Obituary
Darbhanga : With the passing of Maharani Adhirani Kamsundari of Darbhanga, an era of royalty in Bihar, and Raj Darbhanga quietly came to an end. Maharani Sahiba, the third wife of Maharajadhiraja Kameshwar Singh, was unwell for some time and passed away at the age of 94.
She was married in 1940, widowed in 1962, and went on to establish the Kalyani Foundation and a library in the memory of her late husband. She is survived by her adopted daughter Noor, and her grand nephews and nieces. Ratneshwar Singh, her eldest grand nephew performed her last rites today at the Shyama Mai Temple complex in Darbhanga, where such rituals for the members of the Darbhanga royal family traditionally take place.
Maharani Kameshwari Devi was not a ruling Maharani and did not exercise authority in matters of state or involve herself in politics. Her role was domestic, cultural, and moral—typical of women of her generation in the Mithila community yet was deeply significant.
In her white, seedha palla sari, Maiyyaji was the epitome of grace, carrying her royal status with dignity. She valued order, simplicity, and emotional control. Speech was measured, routines were followed faithfully, and personal hardship was borne without complaint. It is a huge loss to the family and the Raj Darbhanga lineage, and as the next generations the values we have learned from her will be followed in the days to come.
Maharani Sahiba was my great-grand aunt, the eldest in our family, and we called her Maiiyaji. Childhood memories, and a face that was always smiling, always cheerful, flashed through my mind when I heard of her demise, the times we spent with her at Sagar Apartments and Mansingh Road in New Delhi, or at our home in Allahabad, or the kalpwas camps by the Ganga, where Maiyyaji and my grandmother camped, almost every year at the Magh mela.
While Maiyyaji was her mamiya saas (aunt–in-law), being of the same age, they were close friends and called each other by the pet name of ‘Prem” (love), hence spent a lot of time together.
With her passing, the dignity of quiet restraint as a way of life will fade further into memory. She was among the last living links to a royal culture where values were lived daily, without any show of wealth or power. Her absence feels like the closing of a door on an era that shaped me deeply, even before I understood it.
I will always remember her with deep affection, gratitude, and respect—not only as my great grandaunt, but as a reminder of an era gone by. May her soul rest in peace and may the values she embodied continue to live through the next generations and all those who remember her. Pranam Maiiyaji, your blessings will live with us.
— by Vasudha Jha
