The king of
Amarkot, Hameer Soomoro, along with his ministers Rano Mahendhra, Seenharro Dhamachanni and Daunro Bhatyanni, used to go hunting to the farthest areas of Amarkot, sometimes even crossing the boundaries of their territory during their adventures. On one such hunting excursion, these four men encountered a young man in the middle of nowhere. Keeping their identities hidden, they engaged the young man who told them the peculiar story of how he ended up where he was and what had happened to him in the preceding days. He was a prince from a kingdom near
Kashmir. He had heard the legends of Momal; an enchanting beauty whose charm and grace were unmatched. Inspired and enticed, he set out to pursue her. Upon arriving at her palace, he was not only overwhelmed by her enchanting beauty, but by her charm and intelligence as well. He was determined to win her hand and agreed to partake of a series of trials and puzzles. However, Momal and her sisters along with their entourage of handmaids played tricks on him and falling victim to their schemes and unsolvable puzzles, he not only lost everything he had, but almost lost his life. He could do nothing but run to save himself. The prince’s story intrigued the hunting party. They gathered as much information as they could about Momal and her whereabouts and decided to head out on this adventure. The place where Momal lived was near
Lodhruva, north-east of Amarkot. She lived with seven (some experts say nine) sisters, the most famous of them being Somal and Natir, (some consider her to be Momal's handmaid and confidant rather than sister) in a palace called Kak Mahal. It was a magical palace with labyrinths, puzzles, illusions and much more. Just as the prince foretold, the would-be suitors would have to undergo several trials, and reach the palace sanctuary unharmed to become Momal’s lover. Historically, everyone who encountered her entourage was robbed of everything, with some even losing their lives. Some were lucky like the prince and made it out with nothing but their lives. Momal was indeed a legendary beauty. Somal was famous for intelligence and Natir was an unmatched strategist. They worked together to enchant the suitors and overpower them, making their task of reaching the inner sanctuary anything but impossible. Of the hunting party, Rano Mendhro was famously intelligent and known for his bravery and quick wit. He successfully reached the palace sanctuary, completing the trials unharmed. Momal was impressed and accepted him as her lover. King Hameer and the other two ministers left Rano Mendhro at Kak Mahal in the arms of Momal and returned to Amarkot. Rano would go between Amarkot and Lodhruva often where he and Momal enjoyed their growing love in bliss for some time. Eventually, the resentment King Hameer felt towards Rano for winning the fair maiden’s hand grew into jealousy of their love. He ordered Rano to no longer see Momal and Rano, being a minister, had to abide by his King and friend. Eventually, his passion for his lover would overpower his sense of duty. He began to sneak away every night to be with her and would return before sunrise. There came a day when the king became aware of his betrayal and imprisoned him. For the sake of their friendship, he released Rano if he vowed to never see Momal again. While he agreed, he was overwhelmed by his love for Momal and one night headed to Kak Mahal to be with his beloved once more. With Rano away so long, Momal grew lonely. Out of desperation, she asked Somal to dress like Rano and sleep in her bed to dull the pain of longing she felt for her absent beloved. When Rano arrived, he mistook Somal for a man and feeling betrayed, left the palace for Amarkot leaving behind his cane. Once Momal awoke, she noticed the cane and realized Rano had been there and perhaps had left her thinking her unfaithful. Overwhelmed with grief and the longing she felt waiting for her lover to come back to her, Momal set out in pursuit of Rano towards Amarkot. Disguised as a man, she searched him out. She managed to stay by his side in Amarkot still disguised as a man. However, it didn’t take long for Rano to realize it was Momal. She pleaded with him to take her back and tried to explain that all was not as it seemed. Rano seemed unmoved and unconvinced. Out of desperation and overwhelming grief, Momal jumped into fire and committed suicide. When Rano learned of this, he realized his folly and he followed her into the same fire letting the flames consume his grief at the thought of losing his beloved. ==Historicity==