According to Mughal tradition, nobles were granted a special kitchen allowance in order to entertain their guests; this custom was followed by the East India Company as well and the Resident of Delhi received Rs 5000 for his kitchen expenses. All those who visited him were offered lunch or dinner depending on the time of the day... Due to the extreme polarisation of wealth, a large section of society was crushed by poverty. Thus servants were available at very low salary and the British, like the Indian nobles, employed many servants for their comfort as well as for status... Those who were rich and powerful often kept more than a hundred. The number of servants one could afford was a symbol of one’s status, honour and respect in society. It is interesting to learn how the duties of this army of servants were divided. For example, it was customary for every noble Englishman to keep a servant whose duty was to maintain the huqqa or hubble bubble ready for him. The servant accompanied him along with his hubble bubble when the master went out for a walk or as a guest to someone’s house. After dinner, all servants brought the huqqas, placed them in front of their masters and silently stood behind them.
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