Akbar the Great on Pitara Kids Network

The Emperor and Chitranjan Cheetah

Sat, 01 Jul 2000 13:10:12 +0000

Mughal emperor Akbar loved hunting. Four hundred and twenty eight years ago, when he was passing through Rajasthan, he decided to go for a hunt. He used to keep cheetahs in his hunting party. Being very fast they were quick to catch their prey. But on that day he chose to hunt without the help of his cheetahs. He only took his attendants with him.

Without meaning to do so the attendants freed a royal cheetah in the hunting area. The cheetah’s name was Chitranjan and it ran after its prey – a deer.

The Emperor who Rolled his Eyes

Sat, 25 Aug 2001 05:23:40 +0000

At the age of 18, Akbar had been emperor of the Mughal empire for four years. This was 440 years ago, in the year 1560. But the king still had many desires that any ordinary young man would have at his age. He loved cock-fights and he liked to play practical jokes. He also had a great curiosity to know about the lives of ordinary people. For that reason he would go to places where festivals were celebrated — not as emperor but as an ordinary man without any fanfare surrounding him.

The Emperor who Hated Schooling

Fri, 11 May 2001 03:59:47 +0000

Emperors too were children once. Even Mughal emperor Akbar, who has been given the title of Akbar the Great. He was more interested in bunking lessons rather than learn from his tutor. Being his own master from a young age, one day he decided that he did not want to study. He made the highest minister in his father Humayun’s court tell his teacher that it was to be an off day!

Later in life, he went out of his way to tell people that he was illiterate. But that was not entirely true, though it is correct that he never penned a line himself. At the same time, he loved books and also enjoyed them being read to him.