A distinguished historian and professor, Dr. Chandra Shekhar Sharma has dedicated his life to unearthing the true legacy of Maharana Pratap. His groundbreaking research on the Battle of Haldighati, supported by copper plate evidence, overturned centuries-old misconceptions. Recognized as a "gamechanger of history," Dr. Sharma’s work led to curriculum reforms and a nationwide celebration of Maharana Pratap’s contributions.

With a rich experience of 27 years in the field of History, Dr. Chandra Shekhar Sharma is a Professor and Head of the Department of History at Government Meera Girls College, Udaipur.

An accomplished Historian, Dr. Chandra Shekhar Sharma is renowned for his pioneering research on Maharana Pratap and the Battle of Haldighati. His dedication to unearthing historical truths, particularly about the Battle of Haldighati, has reshaped national perspectives and inspired future generations.

Dr. Sharma is the first ever PhD scholar of the nation to undertake extensive research on Maharana Pratap, which was submitted by him in 2006. Impressed by his findings, senior leader Bhairon Singh Shekhawat gave him 1.15 hours of time to put forward the findings of his research work on Maharana Pratap. The renowned journalist and political analyst Ved Prakash Vaidik also recognised his PhD thesis to be extremely important and beneficial for the history of the nation.

Later, inspired by his own research, Dr. Chandra Shekhar Sharma published 5 different books on Maharana Pratap on various aspects of his life.

In 2017, he was invited by the Rajasthan Board of Secondary Education to write the Social Science book of Class 10th as an author. Dr. Sharma mentions that, from the past 450 years, history incorrectly stated that Maharana Pratap lost in the Haldighati battle against the Mughal Army. But, for the very first time, based on his research, the class 12th grade course content was changed and Pratap was shown as victorious in the battle.

Dr. Sharma says he derived information about the battle of Haldighati from the copper plates of that era, which are always considered a primary source of information about historical facts. Dr. Sharma's conclusions were based on 16th-century revenue records, which state that Maharana Pratap distributed land in villages near Haldighati even a year after the battle, which took place on June 18, 1576, by awarding land rights written on copper plates with the Diwan of Eklingnath's signature. Dr. Sharma reasons that any piece of land can be granted to someone  only by the ruler of that kingdom. Thus, this was enough as evidence to recognise that the revenue records clearly showed that even after 6-12 months of the battle, the land was given by Maharana Pratap, i.e., the then ruler of the area around Haldighati.

He also points out that no Mughal sultanate coins were found from that region, and there is no evidence of the Mughals appointing any Chowkidar there just as they did in Chittorgarh. Thus, the research by Dr. Sharma clearly proves that Maharana Pratap won the battle against the Mughal army.

Dr. Sharma argues that after 200 years, when records were written, be it the ‘Prashasti’ of the Jagdish Temple, or the Kharsan Lake, it was all in the form of inscriptions (Prashasti). As is the norm about history, inscriptions are considered a secondary source of information, but with copper plates, we could clearly know about the correct history of Maharana Pratap. Dr. Chandra Shekhar Sharma feels proud to state that all the misconceptions in our history, which we were studying for the past 500 years due to the lack of information, are clear now. Thus, due to his groundbreaking research in the field, he sees himself as a channel to have shed light on these facts about the history of Maharana Pratap.

Dr. Sharma proudly states that, later, the governments of Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Punjab changed their History school courses related to Maharana Pratap after discussion with Dr. Sharma. The Chandigarh University of Punjab also constituted a Maharana Pratap Chair after discussing with him and the syllabus for the same was drafted by him.

In 2021, when a big national celebration event was held on Maharana Pratap Jayanti, the Governor of Rajasthan chaired the function and the chief guest was Chandra Prakash Joshi, a Member of the Lok Sabha. Dr. Sharma was honoured to be the keynote speaker of this event. He underlines that approximately 550 organisations related to Mharana Pratap were a part of this grand celebration. In that event, Dr. Sharma raised the demand that the stone inscriptions (Shila-lekhs) at Rakt-talai and Haldi Ghati put up by the ASI- Archeological Survey of India, showing that the Rajput army was defeated in Haldighati, and it retreated from the battleground, should be removed due to the newfound evidence which proved that it was Maharana Pratap who was victorious in the battle. Similarly, he demanded removal of the stone inscriptions naming the area where the Mughal army had halted for a very short period of time as Badshah Bagh.

Dr. Sharma, along with the residents of Haldighati, organised a public movement for the removal of the inscriptions showing information which had been proven wrong. Later, the ex- secretary of the Pratap Samiti at Balicha, Jagdish Raj Shrimali supported him along with other ministers of the government and the media supported them as well. The media portrayed Dr. Sharma as the “Gamechanger of history.”

After one month of protest, as the authorities were not giving attention to their protest, Dr. Chandra Shekhar Sharma challenged them to either discard his PhD thesis and the 5 books written by him or accept their demand. He submitted a 3-page evidence report, and the Department of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) finally had to remove the stone inscriptions that stated incorrect facts about the Haldi Ghati battle. Dr. Sharma shares that since India got independence, the ASI had never changed a single stone inscription except the two as suggested by him. This stone inscription also included the Badshah Bagh inscription at Haldighati, and the name ‘Badshah Bagh’ was changed.

Dr. Sharma argued that Akbar’s army took halts at various parts of India like Gujarat, Bengal, Bihar, etc., so either all of them must be renamed as Badshah Bagh or either the stone inscription at Badshah Bagh area of Haldighati (originally known as Gulab Bagh due to the rose plantations there) must be removed. Thus, with the pressure from the media and other people, the stone inscriptions stating incorrect facts were removed by the ASI. Historian Dr. Sharma considers this his lifetime achievement, and feels happy that now our future generations will be able to hold their heads high with pride and honour.

Dr. Chandra Shekhar Sharma believes that Maharana Pratap must be recognised  as the first freedom fighter in the history of India. He has penned the findings and related thoughts about this in his book, “Maharana Pratap: Pioneer of National Freedom.” Further eulogising Maharana Pratap’s valour and bravery, Dr. Sharma shares that Maharana Pratap received four offers for truce, but he never accepted them and rather chose a rough path while not thinking of the wellbeing of his family but of the entire kingdom. He sent back all the four delegations and thus chose a life of struggle over an easy and blessed life that he could have easily opted for.

He highlights that, considering Maharana Pratap as an icon, many journalists and freedom fighters like Ganesh Shankar Vidyarthi got inspired by Maharana Pratap. Be it Mahatma Gandhi or Jawaharlala Nehru, all of them quoted Maharana Pratap as an inspiration to them. The entire freedom movement, be it that of 1947 or that of 1857, was all fought with the inspiration of Maharana Pratap. He points out that many small countries like Vietnam or Israel fought their wars with the inspiration of Pratap of Mewar. The great Vietnamese Revolutionary and Prime Minister Ho Chi Minh had accepted that he drew inspiration from Rana Pratap’s bravery. Thus, according to Dr. Sharma, Maharana Pratap is a worldwide symbol of freedom and peace across the globe.

Dr. Sharma highlights that in the war of Haldighati, Hakim Khan Sur served as the General of the Harawal Dasta of Rana Pratap's army, as he was the only gunpowder expert who could operate the cannon. This depicts that Pratap always prioritised ability over the tradition of giving the precious position of the General of Harawal troops to a Chundawat. Acts like these by Rana Pratap promoted harmony amongst his people.

Pratap gave equal opportunities to all like the great donator Bhamashah, and the  36 communities. Even the famous historian, Colonel James Tod regarded the Haldighati battlefield as a holy place. Thus, Dr. Chandra Shekhar sees the opportunity of research on the all-time great war of Haldighati which he got as a matter of immense honour.

Dr. Sharma says his research changed him internally as a person and his way of living life. In the past 28 years of his work experience, he has never compromised with his self-respect. Even after facing 16 transfers in his government job in the education field, he never bowed down before anybody to grant him any kind of favour.

Dr. Sharma has also written books on various other topics like Indian History, Philosophy, the Teaching Theory of Shrimad Vallabhacharya, the Administrative System of Mewar, etc., but doing the first PhD on Maharana Pratap is more like a personal accomplishment to him. He claims his research has positively impacted the society and the educational system of India.

Dr. Sharma claims his research further ignited many other historical topics in India. Before 2005, Maharana Pratap Jayanti was not celebrated on such a large scale, but his research contributed somewhat to people coming to know more about Rana Pratap and celebrating his birth anniversary on a large scale.

He regards this research as a milestone for the nation and the upcoming generation to come. He recites the shloka  “इदं न मम, राष्ट्राय स्वाहा,” which means everything one does is for the nation, and not for you. He shares that he received immense support from the media and not a single news channel in India was left which did not cover his research on Rana Pratap. Today all the mainstream media houses of the nation and premier news channels like the BBC have interviewed him on this topic approximately 10 times.  He laments that, influenced by the glory of Akbar, some historians depicted Pratap as a ‘Bhagaura’, which was utterly wrong and demeaning to the great fighter.

Reflecting on his childhood, Dr. Sharma shares that he was born in the holy city of Nathdwara, and belongs to a Pushtimargi family. From his early childhood, he was always interested in wrestling and other sports. He also played at the national level in wrestling while in his student life. His father was a scholar of various languages like Hindi, English, and Sanskrit apart from Philosophy. The knowledge from his father and the serving attitude of his mother shaped his life in the best manner possible. Due to his upbringing and with the blessings of his parents, he has shaped into the individual he is today. He recalls that while studying in the 7th grade, he read a chapter called “Akbar Mahaan,” and below that, there was a small paragraph written stating that Rana Pratap lost the battle of Haldighati, which pained him a lot.

On the other hand, Nathdwara had a very fun environment, with 36 wrestling ‘Akharas’ due to an enthusiastic wrestling environment. When he went there, he always gossiped with his friend that if Rana Pratap and Akbar ever did wrestling, Pratap could never lose against Akbar. Thus, the environment and upbringing at Nathdwara were engraved deeply into his subconscious, resulting in his accomplishments today.

Talking about his role models, Dr. Chandra Shekhar Sharma says that he did his research on his primary role model, Maharana Pratap. He always says, “You will find people who know Pratap; you will find people who believe in Pratap, but today the country needs people who love Pratap." He shares that making movies and institutions in the name of Maharana Pratap is the harsh reality of today, but he does not support that and truly loves Rana Pratap.

Secondly, Lord Shrinathji has served as his spiritual inspiration. Besides, he shares that ever since he has owned a mobile, he has always had the display picture of Chandrashekar Azaad as his role model. He admires how Chandrashekhar Azaad took so many brave risks in order to further the freedom movement for Mother India. Collectively, all the great people of India are like an inspiration for him.

The quotations from the Bhagavad Gita like “कर्मण्येवाधिकारस्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन।” which means that one has the right to act,  but not over the fruits of the action, always guide him. Thinking of this line itself, he did the research on Pratap, and feels pride today, that when anybody Googles Dr. Chandra Shekhar Sharma, all his works are easily displayed on the web.

The song that motivates him a lot is:

”क्या मार सकेगी मौत उसे,  औरों के लिए जो जीता है, 
मिलता है जहां का प्यार उसे, औरों  के जो आंसू पीता है।
  जिसने विष पिया, बना शंकर, 
जिसने विष पिया, बनी मीरा…।"

Dr. Sharma feels upset by the commercialisation of the lore of Maharana Pratap. Rather, and believes that one should try to live by the values of Rana Pratap, which result in personal as well as the development of the nation. As the saying of Mahatma Gandhi goes, "मेरा जीवन ही मेरा संदेश है।" Similarly, we should take inspiration from the life of Rana Pratap.

According to Dr. Sharma, living a life, having a  job, and being a professor are not major achievements for him. Rather, leaving something behind for the future generations to come is an achievement for him. He had some challenging times during his job, caused by the 16 transfers he has faced till now, but never taking any favours from anyone is an achievement for him. He never compromised for anything wrong happening to him till now.

Till now he has written 8 books, 5 on Maharana Pratap, 2 on Indian history, 1 on the administrative system of Mewar during the 17th century, and the Shiksha Darshan of Shri Vallabhacharya in the field of education. Currently he is working on a trilogy of books. The first part is on Maharana Pratap, the second part is on Guru Gobind Singh, and the third part is on Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, collectively called the “Triveni.” In these books, he is working to depict the similar qualities of these three great personalities. He believes that just like we are making good physical infrastructure for the upcoming generations, we must also focus on the historical concepts and raise them based on the same.

Many of his relatives and their kids reach out to him, saying how they came to know about the victory of Rana Pratap after his research. When his students studying for IAS exams in Delhi inform him about reading his name in the books, it fills him with pride. Overall, he believes in living life carefree with utmost joy and never running away from any responsibility.

Dr. Sharma recommends that History be made compulsory in all the educational institutions in India. He underlines that many subjects, like Public Aid and Sociology, came out of the learnings from Bhishma Pitamah. In the era of Nalanda and Takshashila, the concepts of language, culture, history, grammar, and philosophy all came out of history. But in today's times, we have further bifurcated these subjects into what we learn today. The Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha systems are derived from Vedic culture, he explains.

He quotes a historian by his famous line, “Not knowing history is like a child not knowing his parents.“ We must always learn from our history and our forefathers by never taking history lightly. The quote “history repeats itself” came into being as we don't learn from history and thus repeat the same mistakes.

The general knowledge competitions today cover 50% questions from history, and hence knowing history will help the students score better marks. To understand the seriousness of life, Dr. Sharma believes in learning from the struggles of our freedom fighters and to value what we have today.

The final plight of great warriors like Napoleon and Sikander tells us that nothing is permanent in life, and hence we must work in a manner to be able to stay stable as much as possible in life.

Lastly, he gives a message to the students to respect their parents, follow discipline, and no matter how much they struggle in life, they will definitely achieve their goals in life.