Mir Mohammad Azmat Ali Khan Azmat Jah succeeds as ninth Nizam of Hyderabad

Hyderabad: Following the death of titular Nizam VIII Mukarram Jah, his son Mir Mohammad Azmat Ali Khan Azmat Jah was officially declared as the ninth Nizam of Hyderabad, a release from Chowmahalla Palace, the office of Nizams, said on Saturday.

It is to mention here that Mukarram Jah, passed away in Istanbul, Turkey on January 14. His last rites were performed with state honors in Hyderabad on January 18.

"On Friday, the 20th day of January in terms of the desire and the decree made by Nawab Mir Barkat Ali Khan Walashan Mukaram Jah Bahadur H.E.H. the VIII Nizam of Hyderabad during his lifetime anointing his eldest son Mir Mohammed Azmat Ali Khan Azmat Jah as his successor in title and to accede his father as the IXth head of the Asaf Jahi dynasty for all symbolic ceremonial teacher and ancillary purposes…," the release said.

The professional photographer and cinematographer, Azmat Jah attended school in London and received his degree from California. He reportedly collaborated with people like Steven Spielberg and Richard Attenborough.

Azmat Jah was born to Mukarram Jah's first wife Princess Esra on July 23, 1960, and was named heir apparent after his birth by the seventh Nizam, Mir Osman Ali Khan who was still alive then.

The last Nizam of Hyderabad Mukarram Jah passed away in Turkey on Saturday night and laid to rest in the family's vault in the forecourt of Mecca Masjid.

He was named the successor by Mir Osman Ali Khan on June 14, 1954. In 1967, he was crowned at Chowmahalla Palace. Up until 1971, he was referred to as the Prince of Hyderabad. He held the title of India's richest person up to the 1980s.