Nai-ka-Kot or barber’s fortress, on the outskirts of Delhi, is in ruins now and few find the time to visit it, for they are not conversant with the history of the place. How could a barber have built a fortress? Barbers were generally poor in the olden days and did not find much work, as few at that time went about with a clean chin. The hair was usually short-cropped or worn long, reaching right up to the neck, though some preferred to keep it ear-length.
There is a tale of a jobless barber who was so troubled at home that one day he decided to go into the jungle so that he could fall prey to some wild animal and thus be rid of his earthly woes. But things did not happen the way he had thought they would and, getting scared at nightfall, the poor man climbed a tree. He saw some robbers distributing their booty. Shaking with fear he fell on them, causing them to run away in confusion. The barber was able to collect all the wealth and live happily ever after.
But this is just a fairytale and the plight of the barbers was indeed a pitiable one. However, the barbers did occupy a position of some importance at social functions, like marriages and ceremonies associated with child-birth. The royal barber enjoyed a high status because of his closeness to the king. Nai-ka-Kot could be the story of one such barber who was attached to Muhammad bin Tughlak (1290-1351).
The king had a philosophical bent of mind, which was compounded by his suspicious nature. The barber who came to trim the royal beard was the source of much news, peppered with rumor and hearsay. Perhaps one day he did manage to hear of a conspiracy and inform the king. In gratitude, Muhammad Tughlak built a fortress to house his informant.
But this tale has some loose ends (like the one which says that it was constructed by his Wazir), because Nai-ka-Kot is also known as Dhobi (washerman’s) Kot and Mehtar Kot (how did a sweeper come to be associated with this medieval fortress?). Did the king honour a washerman and sweeper also the way he did the barber? If so, what were the services rendered by the man who washed the royal robes and the one who swept the royal apartments?
Did they also unearth a conspiracy and save the king’s life? In the absence of records, it is difficult to come to a conclusion.
However, one thing is certain: Nai-ka-Kot was the private apartment of Mohammad bin Tughlak, where he retired when he had had enough of the affairs of state. A plausible explanation could be that the barber, the washerman, and the sweeper were among the few allowed into the apartment, for without them a fastidious king was unable to lead his personal life in comfort, in an age when washing machines and flush toilets were hundreds of years away.
Courtiers who made fun of the king behind his back probably got a kick out of calling the retreat Nai-ka-Kot and the name stuck for posterity.
The writer is a veteran chronicler of Delhi