Lutfunnisa Begum

Lutfunnisa Begum (, ; 1740 – 10 November 1790) was the 3rd wife and primary consort of Siraj ud-Daulah, the last independent Nawab of Bengal (the ruler of the Bengal Subah).

Early life Lutfunnisa, who served Begum Sharifun nissa, Siraj ud-Daulah's maternal grandmother. Siraj was infatuated with the beauty of Rajkunwari and asked his grandmother to give her to him. Begum Sharifun nissa complied and he renamed her Lutfunnisa Begum. By this point, Siraj had already married two other wives: Begum Zaibunissa and Umdatunnisa Bahu Begum.

Life after marriage Lutfunnisa gave birth to a daughter, Umme Zohra Begum, who was Siraj's firstborn child. In 1748, Siraj's father, Zain ud-Din Ahmed Khan, was killed by Afghan rebels headed by Mustafar Khan. Siraj was also appointed to his father's former position of Naib Nazim of Bihar. During this time, Lufunnisa Begum became his primary consort. After the Battle of Plassey, which saw the British East India Company defeat Siraj and his French allies, Lutfunnisa escaped the palace with him and their daughter. Accompanying them was a trusted eunuch. On 24 June 1757, they made their escape. They were soon captured and brought back to Murshidabad by Mir Jafar, the new nawab allied with the British.

Siraj-ud-Daulah was executed on 2 July 1757 in Murshidabad. Mir Qasim, the son-in-law of Mir Jafar, tortured Lutfunnisa to discover the locations of the family jewels. Lutfunnesa would personally visit the mausoleum in the afternoon with recitations from the Quran every day and light candles there.

Death

Lufunnisa died on 10 November 1790. She was buried in Khushbagh by the side of her husband.

In popular culture In 1960 the Indian novelist Sree Parabat published a novel, Ami Sirajer Begum, about the life of Lutfunnisa and Siraj-ud-Daulah.

In the 1973 Indian Bengali historical film Ami Sirajer Begam, directed by Sushil Mukhopadhya based on Sree Parabat's aforementioned novel, Lutfunnisa was portrayed by Bengali actress Sandhya Roy.

In 2018–19 an historical soap opera based on the novel, and also called Ami Sirajer Begum, was broadcast on Star Jalsha, in which Lutfunnisa was portrayed by Pallavi Dey.