The stories of prince and princesses always manage to capture our imagination. From Princess Diana to Duchess of Cambridge, the princesses always manage to captivate us. Indian has had its share of royal history and a long list of princesses whose tales of life and love have mesmerized many for ages. When you hear the word princess, among other things you imagine them to be beautiful and sophisticated. Here’s a list of some of the most beautiful princesses from Royal India.
10. Akkadevi:
She was a princess of the Chalukya dynasty of Karnataka and governor of an area known as Kishukādu. Akkadevi was part of the Western Chalukya Empire and her beauty was in her abilities as an administrator. Given the moniker Gunadabedangi meaning “beauty of virtues”, she was an able administrator and adept general. In her reign, education was encouraged through grants. She is also known to have been liberal towards Jaina and Hindu temples.
9. Noor Inayat Khan:
She was the eldest daughter of Hazrat Inayat Khan, who was born to nobility and came from a princely Indian Muslim family. An SOE agent during the Second World War, she became the first female radio operator to be sent from Britain into occupied France to aid the French Resistance. She died at the young age of 30 in the Dachau concentration camp in Germany. She was a beautiful princess who led an exemplary life.
8. Meerabai:
She was a Hindu princess who was a devotee of Lord Krishna. An important figure of the Vaishnava bhakti movement, she is known through her poems or sacred songs. Though all tales of her lifetime are available from stories recounted by her community, she is portrayed as a woman of magical beauty. Her Krishna bhakti and ecstasy of Krishna love, makes her a princess with a soulful beauty and pious aura.
7. Rani Lakshmibai:
Born in a Brahmin family belonging to Varanasi, she was named Manikarnika. When she married the Maharaja of Jhansi, Raja Gangadhar Rao, she came to be known as Lakshmibai. She was the queen of the Maratha-ruled princely state of Jhansi. Known popularly as Rani of Jhansi, she is written to have been personable, clever and beautiful by Hugh Rose. Infact, she went on to add that she was one of the greatest warriors from India.
6. Sita Devi of Kapurthala:
She was known as Princess Karam. One of the most glamorous women of her time, she was the daughter of the Hindu Raja of Kashipur, a zamindari. She married Karamjit Singh, son of the Sikh Maharaja Jagatjit Singh of Kapurthala. Fluent in several European languages and blessed with an incredible panache, she was one of the prettiest women in the subcontinent in her time. She looked elegant in dresses covered in jewels and was a fashion trendsetter.
5. Rani Vijaya Devi:
She was the daughter of Late Yuvaraja Kanteerava Narasimha Raja Wadiyar and sister of Maharaja Jaya Chamaraja Wadiyar. Proficient in veena and Carnatic music, as a young princess she went on to Trinity College of Music, London and Juilliard School of Music, New York. She married Thakore Saheb of Kotda-Sangani in 1941. She was an excellent concert pianist and needless to say one of the most beautiful princesses in the gigantic history of India.
4. Sita Devi of Baroda:
She was born to the Maharaja of Pithapuram and his wife Sri Rani Chinnamamba Devi of Mirzapuram. Known for her extravagant lifestyle she was also called the “Indian Wallis Simpson”. Her second marriage which was to Maharaja Pratap Singh Gaekwad of Baroda earned her the title of Her Royal Highness. She was beautiful no doubt and had a truly colorful personality.
3. Maharani Gayatri Devi:
Also known as the Rajmata of Jaipur, she was born as Princess Gayatri Devi of Cooch Behar. She became the third Maharani of Jaipur when she married HH Maharaja Sawai Man Singh II. All through her life she was admired for her charm and beauty. Infact she was a fashion icon, an enigma for women all over. She was also included in the list of ‘The Ten Most Beautiful Women of the World’ by Vogue magazine once.
2. Rani Padmini:
She was the beautiful queen of Chittorand the wife of King Rawal Ratan Singh who defeated Malkhan Singh in a swayamvar and married her. It is said that reason for one of attacks on Chittor by Alauddin Khilji was to forcefully capture the beautiful Rani Padmini. He was so obsessed of making Padmini a part of his harem such was her beauty. But he failed as Padmini chose to commit suicide by jumping into flames before Chittor fell.
1. Samyukta:
She was the daughter of Raja Jaichand of Kannauj and went on to be the wife of Prithviraj Chauhan, the king of Delhi. Known for her bewitching beauty she was a determined woman. The love story of Samyukta and Prithviraj, is one of the most popular tales of medieval India. The fame of her beauty had spread far and wide in those times. When Prithviraj heard of the lovely Samyukta he had fallen in love with her even before setting an eye upon her.
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