The Maharaja Of Patiala, Bhupinder Singh is
one royal name that went down in history for the colorful life that he led
which is still unmatched. Royal, promiscuous, garish and larger-than-life are a
few words that can describe his insane lifestyle.
365
Queens, Including 10 Maharanis’, & 83 Children
According to historians, Maharaja Bhupinder Singh had a total of 365 queens, including 10 queens (Maharani's), for whom grand palaces were built in Patiala. A team of medical experts was also present in these palaces to check the health of queens. According to Diwan Jarmani Das, the Maharaja had 83 children from 10 wives, out of which only 53 were able to survive.
The magnificent Sikh Maharaja, Bhupendra
Singh (1891-1938) ruled the Patiala State during 1900 to 1938, was ten times
elected Chancellor of the Chamber of Princes during 1920’s and 1930’s. He was a friend of Adolf Hitler and Benito
Mussolini, the dictators of Germany and Italy respectively.
He was said to be a philanderer and the
tales of his promiscuity were crazy even by today’s standards. He had a
plethora of concubines and an array of perfumers, jewellers, hair dressers, and
even plastic surgeons were made available by him to cater to his favourite
ladies.
He was known to enjoy his summer afternoons
swimming in his pool, with a group of bare-breasted women at his side. Talk
about having a field day! His sex appetite even beat his appetite for food, as
he was said to eat around 20 pounds of food in a day.
In
another book called Freedom at Midnight by Dominique Lapierre and Larry
Collins, they said, “it had been the custom of the Maharaja to appear once a
year before his subjects naked except for his diamond breastplate, his organ in
full and glorious erection.”
This walk of his was greeted with great
enthusiasm by the spectators in appraisal of his organ and it's apparent
possession of magical powers, which could drive evil spirits from the land.
He was married five times having numerous
concubines. It is said that during the summer months, he would make his
concubines sit bare-chested at the rim of his pool while he enjoyed a swim, and
would at points come fondle a breast or two and sip on some whiskey.
In ‘Maharaja’ — a scandalous book by Diwan
Jermani Dass — the credibility of which is still being questioned, it is said
that the man himself took part in massive orgies where men including the
Maharaja poured alcohol over virgin women and suck the liquor off their bodies.
His
sexual hunger was way more than his appetite and he allegedly consumed 20
pounds of food in a day. He had personally curated a harem of 365 women
(concubines) who he would remodel as he pleased taking help from beauticians,
jewelers, dressmakers and ever plastic surgeons from Indian, France and
England.
When his
son, Yadavendra Singh, took over as the 9th Maharaja in 1938, the very first
thing he did was to close the harem! Yadavendra was the father of the present
Chief Minister of Punjab, Capt. Amarinder Singh and father-in-law of K. Natwar
Singh from the Princely State of Bharatpur, Rajasthan.
The Maharaja was representing Sikhs during
the Round Table Conference and an Indian representative at the Imperial War
Council in World War I. The first Indian to own an aircraft bought from the United
Kingdom.
He was one who commissioned a
1400 piece dinner set, made wholly in silver and gold, to mark the Royal tour
by the Prince of Wales in 1922.
'Leela-Bhavan':
Where only People Without Clothes would Get Entry.
The colorful mood of Maharaja Bhupinder
Singh is mentioned in detail by Diwan Zaramani Das in his book 'Maharaja'.
According to him, the king had built the 'Leela-Bhavan' or palace of Rangaris
in Patiala, where only people without clothes would get entry. This palace is
built in Patiala town on the road leading to Bhupender agar, close to Baudari
Bagh.
'Prem
Mandir': A Special Room in The Palace
According to Diwan Jarmani Das, a special
room in the palace, which was called the 'Prem Mandir', was a reserve
(reserved) for the Maharaja, that is, no one else could enter that room without
his permission. In this room, there was a complete arrangement for the
enjoyment of the king.
'Ayyashi'
in The Pond.
There was also a large pond inside his
palace, which can be called a swimming pool; there was a provision of bathing
of about 150 people simultaneously. The king often used to give parties here,
in which he used to call his friends and girlfriends. Apart from this, some
special people of Maharaja also used to join the party. These people used to
bathe and swim and 'Ayyashi' in the pond.
365
lanterns
It is said that 365 lanterns were lit daily
in the Maharaja's palace and on each lantern, the names of his 365 queens were
written. The lantern which was extinguished in the morning, the king read the
name of the queen written on that lantern and then he spent the night with her.
Patiala
Necklace
Apart from the colorful mood, Maharaja Bhupinder Singh was famous worldwide for many other things. He had the world-famous 'Patiala necklace', which was made by the famous jewellery maker Cartier.
In 1926,
he sent a trunk full of precious gems, jewellery and the seventh largest
diamond in the world to Parisian Jeweller Cartier SA to get Patiala Necklace
made. It is said to be one of the most expensive pieces of jewellery ever made
at a whopping $25 million.
It is said that more than 2900 diamonds and precious gems were embedded in it. The necklace was the seventh-largest diamond in the world at that time.
This
precious necklace disappeared from the royal treasury of Patiala around the
year 1948, and after many years its different parts were found in many places.
Patiala
Peg& Fleet of Cars
Perhaps you do not know that the famous
Patiala Peg is also due to Maharaja Bhupinder Singh. It is said that he had 44
Rolls Royce cars, out of which 20 cars were used for daily activities. You will
be surprised to know that Maharaja Bhupinder Singh was the first person in
India to have his own aircraft, which he bought from Britain in the year 1910.
He also built an airstrip at Patiala for his plane.
Story
About Patiala Peg
This
is the most famous and probably true story behind the Patiala Peg.Maharaja
Bhupinder Singh had a Polo team, which was undefeated during his reign. Their
favourite pastime was ‘Tent Pegging’.
It was one of the Patiala traditions to
invite the VIceroy’s team for a friendly engagement in maharajas kingdom.The viceroy’s
proud Irish team had a peculiar custom they could drink heavily but were still
able to walk straight and balance on the path.
When the ‘Viceroys Pride’ arrived in Patiala
for a friendly match, the home team felt nervous and feared that they might
lose the game. So they hatched a conspiracy.
On the
evening before the match, the ‘Viceroys Pride ‘ was entertained to double
measure of whisky in every peg, They were told that their corn was less potent
and they needed to drink more to get high (later came to be called as the
“Patiala peg”). In the morning, they went into the friendly match of tent
pegging, and their heads were heavy and groggy.
The End
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