TRAGIC figures in Indian history. Dara Shikoh was the eldest son and HEIR-apparent of the Mughal emperor Shah Jahan.Dara was designated with the title Padshahzada-i-Buzurg Martaba (Prince of High Rank) and was favored as a successor by his father and his older sister, Princess Jahanara Begum.In the war of succession which ensued after Shah Jahan's illness in 1657, Dara was defeated by his YOUNGER brother Prince Muhiuddin.He was executed in 1659 on Aurangzeb's orders in a bitter struggle for the imperial throne.Dara Shikoh was appointed as a military commander at an early age, receiving an appointment as commander of 12,000-foot and 6,000 horse in October 1633.On 10 SEPTEMBER 1642, Shah Jahan formally confirmed Dara Shikoh as his heir, granting him the title of Shahzada-e-Buland Iqbal and promoting him to the command of 20,000-foot and 20,000 horse.Prince MuradMurad Mirza was a Mughal prince as the second surviving son of Mughal Emperor Akbar.He was the maternal grandfather of Nadira Banu Begum, wife of Prince Dara Shikoh.Princess JahanaraJahanara Begum was a Mughal princess and the Padshah Begum of the Mughal Empire from 1631 to 1681.She was the eldest child of Emperor Shah Jahan and his wife, Mumtaz Mahal.she was the elder sister of the crown prince, Dara Shikoh, and Emperor Aurangzeb.Emperor Shah JahanShah Jahan was the fifth Mughal emperor and reigned from 1628 to 1658.Under his reign, the Mughal Empire reached the PEAK of its cultural glory.Shah Jahan commissioned many monuments, the best known of which is the Taj Mahal in Agra, in which is entombed his favorite wife, Mumtaz Mahal.