MAHARAJA PADMANABH SINGH DECODING THE ENIGMA
‘Prince Charles is one of the most special people – I am fortunate enough to have in my life as my Godfather… I think what really amazes me about him is the fact that he’s so aware about things – every single time that I meet him, he knows exactly where I am and what I am doing – if I’ve finished school or have been playing polo’
We are at the fag end of 2019. The matters being discussed are climate change and the risk of an economic downturn. At a time like this when we find ourselves waiting to meet a 21-year-old Maharaja in his opulent palace, with a retinue of liveried staff in attendance and his personal vintage car parked outside, it almost seems like we have time-travelled into another era that is blissfully distant from the morose realities that stare us in the face. What are we really doing pursuing an anachronistic story, and saving all that precious print space (a cover story, phew!!) for a millennial royal sensation? But then, how do you possibly ignore the metamorphosis of a young Prince into a phenomenon who is growing leaps and bounds appearing like a new blaze on the horizon each time? From the Indian media to international glossies and fashion highways – from England to Italy, America and Paris, Jaipur’s HH Maharaja Sawai Padmanabh Singh is hitting the headlines as the new poster-boy who is recycling the country’s grand-old history in the most remarkable, stylish and seasoned manner that totally belie his age. He is a game-changer to say the least.
Padmanabh has reinvented the portfolio of a Maharaja and given the erstwhile title a whole new lease of life – decades after royal titles were abolished and privy purses were taken away from his ancestors and others of their ilk. Now, his unabashed celebration in 21 century India across diverse forums is proving to be a redemption of sorts, for royalty in India that earlier found itself succumbing to slow decadence and anonymity in the democratic era. At a time when people have raised anti-dynasty slogans to a fevered pitch, Padmanabh has got the naysayers to their knees and unapologetically owned his legacy of 303 generations
