The legend of Kohinoor is the story of valor, bravado, and adventure. Kohinoor is the story of the expansion of almost all major religions, with Hindus, Sikhs, Muslims and Christians all finding inspiration in it. The legend of Kohinoor is the story of imperialism – be it the expansion of the Sikh, Persian, Afghan or British empires.

“The legend of Kohinoor is the story of valor, bravado, and adventure. Kohinoor is the story of the expansion of almost all major religions, with Hindus, Sikhs, Muslims and Christians all finding inspiration in it. The legend of Kohinoor is the story of imperialism – be it the expansion of the Sikh, Persian, Afghan or British empires.

The legend of Kohinoor is the story of all of the seven cardinal sins – pride of Ranjit Singh & Shah Jahan, lust, greed and wrath of Nader Shah, envy of the East India Company; gluttony and sloth of Rangeela – many of the principal players exhibit one or more of these sins that quickly leads to their downfall. The legend of Kohinoor is also of immense violence, wars, loss of entire families and kingdoms, and great tragedies. The legend of Kohinoor is closely intertwined with the curse of Kohinoor – it is said that no man except one has ever been able to wear the Kohinoor and save his life or kingdom for more than a year. There was one glorious exception to the curse, and what an outlier he was.

The reality of Kohinoor today is that it still manages to capture headlines and is a geopolitical landmine – it is claimed as rightfully their own by India, the Lord Jagannath temple in Puri, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iran, and the UK.

As two very wise men have said previously, and we paraphrase, “Kohinoor ka peechcha 11 se bhi zyaada mulkon ki sarkaar kar rahi hai.”