Swara Bhaskar's statement has once again sparked discussions surrounding the practice of Jauhar, which is not merely a historical event but a narrative of a dark period in medieval India. At that time, defeat in battle was considered a tragedy more terrifying than death for the women of royal families. Before the enemy army could enter the fort, women from noble families and warrior communities would collectively enter the flames, sacrificing themselves. This act was called Jauhar.
This was not a spontaneous impulse but represented the final act of culture. When men went to the battlefield, tying a kesari around their necks to die, women dedicated their existence to the fire of Jauhar. The reasons for this phenomenon include the social norms of the time, circumstances generated by war, female self-awareness, and the fear of potential violence that could befall defeated women.
Among the history of Rajasthan, Jauhar in Chittor is the most well-known. The most famous story is associated with the Jauhar of Queen Padmavati, although historians disagree on this story.
Thanks to Swara Bhaskar's remarks, the story of Jauhar has once again entered public discourse. Commenting on Sanjay Leela Bhansali's film 'Padmavat', Swara stated: 'I watched it and thought, God forbid, if I were alive after being raped, what does this film tell me? I felt like a coward for not killing myself to protect my honor. Do we want to say that rape is the end of a woman's life? This scene is very problematic.'
Following Swara's statement, there was a strong buzz on social media. The question of when protecting one's honor was considered more valuable than life continues to make the history of Jauhar a subject of sensitive debate.
Moving approximately 700 years back, we arrive at pages where Chittorgarh besieged Sultan Alauddin Khilji of Delhi. In 1303, Sultan Alauddin Khilji sat on the throne of Delhi, his attention fixed on Chittorgarh. At that time, Chittor was governed by Ratan Singh. Khilji's massive army surrounded the capital of Mewar, Chittorgarh. Alauddin set up his camp on Chittaudhi hill north of the fort.
At that time, Chittorgarh was considered a major center of Rajput power and prestige. This siege lasted about eight months, and the fort defenders resisted for a long time. Modern historians and the court poet of Khilji, Amir Husaro, also participated in this campaign and mentioned the Chittor campaign in his work Hazina-ul-Futuh.
Husaro claimed that direct attacks by the attackers failed twice. He reports that during the two-month monsoon season, the attackers managed to reach the 'middle part' of the hill but could not advance further. Alauddin ordered the fort to be bombarded with stones using siege engines. Furthermore, his armored soldiers attacked the fort from all sides.
Due to the prolonged siege, there was a risk of dwindling food supplies and other necessities inside the fort. After fierce resistance, Khilji achieved victory and entered the fort on August 26, 1303. Alauddin ordered a massacre in Chittorgarh fort. The exact number of casualties in Chittorgarh fort that day is unknown; some descriptions indicate a number up to thirty thousand, but subsequent historians have questioned the accuracy of this figure.
This event is attributed to the tradition of Jauhar in Chittor, which means the collective entry of women into the fire to die, fearing capture by the enemy. Following this, male warriors followed the tradition of a final battle called Saka.
Although a detailed modern description of the 1303 Jauhar is absent, Amir Husaro focused mainly on the siege of the fort, the fighting, the capture of the fort, and the massacre. However, he describes the Jauhar in Ranthambore in 1301 in detail, indicating that this practice was widespread at the time.
Subsequently, this event in Chittor became an important part of historiography, particularly thanks to Malik Muhammad Jayasi. It is believed that Malik Muhammad Jayasi was born around 1477 in the town of Jais in the Awadh province. Jayasi is a poet whose literary work 'Padmavat' mentions Queen Padmavati.
Jayasi presented the 1303 Chittor campaign not as a historical event but as a poetic narrative woven from motifs of love, power, and spiritual imagery. His Awadhi work 'Padmavat' was written approximately 237 years after the siege of Chittor, around 1540. Jayasi creates the image of Padmavati, describing her as an extremely beautiful princess from the kingdom of Sinhli (in Sri Lanka). The Rajput ruler of Chittor, Ratan Singh, learned of her beauty from a talking parrot named Hiramann. After a brave expedition, he married her and brought her to Chittor.
News of Padmavati's beauty reached Alauddin Khilji. In Jayasi's narrative, a character named Raghav Chetan informs the Sultan about Padmavati's beauty. Following this, Khilji attacks Chittor. According to the plot of 'Padmavat', Ratan Singh died in battle with the ruler of Kumbhalner before Alauddin conquered the fort. When the decline of Chittor became evident, Queen Padmavati...