The Magnificent Diwan- The Life and Times of Sir Salar Jungi

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The Magnificent Diwan?is the definitive biography of arguably India’s most influential and powerful statesman of the nineteenth century. Drawing on extensive archival material, this is a compelling account of the life and times of a remarkable Indian who, as diwan or prime minister, decisively shaped Hyderabad’s political and economic history for nearly three decades in the second half of the nineteenth century. It was Salar Jung who, by his reforms of the medieval oligarchy that was Hyderabad, ushered the state into the modern era. This account is not merely a chronicle of his life but also a history of Hyderabad-both social and governmental-and gives the reader an encompassing view of the man who has been called the founder of modern Hyderabad. Meticulously researched and engagingly written, this biography introduces Sir Salar Jung I to a new generation, even as it rekindles the memory of a man who has become the victim of collective amnesia.

Bakhtiar K. Dadabhoy is the author of seven books which include the best-selling Jeh: A Life of JRD Tata, Sugar in Milk: Lives of Eminent Parsis and the critically acclaimed Barons of Banking: Glimpses of Indian Banking History. His most recent book was Zubin Mehta: A Musical Journey, the authorised biography of the international music conductor. Dadabhoy has also contributed to newspapers and magazines and did a daily column 'This Day in History' for the Hindustan Times and HT Next for five years. He has also written the script for Nani: The Crusader a documentary on legal luminary Nani Palkhivala. He currently resides in Mumbai.

Mir Turab Ali Khan Bahadur Sir Salar Jung Shuja-ud-Daula Mukhtar-ul-Mulk, G.C.S.I., D.C.L., better known as Sir Salar Jung I, diwan (prime minister) of the nizam's dominions from 1853 to 1883, was arguably the foremost statesman and diplomat that India produced since the establishment of the British supremacy. In his lifetime, his fame transcended the limits of not only Hyderabad, but also of India, but today there are no crossroads or avenues named in memory of the founder of modern Hyderabad. This lack of civic memorialization can hardly be said to be mitigated by the fact that, ironically, the name Salar Jung is remembered in connection with a museum in Hyderabad which houses the collection of art and artefacts of his grandson, Mir Yousuf Ali Khan Salar Jung III.

Details about Salar Jung's early life are few, and provide little material to trace the development and formation of a character which, for a generation, exercised a commanding influence over the destiny of Hyderabad. His life and character form an inseparable part of the history which he himself enacted since early manhood. A man with a broad and enlightened mind and a strong will, Salar Jung applied his rare energies to the improvement of Hyderabad and the amelioration of the condition of its people. His long and illustrious career was also distinguished by his efforts to promote friendly relations between the nizam and the British government. The unexampled prosperity of Hyderabad since it fell under the administration of Salar Jung was a subject of much comment.

An Arab by descent, two of his family before him had filled the post of diwan, but he was by far the most distinguished representative of his family, becoming diwan when he was only twenty-four on the death of his uncle, Siraj-ul-Mulk. As a boy, he was taught English, and was closely associated with the family of the British resident in his formative years. His opinion of the British as a just and honourable people must have been formed at this time, and it was something he believed in all his life, only to be greatly disillusioned towards the end.

**Contents and Sample Pages**