[citation needed] Born as Prince Bidar Bakht, he was the eldest surviving child of Emperor Ahmad Shah.

Sometime afterwards, he was granted the title of Mahmud Shah Bahadur and was also known as Banka, a term used then in Mughal India referring distinguished warriors or champions.

In 1788 the Rohilla chieftain, Ghulam Qadir usurped power in Delhi and began subjecting the reigning Mughal Emperor Shah Alam II to verbal, physical and psychological abuse.

Ghulam Qadir took him to Mirat where, in desperation at his failures, he threatened to execute the hapless prince and other captives from the Imperial family that he had taken with him but was prevented from doing so by his own bodyguard, Manyar Singh.

[6] He died in 1790, allegedly on the orders of Shah Alam II for his role in the 1788 disturbances and for treason against the House of Babur.