Jahanara Begum was a Mughal princess and later the Padshah Begum of the Mughal Empire from 1631 to 1658 and again from 1668 until her death. She was the second and the eldest surviving child of Emperor Shah Jahan and Mumtaz Mahal. One incident that exemplifies her leadership skills occurred during the tumultuous period following the illness of her father, Shah Jahan, and the subsequent power struggle among his sons.