Birbal Biography 
Birbal or Rajah Birbar was a Hindu advisor in the court of the Mughal emperor Akbar, most popular with folklore and children stories till now. His witty and intelligent tales entertain not only children, but adults too and Birbal is quite a popular character on comic books and television shows as well. He was appointed by the Emperor as a poet and singer around 1556–1562 and later he rose to prominence through his brilliance. Later he became a close associate of Emperor Akbar as well. His folk tales are similar to Tenali Rama and Krishnadevaraya of south India.
In 1586, Akbar sent him aside his troupe to fight against the rebels of Yousafzai tribes of Afghanistan. But he didn’t return back and it shocked the Emperor a lot. It was one of the largest military losses for Akbar and Birbal’s body was not found too. Along with him, over 8000 soldiers were also killed. Birbar was Akbar’s most favourite courtier. Akbar-Birbal folk tales were passed on mainly by oral tradition and still remain every one’s favourite.
Birbal was born as Mahesh Das in 1528 in Kalpi, Uttar Pradesh in a family associated with literature. He was the youngest of three children, born to Ganga Das and Anabha Davito. He learnt Hindi, Sanskrit and Persian languages and also learnt music and poetry in the Braj dialect. He excelled in music and prose writing. He served at the Rajput court of Raja Ram Chandra of Reva while he got married.
It’s still under dispute when Birbal and Akbar met each other for the first time. It’s widely believed to be in between 1556 and 1562. He was appointed as poet of his court and later bestowed upon him the name 'Birbal' with the title "Rajah". He became one of the 9 advisors of Akbar. He was a follower of Din-i-Ilahi, a religion started by Akbar, taking the good principles of both Hinduism and Islam.
Published: N/A
Updated: June 27, 2014
