The Mughal Harem

The Mughal Harem is a book by historian K.S. Lal published in 1988 about the Mughal Harem.[1] Scholars perceive the work as communal propaganda, intended to exoticize the harem.

This article is about a book. For the institution, see Mughal Harem.

Contents

Based on contemporary sources, Lal studies queens, princesses, dancing girls, and slaves who belonged to Mughal harem from 15th to 18th century.[2] The political roles of Nur Jahan, Jahanara and Roshanara are described in detail.[2]

Reception

A. Jan Qaiser of Aligarh Muslim University was very dismissive of the book.[3] Ruby Lal noted Lal's work to be one of the few academic accounts on the topic but laden with oriental tropes of sexuality and seclusion.[4] Karuna Sharma shared Ruby Lal's concerns; K. S. Lal's was the first comprehensive study of the subject but it exoticized the Harem and failed to account for members, who did not have any sexual role.[5] Gianna Carotenuto found the work to be laced with "salacious tales and the sexy exploits of mythic heroes and heroines"; Lal's approach was intended to reinforce the oriental reputation of harem as a haven of sexual extremes and intrigues, and his laments about the evils of Harem being siphoned onto the society were reflective of personal and political agendas.[1]

Indrani Chatterjee remarked of Lal to have treated of Muslims as a "hermetically sealed" category, thereby producing a communalised historiography in pursuit of a political agenda.[6] Harbans Mukhia found Lal's account descriptive but stereotypical.[7] In a review of another work of Lal for the Bulletin of the School of Oriental & African Studies, A. A. Powell noted his conclusion about the Mughals being responsible for religious persecution and socioeconomic exploitation of Hindus to have been in tune with his recent publications including The Mughal Harem.[8] Irfan Habib concured with the assessment of Chatterjee and Powell.

References
  1. Carotenuto, Gianna M. (2009). Domesticating the harem: Reconsidering the zenana and representations of elite Indian women in colonial painting and photography of India, 1830–1920 (Thesis). University of California, Los Angeles. p. 59, 61-62.
  2. Tahera Aftab (2008). Inscribing South Asian Muslim Women: An Annotated Bibliography & Research Guide. BRILL. p. 45. ISBN 978-90-04-15849-8.
  3. Indian Historical Review, New Delhi, 1991
  4. Lal, Ruby (2004). "Historicizing the Harem: The Challenge of a Princess's Memoir". Feminist Studies. 30 (3): 592. doi:10.2307/20458986. ISSN 0046-3663. JSTOR 20458986.
  5. Sharma, Karuna (2009-07-10). "A Visit to the Mughal Harem: Lives of Royal Women". South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies. 32 (2): 156. doi:10.1080/00856400903049457. S2CID 144568032.
  6. Chatterjee, Indrani (1996). Slavery and the household in Bengal, 1770-1880 (Thesis). School of Oriental and African Studies. p. 24.
  7. Harbans, Mukhia (2004), "Select Bibliography", The Mughals of India, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, p. 188, doi:10.1002/9780470758304.biblio, ISBN 978-0-470-75830-4
  8. Powell, A. A. (June 1995). "K. S. Lal: The legacy of Muslim rule in India, vi, 406 pp. New Delhi, Aditya Prakashan, 1992". Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies. 58 (2): 397–398. doi:10.1017/S0041977X0001123X. ISSN 1474-0699. S2CID 161966133.
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