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heralded their advent into the city. Masood’s happy thoughts were concerned with the exchange of his bounties for imperial favours, the Mirza was hopeful of a place in the court, and Firdaus dreamt of a comfortable existence as the maid of an ambitious man.
    Malik Masood housed the Mirza and his family in a modest dwelling, promising to take him to the emperor at the earliest opportune moment.
    It took two weeks and substantial bribes before the trader was finally given the opportunity to attend the royal court of the emperor. Mirza was immensely indebted to Masood as the trader had paid for the very clothes that covered his body.
    On reaching the Diwan-é-Aam, the trader performed a stiff kornish to the emperor and pushed forward the smartly turned out Mirza Ghias Baig towards Shahenshah Akbar. The suave Mirza, familiar with the courtesy of the Persian court, saluted the emperor in a manner that pleased the sovereign greatly.
    ‘Welcome to Hindustan. Malik Masood has told us of your hardship and apprised us of your talents. There is always place for intelligent and able young men in the Mughal Empire.’
    ‘The Shahenshah is most generous with his words. It is my humble request that I may be given a chance to serve the great Mughal ruler.’
    The emperor, with his uncanny instinct for talent, found a position for the young man and promptly granted a generous mansab to take care of his expenses.
    It did not take Ghias Baig too long to establish his credentials and prove his worth to the emperor. With diligence and loyalty the émigré soon managed to wriggle into the innermost caucus. The young Mirza was sincere, diplomatic and diligent–and it was these virtues that won him the Shahenshah’s favour. Meanwhile, Asmat Begum was assigned the task of waiting on the emperor’s Persian queen, Ruqayya Begum, who was always eager to surround herself with women from her land of birth.
    Asmat Begum quickly became the queen’s favourite. The harem was full of women who indulged in petty jealousies for the lack of anything better to do, and they took no time in joining forces against her. Since Asmat could hardly afford to antagonise the other concubines and waiting ladies, she worked hard to maintain a pleasant relationship with every member of the vast harem. Life was difficult. The ascendancy of the Mirza’s family evoked jealousy in the hearts of the nobles who were struggling to win the emperor’s favour. The Persians were considered outsiders and usurpers. Perhaps it was the tough circumstances that made them determined to succeed.
    Unlike the other nobles, Ghias Baig spent more time with his family than in gossiping and plotting. He seemed to have no vices: neither women nor gambling interested the man. That the Baig couple doted on each other was evident from the seven children that were born to them in quick succession.
    Meherunnisa, fascinated by the harem and its women, regularly accompanied her mother to the queen’s chambers. Over the years, she had grown into a beautiful and intelligent child, well versed in music and arts. She could recite verses with flourish and speak many languages. It wasn’t long before the child attracted the attention of the Persian Sultana, who was enchanted by her quick wit.
    ‘Since you are always pregnant, I would like your young daughter to wait on me. You can take leave to care for your family,’ the queen teased the heavily pregnant Asmat one day. From that day began Meherunnisa’s meteoric rise in the royal harem. Barely twelve years old, the girl had already mastered the art of poetry, embroidery and painting. She was a skilful conversationalist and kept the Sultana amused for hours with her repertoire of anecdotes, fables and jokes.
    Firdaus remembered the storm Meher had created when she learnt that she was to be married to Ali Quli. ‘He is just an uncouth soldier,’ she had thundered. Firdaus had seconded her, forcefully–‘Begum, our Meher is born to be a queen.