Nandini Das, author of "Courting India" & Winner of British Academy Prize

My guest today is Nandini Das, a Professor of Early Modern Literature & Culture at Exeter College at Oxford University, and author of the book “Courting India” which is an account of England’s first ambassador to the Mughal court, Sir Thomas Roe, who was tasked with building a relationship with the emperor Jahangir in order to build English trade with India.  It’s a fascinating book because it takes everything you thought you knew about the historic relationship between the two countries and completely turns it on its head. The English are poor and humble supplicants, whilst the Indian court is wealthy, powerful and very much in charge of directing the shape & direction of the relationship.  In today’s episode, we talk about this first British embassy to India, how successful (or not) it really was, how it sowed the seeds for the British empire in India & beyond, and we touch upon the current relationship between the two countries, as well as hearing Nandini’s favourite books & reading recommendations. Her favourite book that I’ve never heard of: “Coryat’s Crudities” by Thomas Coryat (1611) Her favourite book of the last 12 months: “Leo Africanus Discovers Comedy: Theatre and Poetry Across the Mediterranean” by Nathalie Zemon Davis (2021) The book that she would take to a desert island: “The Principal Navigations, Voyages and Discoveries of the English Nation” by Richard Hakluyt (1589) The book that changed her mind: “Three Ways To Be Alien” by Sanjay Subrahmanyam (2011) Buy her book: https://amzn.eu/d/hAMRkg7 Lit with Charles loves reviews. If you enjoyed this episode, I’d be so grateful if you could leave a review of your own, and follow me on Instagram at ⁠⁠⁠@litwithcharles⁠⁠⁠. Let’s get more people listening – and reading!