The Maharajas of Burdwan
The Zamindars of Burdwan in Bengal belong to the Kapoor clan and held the title of Maharajah. Maharajah Bahadur Tedj Chand Ray adopted Chinilal Kapur. His descendants continued as the Maharajas of Burdwan. The family continued as rulers of Burdwan until zamindari was abolished by the government of India in 1955/56. The area remained under direct administration of the British via the Indian Civil Service officers on the Bengal State.
They were never members of the Chamber or Council of Princes such as the Maharaja of Patiala or Kapurtala. Thus the title Maharaja was only honorific as was the case in much of India. During the three centuries that they held the estate of Burdwan, the Kapoor family extended their patronage to scholars and artists, including:
- Paramahansa Yogananda, swami and philosopher
- Sadhak Kamalakanta, Bengali poet and singer
Several famous buildings and tanks in Burdwan were built by the Maharajas of Burdwan, including the Sarbamangala temple, the Baikunthanath Siva temple, the Shyam sagar tank, the Ranisagar tank, the Bijoy Toran and the Rajbadi (palace). In 1882, the Burdwan Raj College was started in Burdwan, which was supported entirely by the estates of the Kapoor dynasty.
Rabindranath Tagore in his The Hungry Stones And Other Stories writes: "the Chhota Lord had been heard to say that in all Bengal, the only really respectable families were those of the Maharaja of Burdwan and the Babus of Nayanjore."
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