it has become an essential part of British cuisine and is a multi-million-pound industry,” notes Basu.
As the author began following the trail of Abdul, who had been bestowed the rather grand title of Munshi or teacher by Queen Victoria, a visit to Windsor Castle provided her access to a rare set of Hindustani journals – a collection of note-books filled with the monarch’s own handwriting practising her Urdu. –PTI