 A series of disasters befell Delhi after Tughlaq's decision to shift his capital to Dawlatabad. Again and again, Taimur and others attacked Delhi. At times, Delhi ceased to be even a capital or a centre for culture. 250 years of upheaval and turmoil saw sultanate regimes rise and fall. But what remained as a constant was the progressive fusion of different strands of culture. Art, music, architecture, language all began to be melded into shape by the builders of a new empire. The dynasty, started by Baba, was built into a mighty empire by succeeding generations of Mughal rulers. Of the 17 Mughal kings and emperors that ruled India, Dhan was as impressive as Jalaluddin Muhammad Akbar. Akbar's capital Agra was the heartland of Braj, and he, in his inimitable way, encouraged the development of the language. Akbar's legacy was a tolerant outlook, disseminated and nourished by Sufis and saints such as Khaja Salim Chishti and Bhakti poets of numerous shades. Interaction between these two mystic streams, both using the spoken language of the people, led to deeper and more and more reflective streams. Several languages developed along the Indo-Gangetic plains, such as Braj and Avati, to name just two. The capital shifted once again to Delhi, with Shah Jahan, building a new city, Shah Jahanabad, and his palace, the Kilaimualla, also known as the Red Fort. Persian was the officially patronized literary language, but in the narrow lanes and by lanes of Shah Jahanabad, the lingua franca was Hindavi, or Rehhta. Rehhta, or mixed languages Urdu came to be known, began to acquire legitimacy. The very flexibility of Rehhta meant that wordsmiths from the ranks of the plebeians could now join the great masters. And this is what happened. Here was a language that democratized the creative processes for the very first time. The Mughal Empire begins to shrink rapidly after Aurangzeb. Kings came and went with great rapidity. The breaking away of Avarat starts a virtual run on the empire, and the newly arrived British begin to expand their influence and control. The collapse of the Mughal Empire loosens the hold of Persian, and Rehhta is now poised to fill the breach. The finest example of cultural synthesis from the immediate pre-colonial days is to be found in the works of Nawab Wajid Al-Ishah, the last ruler of Awat. Wajid Al-Ishah, an exponent of Thumri, Kathak and Rehats, authored many volumes of poetry and prose. And his play, Radha Kanhaiya ka Qissa written in 1840, is considered to be the very first drama in Urdu.