#10 - In Dialogue with Ira Mukhoty, author of books on amazing Indian women from the Mughal era and beyond

Three Desi Things

To quote Veda, "double digits, baby!"

We are in dialogue with author Ira Mukhoty, who has written about amazing Indian women in history, including the queens and empresses of the Mughal Empire.

We talk to her about her book Daughters of the Sun and how the colonial Orientalist gaze has given us a lopsided view of the women from the Mughal period — and why she refuses to use the word 'harem'. She breaks our hearts about the beloved Akbar and Birbal (yes, Jodhaa Akbar also comes up). But she also shows us how desi women have been denied the stories of powerful role models, and how she's changing that narrative.
We also talk about her upcoming book Song of Draupadi, which will feature the strong women of the Mahabharata.