zeroSeefr and The Drum

The Maharajah and the Kohinoor is a co-production between ZeroSeefr and The Drum. A new abridged version of the dynamic hour long play telling the life story of Duleep Singh, the last emperor of the Sikhs running at 30 minutes to offer to community events and festivals. The abridged version features shortened scenes linked by engaging story telling making the play accessible to very young children. Originally commissioned by the Anglo-Sikh Heritage Trail in 2008, the play was first performed in venues such as the Tower of London and the Victoria and Albert Museum to a great response during its developmental stage in 2008. The show has since toured theatres, schools and community venues across the UK and US including the LA Convention Centre and . Featuring characters as diverse as Maharajah Duleep Singh, Queen Victoria, Maharani Jindah Kaur and even the Koh-i-noor diamond itself, the play is a great opportunity to encourage audiences of all ages to engage with the past particularly this unique period in British and South Asian History.

Where did the crown jewels come from? The Koh-i-noor diamond has had many keepers, many Kings and many Emperors but there was one who was very special…The young Maharajah, Duleep Singh who was brought to England with the jewel. Separated from his mother and deposed at the age of eleven, the Last Emperor of the Sikhs finds an unlikely but loyal friend in Queen Victoria. Their interwoven histories come to life in this vibrant true tale of how the diamond came to be part of the British crown jewels.