Hyderabad: Azmet Jah, the Ninth Nizam of Hyderabad, released a book titled “H.E.H. Mir Barkat Ali Khan Mukarram Jah Bahadur: The Life and Times of the Eighth Nizam of Hyderabad” on Thursday, January 22, containing over 250 rare and previously unseen photographs, historic documents and personal memorabilia.
The book is authored by conservation architect and author Anuradha S Naik and published by the Chowmahalla Palace Trust. Many images in the book are drawn from the Chowmahalla Palace Collection and the personal collection of the immediate family of H.E.H. Mukarram Jah, a press release said.
The majority of the later family photographs were taken by Prince Azmet Jah, a trained cinematographer and the present head of the Asaf Jahi family.
The book accompanies a special exhibition curated by Anuradha Naik Associates, which was inaugurated on October 6 last year, at Chowmahalla Palace to mark the birth anniversary of the eighth Nizam.
The proceeds of the book sale will contribute to the scholarship schemes of the HEH Mukarram Jah School located in the Purani Haveli Palace. Set up in 1987, the school continues to provide education in the ICSE stream to nearly 3000 boys and girls.
Trustee of the Mukarram Jah Trust for Education and Learning, Nawab MA Faiz Khan and author Anuradha Naik were present at the unveiling event.
About the eight Nizam
Born on October 6, 1933, in Nice, France, Mukarram Jah was the eldest son of Prince Azam Jah, the Prince of Berar, and Princess Durru Shehvar, daughter of the last Ottoman Caliph, Abdul Mejid II.
He was chosen by his grandfather, Mir Osman Ali Khan, as successor and was coronated as the Nizam of Hyderabad on April 6, 1967. He remained the last recognised Nizam until the abolition of privy purses in 1971.
Mukarram Jah also served as Pro-Chancellor of Osmania University and established several charitable organisations, including the Mukarram Jah Trust for Education and Learning at Purani Haveli, the Mukarram Jah Village Development Society, and the Chowmahalla Palace Trust.
He died in Istanbul on January 14, 2023 and was buried at the Mecca Masjid, alongside his ancestors.
