Shrimati Jagjit Inder Kumari was the fourth daughter of Late Raja Jaganath Singhji of Daulatpur and his wife Rani Saheba Hiteshindra Kumari who belonged to Patiala Royal family daughter of Raja Ranbir Singhji of Patiala.
Being born in the times of purdah she had a vision that was quite different than her brothers and sisters. She was a woman filled with daring, never scared of speaking the truth and alone managed to do a lot of things that nobody ever imagined.
Her father late Rajasaheb Jaganath Singhji was addicted to alcohol and she was very close to her father she didn’t go to boarding school like her other siblings who got educated in Doons, Welhams, MGD girls school and Mayoor School Ajmer. Rather she stayed back with her parents in Bhopal and looked after them and their properties. Though her mother was from Patiala they had a lot of financial support also at times from Patiala.
But once her mother passed away things changed and situations worsened. Her father being addicted to alcohol had sold their palace and all the agricultural land of Daulatpur to his cousin brother Laxman Singhji in 1958.
Once when Shrimati Jagjit Inder Kumari had gone to Daulatpur to pay condolence to Rajputohit of Daulatpur jagir she requested Laxman Singhji to let her worship ‘Gadi Madi Mata’ their diety the Kuldevi that’s when Laxman Singhji misbehaved with her and she decided to pay the debts of her father and take back the entire property. She did manage to but it back from her uncle Laxman Singhji not only that but she also bought a plot from the villager and gave it to Laxman Singhji along with the money.
After that along with her father and her younger sister Srimati Mohini Inder Kumari married in Jamnagar family now stayed sometimes in Daulatpur and sometimes in Bhopal. She had set up a small business for women empowerment in Daulatpur village where they used to make small toys made of wood as Daulatpur being on the periphery of Kheoni Sanctuary had a lot of teak and bamboo wood once in abundance. And she also used to get the zardozi work done in the small town of Sehore and sell these products in fairs which were held in cities like Bhopal. She used to travel on horseback, and a lot more adventures she did being unmarried and when the society was orthodox and people believed in purdah in spite of Daulatpur being jagir of Bhopal state. She broke the stereotypes.
Later in January 1963, she got married to Maharaj Saheb Madhusudan Sinhji of Danta Bhawangadh one of the princely states of Gujarat, Maharaj Saheb Madhusudan Sinhji was the second son of Late Maharana Sir Bhawani Sinhji and Late Maharanisa Anand Kunwar Ba of Danta Bhawangadh.
In Danta too she tried to set up a small business like dairy farming, making of pickles and papad but unfortunately the luck didn’t support her and she was unsuccessful in it. Along with that as she had to look after Daulatpur too as well as her father and her younger sister who was unmarried then, she helped her younger sister in getting married and looked after her father who used to stay in Daulatpur. Unfortunately, her father late Raja Saheb Jaganath Singhji got infected by the deadly disease of Cancer and Jagjit Inder Kumari also went into financial crisis and she also got infected with high diabetes as well she lost her elder son as she could not take care of him as he was an immature born child. Her spirits went low and hence she had to send her father to Bhopal to live with her brother Bharat Inder Singhji and then in his last days Raja Jaganath Singhji was sent to Kalapeepal at his cousin brothers house where his cousins and his nephews took care of him and he took his last breath and due to heavy rains, his cremation was also done in Kalapeepal and not in Daulatpur.
After her father’s demise and being a diabetic patient she could not look after her properties in Daulatpur hence everything she had in Daulatpur she willed it to her younger daughter Rajkumari Gitanjali Devi.
As long as she lived in Daulatpur and also in Danta she worked for a lot of people especially the villagers. She wasn’t a graduate but she had quite a good knowledge of ayurvedic medicines as she was fond of reading she had learned a lot. Today she lives in the heart of the people of Daulatpur for whom she often went out of the way and worked.
After marriage, the younger daughter for almost nearly 10 years with her husband Mr. Dharamsingh Karmyal stayed in Daulatpur and practiced agriculture but for their kids better education and future, their sold the agricultural land moved to Gujarat and somehow due to some misunderstandings today the fortress of Daulatpur has become a government entity—which is a big question mark as no one knows how and why it happened.
Later on 6 June 1996 after a long battle with diabetes, she took her last breath in a hospital in Palanpur. And being bahu of Danta she was cremated in the Royal Crematorium of Danta which is in Gangwa village a jagir of Danta.
Shrimati Jagjit Inder Kumari had three children. Two daughters namely Rajkumari Hemangni Devi married to Menghani and Rajkumari Gitanjali Devi married to Mr. Dharamsingh Karmyal. One son Rajkumar Harshvardhan Sinhji married to Kunwarani Vrindakumari of Gorad Jagir.
That was she the Legend Shrimati Jagjit Inder Kumari in my eyes she was definitely a hero. She never let anyone leave her house empty stomach. She was always fond of cooking and hosting people over food. She also helped lots of people for getting jobs and helped the people by providing medical facilities if they could not afford them. She used to provide food to those people living in nearby areas and couldn’t afford it.
She was a divine soul who believed in helping people around her in whatever small or big form she could. Because she believed helping a person in need is equivalent to worshiping God.
Hence in her fond memories and remembrance, I Khyati Singh granddaughter of Shrimati Jagjit Inder Kumari has started a foundation ‘Food for cause’ for old people suffering from Alzheimer who are seen on public places like railway stations and bus stations where we provide them food with the help of local tea stalls who provide us the information about these kinds of people.
Currently, we have started our first batch at Aburoad railway station. Also, we would like if anyone wants to join us can always get in touch with us on our Instagram handle @khyatisingh784. Slowly and gradually our mission will also be to provide education to the students who cannot afford fees for their school. This year we have enrolled only one student, but we look forward to many more.