The Jungle Prince of Delhi: An Essay on the Royal Family of Oudh

This essay explores the historical context and mysteries surrounding the Royal Family of Oudh, as discussed in a New York Times article by Ellen Barry. The essay delves into the legends and myths connected to the family, their secluded existence in a jungle near Delhi, and their purported connections to the Muslim Shiite community. It discusses the confusion surrounding their presence after the British annexation of their kingdom and the varying perceptions of them as either royalty or supernatural beings. The essay highlights Barry's investigation, including her experiences in the region and the family's grievances against the Indian government. It concludes by reflecting on the social issues of the time, including the impact of the partition of India and the experiences of people from other countries. The family's history, including the alleged suicide of the mother, is also examined within the context of the broader political and social landscape.

Running head: ENGLISH
English
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1ENGLISH
The following essay will look to discuss on the royal family of Oudh and the mysteries
that are attached with this. All the factors that are related with it are completely full with
confusion and this article had been published last year in the New York Times (Barry). Many
legends and myths are connected with the family of Oudh. These connections will be discovered
in the paper so the original story can be discovered.
It is quite fascinating to find out the fact that this family of Oudh had completely played
mysterious games with the people of the region and government documents have been trying to
unfold the actual mystery. However, there is no confusion that this family had been trying long
and hard to convince the local people that they belong to the family of royalty. According to the
local trends, it has been found that all the people of Old Delhi, ranging from the tea sellers to the
rickshaw drivers that there is a family in the region that belong to the royalty but their presence
amidst the region were not noticed at all (Barry). It was commonly said that this royal family
lived in a jungle that was completely cut off from the city.
According to the legends, it has been said that this royal family contained the queen,
prince and princess. They were believed to be the last traces of Muslim Shiite community. There
was some confusion regarding their presence. It had been said by some people that these people
stayed still after the British Empire had annexed their kingdom in the year 1856. On the other
hand, some people believed they were completely supernatural beings (Barry). The discoveries
of Ellen Barry have been discussed here because she was on an assignment at India when she
received the phone call and she went there to find out the actual truth.
Ellen Barry was the New England bureau chief while she was the South Asian bureau
chief of the New York Times. The person on the other side of the phone call told her to leave the

2ENGLISH
car at the end of the road. The place was near the Indian Military compound and there was a high
wall there also. She was also advised to come alone. The region was so scary that their royal
palace could not be seen and there were big trees creating a big forest near the palace (Barry).
This forest had engulfed the palace completely and rumors began to spread that these people
were completely make belief spiritual beings.
Here it has been doubted by many if such a family actually existed in those regions. It is
because some people also opined that they were actually jinns. These jinns were actually the
supernatural spirits of the Arabian folk stories. Some found adventure in finding out this
adventure and some were very terrified at their thought. So, several mixed reactions have been
found regarding this myth of the Royal family of Oudh (Barry). Prince Cyrus was the name of
the person who has been referred here as the prince of the jungle. The author of this article
definitely understood that these people did not want any kind of company being provided to
them nor they wanted to mix up with new guests.
Some descriptions were found regarding the appearance of the princess while a person
saw her through a telephoto. According to that person, the hair of the princess had not been
washed or cut for so many years and it grew so big that the hair fell into the ground in branches.
They used to live in a bunting lodge that belonged to the 14th century (Barry). The vivid
descriptions by Ellen Barry are so interesting to hear as she wanted to explore the actual truth.
Then, it was found that the family could admit one journalist into their house and tell them all
their problems and grievances they had against the state of India. Apart from that, it had also
been admitted by them that the mother of Prince and Princess was so shocked with the
treacherous actions committed by Britain and India that she committed suicide as she drank
poison while she mixed pearls and diamonds with it (Barry).

3ENGLISH
In the concluding part of this research essay, it can be said that this article reflects all the
social issues regarding the common people of India and their feelings on the political division of
the country into two parts. The problems faced by people coming from other countries and their
mysteries have also been unfolded here.

4ENGLISH
References
Barry, Ellen. "The Jungle Prince Of Delhi". Nytimes.Com, 2019,
https://www.nytimes.com/2019/11/22/world/asia/the-jungle-prince-of-delhi.html.