India’s former royals reinvent themselves as custodians of heritage and culture

VADODARA, Nov 3 — In a sprawling palace in western India, the “queen” or Maharani of Baroda welcomes guests with fragrant rose petals, presenting torchlit dances of Hindu myths.

Dressed in glittering finery, Radhikaraje Gaekwad is a queen in name only, a modern businesswoman presiding over a world her ancestors once ruled.

“The key has been that we have adapted,” 48-year-old Gaekwad told AFP in her vast Lakshmi Vilas Palace, describing how India’s former royals have found new roles, from cultural ambassadors to politics.

“My work has always been to try and bring in change for what I feel would be for the betterment of society,” said Gaekwad, who works to preserve art accumulated by generations of rulers.

“A glimpse of what was left behind... can bring that sense of identity and pride back in their roots, and help them in the future.”

Under British rule, more than 565 princely states enjoyed nominal autonomy across roughly 40 per cent of the land. Baroda, today Vadodara in Gujarat state, was among the most powerful.

The maharajas joined democratic India after independence in 1947 and became ordinary citizens, but their enduring cultural influence is something politicians of all parties seek to harness.

“This cultural capital has been banked on by the descendants of the erstwhile maharajas to get into active politics,” said historian Manu S. Pillai.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu-nationalist government has sought to draw on a royal past outside foreign control to reinforce its national narrative.

Modi’s party includes elected lawmakers such as Communications Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, of the Gwalior dynasty, and Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Diya Kumari, of Jaipur’s royal family.

“There is a quest for heroes,” Pillai added. “Nationalist history has become very popular and... the Hindu right is very keen to tap into cultural icons.”

Modi last year laid the foundation stone for a $39 million “Museum of Royal Kingdoms” celebrating their history.

The site near Vadodara lies beside the world’s tallest statue, a 182-metre (597-foot) monument to Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, whom Modi honoured with its inauguration in 2018 for his role in bringing princely states into India.

Visitors were divided over the role of royals today.

“I hold the royal families in high regard,” said Arti Shukla, visiting from Vadodara.

Nishant Kulkarni, a bank worker from Mumbai, was more cynical.

“I only came to see this massive statue,” he said. “The royal families certainly played a role in the past, but there is no real need for their services anymore.”

Beyond politics, many maharajahs see themselves as stewards of tradition, said Siddhaant Mohta, director of Sopaan, which organises cultural exhibitions in royal sites — including in Vadodara’s palace.

“The royal families are custodians of heritage,” Mohta said, pointing to work to overhaul Vadodara’s Maharaja Fateh Singh Museum, which houses more than 30 works by celebrated 19th-century painter Raja Ravi Varma.

A Varma work fetched US$17.9 million (RM72.6 million) at auction in Mumbai in April, an Indian record.

Deborah Swallow, former director of London’s Courtauld Institute of Art, is advising on the project, praising the legacy of royal patronage that helped fund it.

“That tradition is being beautifully followed today,” she said.

Others, such as Raseshwari Rajya Laxmi, Maharani of Jaisalmer, said their titles open doors — explaining how her family has helped twin the historic walled city with Carcassonne in France.

“We are sharing ideas on promoting and preserving their culture,” she said.

For Gaekwad, her work includes social entrepreneurship, promoting social inclusion through initiatives such as a transgender-run cafe, as well as supporting traditional crafts and customs.

Her father, Ranjitsinh Jhala, 87, took a different path.

Born into Wankaner’s ruling family in 1939, before India’s princes surrendered their powers, he was raised in a world where tiger hunting was a royal passion.

But he became a civil servant, drafted India’s wildlife protection law, and helped turn vast tracts of princely hunting grounds into national parks.

“If that was what the princes left behind, it compensates far more than what they shot,” he said.

Akshita Bhanj Deo, in her 30s, daughter of the 47th ruler of Odisha’s Bhanja dynasty, represents a younger generation seeking modern meaning in historic titles. She has turned her palace into a hotel, and runs a foundation to support marginalised groups.

“A lot of erstwhile royal families see themselves in a space where they can actually make a sense of community happen,” she said.

“We’re just the bards and storytellers between the past and future.” — AFP

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瓦多达拉，11 月 3 日——在印度西部一座庞大的宫殿里，巴罗达的“女王”或玛哈拉尼用芬芳的玫瑰花瓣迎接客人，并表演火炬舞，演绎印度教神话。

身着华丽华服的拉迪卡拉杰·盖克瓦德只是名义上的女王，她是一位现代女商人，主宰着她的祖先曾经统治的世界。

“关键在于我们已经适应了，”48 岁的盖克瓦德在她宽敞的拉克希米维拉斯宫告诉法新社，她描述了印度的前皇室成员如何找到了新的角色，从文化大使到政治家。

“我的工作一直都是努力带来我认为有利于社会进步的改变，”盖克瓦德说道，他致力于保护历代统治者积累的艺术品。

“一窥故土风貌……可以让他们重拾对故土的身份认同感和自豪感，并对他们的未来有所帮助。”

在英国统治时期，超过565个土邦在约占全国40%的土地上享有名义上的自治权。巴罗达（今古吉拉特邦的瓦多达拉）是其中最强大的土邦之一。

1947 年独立后，土邦王公们加入了民主的印度，成为普通公民，但他们持久的文化影响力是各党派政治家都试图利用的。

“这种文化资本一直被昔日王公的后代们寄予厚望，让他们投身政治，”历史学家马努·S·皮莱说道。

印度总理纳伦德拉·莫迪领导的印度教民族主义政府试图利用不受外国控制的王室历史来强化其民族叙事。

莫迪的政党成员包括来自瓜廖尔王朝的通信部长乔蒂拉迪亚·辛迪亚和来自斋浦尔王室的拉贾斯坦邦副首席部长迪亚·库马里等当选议员。

皮莱补充说：“人们渴望找到英雄。民族主义历史变得非常流行……印度教右翼非常热衷于利用文化偶像。”

莫迪去年为一座耗资 3900 万美元的“皇家王国博物馆”奠基，该博物馆旨在庆祝各个王国的历史。

瓦多达拉附近的这处地点毗邻世界最高的雕像，这是一座 182 米（597 英尺）高的萨达尔·瓦拉巴伊·帕特尔纪念碑，莫迪于 2018 年为纪念帕特尔在将土邦纳入印度的过程中所发挥的作用而揭幕了这座纪念碑。

参观者们对当今皇室成员的角色看法不一。

“我非常尊敬皇室家族，”来自瓦多达拉的游客阿尔蒂·舒克拉说道。

来自孟买的银行职员尼尚特·库尔卡尼则更加愤世嫉俗。

“我只是来看这座巨型雕像的，”他说。“皇室家族过去确实发挥了重要作用，但现在已经不再需要他们的服务了。”

索潘（Sopaan）的负责人西达安特·莫塔（Siddhaant Mohta）表示，除了政治之外，许多王公都把自己视为传统的守护者。索潘在皇家遗址（包括瓦多达拉的宫殿）组织文化展览。

“皇室家族是遗产的守护者，”莫塔说道，他指的是对瓦多达拉的马哈拉贾·法特赫·辛格博物馆进行全面翻修的工作，该博物馆收藏了 19 世纪著名画家拉贾·拉维·瓦尔玛的 30 多件作品。

今年 4 月，瓦尔玛的一幅作品在孟买的拍卖会上拍出了 1790 万美元（7260 万令吉）的高价，创下了印度拍卖纪录。

伦敦考陶尔德艺术学院前院长黛博拉·斯沃洛为该项目提供咨询，并赞扬了皇室赞助的遗产，正是这份遗产帮助资助了该项目。

“如今，这一传统得到了很好的传承，”她说。

其他人，如杰伊瑟尔梅尔王后拉塞什瓦里·拉贾·拉克什米表示，她们的头衔为她们打开了大门——她解释了她的家族是如何帮助这座历史悠久的城墙城市与法国卡尔卡松结为姐妹城市的。

“我们正在交流如何促进和保护他们的文化，”她说。

对于盖克瓦德来说，她的工作包括社会创业，通过跨性别者经营的咖啡馆等举措来促进社会包容，以及支持传统工艺和习俗。

她 87 岁的父亲兰吉辛·贾拉 (Ranjitsinh Jhala) 走了一条不同的道路。

他于 1939 年出生于万卡内尔的统治家族，当时印度的王公们还没有放弃权力，他成长在一个以猎虎为皇室爱好的世界里。

但他后来成为了一名公务员，起草了印度的野生动物保护法，并帮助将大片王公贵族的狩猎场变成了国家公园。

“如果那是王子们留下的遗物，那也远远超过了他们射杀的那些东西，”他说。

阿克希塔·班杰·德奥，三十多岁，是奥里萨邦班杰王朝第四十七任统治者的女儿，代表着年轻一代，他们试图在历史头衔中寻求现代意义。她将自己的宫殿改造成了一家酒店，并创办了一个基金会来帮助弱势群体。

“许多前王室家族都认为自己身处一个可以真正建立社区意识的空间，”她说。

“我们只是连接过去与未来的吟游诗人和故事讲述者。”——法新社

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