Hadi Rani

Hadi Rani was a Rajput queen in Rajasthan also a  daughter of the Hada Chauhan Rajput clan of Rajasthan. She was married to Ratan Singh a Chundawat chieftain of Mewar. She is still remembered for her chivalry, valour, courage in the line of Rajput traditions. To motivate her husband to go for the battle, the newly married queen sacrificed herself by cutting off her head.

It is said that when the ruler of Mewar (1653–1680) called the chieftain Ratan Singh to join the rebellion against the Mughal governor of Ajmer Subah, he( Ratan Singh) was a bit hesitant as he had married only a few days earlier. However, considering the Rajput honour forced him to join the battle despite his reluctance. He asked his wife, Hadi Rani, for some memento that he could take along to the battlefield. Hadi Rani thought that she was being an obstacle in her husband’s duty towards his motherland Mewar. So, she cut off her head and put it on a plate and sent that to her husband Ratan Singh with a servant. The servant covered it with a cloth and presented it to Ratan Singh. Devastated but nevertheless proud, Ratan Singh tied the memento (her head) around his neck by its hair and fought bravely. After their rebellion ended, he got to his knees and cut off his own neck, as he also had lost the desire to live without his wife.

Anurag Johari