Hyderabad|India|March'2011: The Center for Deccan Studies (CDS) and the U.S. Consulate General Hyderabad celebrated the refurbishment of the garden tomb of Mah Laqa Bai at Moula Ali, on March 6, 2011. The U.S. Government funded the work through the Ambassadors Fund for Cultural Preservation. The Muslim Educational, Social and Cultural Organization (MESCO) also provided important support to the project.

Representatives from MESCO, CDS and Consul General Katherine Dhanani spoke at the inauguration. Emory University Professor Dr. Scott Kugle who researched the site and Mah Laqa Bai’s life, spoke about her role in Hyderabad’s history. Instrumental music before and after the program added to the festivities.

The Hyderabad-based restoration architects - Heritage Conservation Initiative Consultants (HCIC) carried out the renovation work. The company cleared the area of debris and restored the buildings and their exquisite decorations. They rebuilt water channels and planted trees and bushes appropriate to Mah Laqa Bai’s time.

“The Ambassadors Fund supports a wide range of projects to preserve cultural heritage, such as the restoration of historic buildings. Today as we laid flowers on Chanda’s tomb we honored a brilliant, creative and knowledgeable woman. It is appropriate that we fete her during the month of March, when we celebrate Women’s History Month, for Mah Laqa Bai represents history’s women who have contributed significantly to their society and culture but who have often been written out of history,” Consul General Dhanani said.

Mah Laqa Bai is one of the most illustrious women of Hyderabad’s cultural history. Also known as Chanda Bibi, she died in 1824 after leading an exemplary life as the court dancer for the second and third Nizams. She was the first woman to author a full collection of Urdu ghazals. She was active in the religious and political life of Hyderabad during the city’s golden age. An exhibit on site presents the story of Mah Laqa Bai’s life and cultural legacy, through poetry, paintings, maps, architecture and religious sites associated with her.