Mehtab Bagh: Shahjahan's Moonlit Garden

The Mughal Emperor Shahjahan envisioned Mehtab Bagh as an integral part of the Taj Mahal’s design. Mehtab Bagh sits on a direct North – South axis across from the Taj, and mirrors the Taj complex’s exact size with the Yamuna river at the center.

Mehtab Bagh was a moonlit pleasure garden, intended to be visited at night. Mehtab means light of the moon and Bagh means garden.

The Emperor would arrive by longboat after the hot summer sun had set. From this vantage point, the Taj’s brilliant white dome reflected not only on the Yamuna but also in the garden’s octagonal pool near the river entrance.

This film tells the story of Shahjahan's ambitious garden palace - a complex that would rival the gardens of Versailles being built at the same time outside of Paris.

  • Christina MacGillivray
    Director
    Perfect In Her Own Right, Exile and Belonging
  • Project Type:
    Animation, Documentary, Short
  • Runtime:
    4 minutes 22 seconds
  • Completion Date:
    January 1, 2019
  • Country of Origin:
    India
  • Country of Filming:
    India
  • Language:
    English
  • Shooting Format:
    Animation
  • Film Color:
    Color
  • First-time Filmmaker:
    No
  • Student Project:
    No
  • Agra
    India
    January 13, 2019
    India
Director Biography - Christina MacGillivray

Christina MacGillivray is an award-winning writer, director and cinematographer based in New Delhi, India. She works with the United Nations Human Rights Office on creating new film and storytelling initiatives around the issues of human rights and immigration. She created and directed the United Nations first ever stand-up comedy festival called “Stand-Up for Migrants,” which featured top international comedians sharing their own diverse perspectives and stories about issues of migration, human rights and identity. Christina founded the production company Mummy Daddy Media in 2012. She is a former President William J. Clinton fellow in media and human rights. Christina has directed and produced films in more than a dozen countries including India, China, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Austria, Malaysia and others. Her work focuses on empowering women and girls, both on screen and behind the camera.

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