Question

The famous Taj Mahal was built by Shah Jahan in memory of his wife
a. Nur Jahan
b. Jahanara
c. Chand Bibi
d. Mumtaz Mahal

Answer 1

Hint: The Taj Mahal is an ivory-white coloured monument situated on the banks of river Yamuna. It is located in the Indian city of Agra. It was commissioned by the then Mughal emperor of India Shah Jahan in the year 1632.

Complete answer: The Taj Mahal is a mausoleum built in the memory of Shah Jahan’s wife Mumtaz Mahal who died on 17th of June in 1631 while giving birth to their fourteenth child, Gauhara Begum. It also houses the tomb of Shah Jahan.
The tomb includes a mosque and a guest house and is set in formal gardens having a crenellated wall on three sides. It has an area of seventeen acres. The construction of the monument was started in 1632 and the mausoleum was finished in 1648 while the gardens and the surrounding buildings were completed five years later. The imperial court documents Shah Jahan’s grief after the death of Mumtaz Mahal. It also describes the love story of Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal held as an inspiration for the Taj Mahal.
Let us look at the options now.
Option a- Nur Jahan was the wife of Jahangir, one of the Mughal emperors of India and the father of Shah Jahan. So, Nur Jahan is the stepmother of Shah Jahan and is the wrong answer.
Option b- Jahanara Begum was a Mughal princess and the daughter of Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal. She is also the elder sister of Aurangzeb. Thus, it is an incorrect answer.
Option c- Chand Bibi was an Indian Muslim ruler. She also acted as the Regent of Bijapur Sultanate and Ahmednagar Sultanate in what we call as Maharashtra today. She was not the wife of Shah Jahan and is an incorrect option.
Option d- Mumtaz Mahal was the wife of Shah Jahan and she also gave birth to Aurangzeb who succeeded Shah Jahan as the Mughal Emperor of India. Mumtaz Mahal died in 1631 and thus Shah Jahan commissioned the building of Taj Mahal which is regarded as the symbol of eternal love. This is the correct answer.
Therefore, the option ‘d’ is the right option.

Note: The Taj Mahal was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1983 and is considered as ‘the jewel of Muslim art in India and one of the universally admired masterpieces of the world’s heritage’. It was also declared a winner of the New Seven Wonders of the World (2000-2007) initiative.