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Negotiating Mughal Law: A Family of Landlords across Three Indian Empires
Based on a completely reconstructed archive of Persian, Hindi and Marathi documents, Nandini Chatterjee provides a unique micro-history of a family of landlords in Malwa, central India, who flourished in the region from at least the sixteenth until the twentieth century. By exploring their daily interactions with imperial elites as well as villagers and marauders, Chatterjee offers a new history from below of the Mughal Empire, far from the glittering courts of the emperors and nobles, but still dramatic and filled with colourful personalities. From this perspective, we see war, violence, betrayal, enterprise, romance and disappointment, but we also see a quest for law, justice, rights and righteousness. A rare story of Islamic law in a predominantly non-Muslim society, this is also an exploration of the peripheral regions of the Maratha empire and a neglected princely state under British colonial rule. This title is also available as Open Access.
310 pages, Hardcover
Published April 16, 2020
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April 23, 2025
𝐑𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰 𝐨𝐟 𝐍𝐞𝐠𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐌𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐚𝐥 𝐋𝐚𝐰: 𝐀 𝐅𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐋𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐬 𝐀𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐬 𝐓𝐡𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐈𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐄𝐦𝐩𝐢𝐫𝐞𝐬 𝐛𝐲 𝐍𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐢 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐣𝐞𝐞
Nandini Chatterjee’s Negotiating Mughal Law is a detailed and carefully researched book that tells the story of a single landlord family in central India and how they dealt with the changing legal and political systems of the Mughal, Maratha, and British empires. By studying a wide range of documents in Persian, Hindi, and Marathi—many of them from private collections—Chatterjee brings out the everyday legal practices and survival strategies of a non-elite but influential family across several centuries. This book offers a fresh look at how law worked in practice in early modern India and how local actors shaped legal systems from the ground up.
𝙊𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙞𝙚𝙬 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙄𝙢𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚
This book focuses on the Purshottam Das family, who were zamindars (landlords) and low-ranking officials in the Mughal province of Malwa. Using their personal archive—gathered from national collections, a Kuwaiti museum, and their old home in Dhar—Chatterjee explores how this family dealt with different rulers over time. The archive includes official orders, legal contracts, and records of disputes, which provide rare insights into how law and administration worked on the ground.
Chatterjee’s main argument is that Mughal law was not something imposed from above, but rather something negotiated between rulers and local people. She introduces the idea of “Islamicate law” to describe a system based on Islamic ideas but open to participation from non-Muslims like the Purshottam Das family. The book shows how these Hindu landlords worked with Islamic legal officials like qāzis (judges) and used Persian legal documents to protect their rights. Instead of focusing on emperors or high officials, Chatterjee gives us a “history from below” that highlights how ordinary people could shape and use imperial law.
The book stands out because of its interdisciplinary method. It combines legal history with social and archival research, and it connects Mughal India with other early modern empires. The book’s micro-historical focus helps us see larger systems through the eyes of one family, making it easier to understand how legal and political change affected people’s daily lives.
𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧-𝙗𝙮-𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙎𝙪𝙢𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙮
𝑰𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏: 𝑳𝒂𝒘 𝒊𝒏 𝑴𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒔
The introduction explains the main ideas of the book and introduces the family and their archive. Chatterjee argues that law in Mughal India was flexible and open to many groups. She describes the family’s in-between role—as both government agents and regular subjects—and outlines her method of using micro-history to explain big changes.
𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 1: 𝑴𝒂𝒍𝒘𝒂: 𝑳𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝑴𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝑬𝒎𝒑𝒊𝒓𝒆𝒔
This chapter describes the region of Malwa and its long history of different rulers and cultures. It shows how Malwa’s diversity made it a space where people had to constantly adjust to new political realities. The Purshottam Das family’s rise is placed within this rich and changing environment.
𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 2: 𝒁𝒂𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒅ā𝒓𝒔: 𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑴𝒂𝒓𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒔
Here, Chatterjee focuses on how the family gained official positions and land rights by working with the Mughal state. She uses documents to show how they managed political risks and negotiated power through imperial politics and alliances.
𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 3: 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒔: 𝑬𝒏𝒈𝒂𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒆
This chapter looks at how the family worked as tax collectors. Legal documents show how they bargained with officials over taxes and finances. Chatterjee argues that these relationships show the importance of local actors in running the Mughal system.
𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 4: 𝑻𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔: 𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑫𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒔
Focusing on economic life, this chapter examines how the family made deals, gave gifts, and made loans. It highlights the multilingual nature of the legal documents and the role of scribes in maintaining standard forms. It also shows that women and lower-status people were part of these legal activities.
𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 5: 𝑫𝒊𝒔𝒑𝒖𝒕𝒆𝒔: 𝑱𝒖𝒅𝒈𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑪𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒕𝒔
This chapter explores how the family used courts to resolve problems such as land disputes and inheritance claims. Chatterjee shows that legal fights were also a way to gain recognition and assert rights. The chapter highlights the role of the qāzi as both a judge and a witness.
𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 6: 𝑰𝒏𝒗𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔: 𝑴𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑩𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒔𝒉
As the Mughal Empire declined, the family had to adjust again—this time to the Marathas and later the British. Chatterjee shows how they used new legal languages and forms, including Marathi records and British petitions, to maintain their status, even as their power weakened.
𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 7: 𝑰𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒕𝒚: 𝑷𝒓𝒐𝒇𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍𝒔 𝒐𝒓 𝑾𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒔?
In the final chapter, Chatterjee examines how the family saw themselves. They blended Hindu and Muslim identities and presented themselves as both scholars and fighters. Their use of seals, titles, and family trees shows how they carefully built their image over time.
𝙎𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙩𝙝𝙨
-One of the book’s biggest strengths is how it puts together a scattered archive from three different sources. Chatterjee’s work in identifying, translating, and analyzing these materials is a major achievement for South Asian history.
-The focus on one family gives readers a close-up view of how ordinary people dealt with big historical changes. The stories of individuals like Mohan Das and Jayanti Das help make the book more relatable and vivid.
-Chatterjee’s concept of “Islamicate law” is a useful way to understand how Islamic legal ideas worked in a diverse society. It allows for a more flexible and realistic picture of law in India under Muslim rule.
-The book speaks to scholars of Islamic law, South Asian history, and early modern empires. It also draws on micro-historical methods, showing how small stories can shed light on big issues.
-Chatterjee’s ability to read and explain documents in Persian, Hindi, and Marathi adds depth to her analysis and shows how language played a key role in legal culture.
𝙇𝙞𝙢𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨
-While the book mentions women in some documents, it doesn’t go into much detail about their roles or experiences. A deeper look at how women used the law would have added more to the book.
-Because the book stays focused on Malwa, it doesn’t offer many comparisons with other parts of the Mughal Empire. Readers might wonder how similar or different things were in places like Bengal or Punjab.
-Since most documents come from the Purshottam Das family’s archive, we mostly see their side of the story. The voices of poorer people, rivals, or ordinary villagers are harder to find.
-The theoretical parts of the introduction might be a bit hard for readers new to legal history or early modern studies. A simpler introduction could help the book reach a wider audience.
𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙘𝙡𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣
Negotiating Mughal Law is an outstanding book that adds a new dimension to our understanding of law, power, and society in early modern India. By focusing on a single family, Chatterjee shows how people at the local level could influence imperial systems and survive through great political changes. Even with a few small gaps, the book’s detailed research, strong ideas, and human stories make it a valuable read for students and scholars of South Asia, Islamic law, and early modern empires.
Nandini Chatterjee’s Negotiating Mughal Law is a detailed and carefully researched book that tells the story of a single landlord family in central India and how they dealt with the changing legal and political systems of the Mughal, Maratha, and British empires. By studying a wide range of documents in Persian, Hindi, and Marathi—many of them from private collections—Chatterjee brings out the everyday legal practices and survival strategies of a non-elite but influential family across several centuries. This book offers a fresh look at how law worked in practice in early modern India and how local actors shaped legal systems from the ground up.
𝙊𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙫𝙞𝙚𝙬 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙄𝙢𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚
This book focuses on the Purshottam Das family, who were zamindars (landlords) and low-ranking officials in the Mughal province of Malwa. Using their personal archive—gathered from national collections, a Kuwaiti museum, and their old home in Dhar—Chatterjee explores how this family dealt with different rulers over time. The archive includes official orders, legal contracts, and records of disputes, which provide rare insights into how law and administration worked on the ground.
Chatterjee’s main argument is that Mughal law was not something imposed from above, but rather something negotiated between rulers and local people. She introduces the idea of “Islamicate law” to describe a system based on Islamic ideas but open to participation from non-Muslims like the Purshottam Das family. The book shows how these Hindu landlords worked with Islamic legal officials like qāzis (judges) and used Persian legal documents to protect their rights. Instead of focusing on emperors or high officials, Chatterjee gives us a “history from below” that highlights how ordinary people could shape and use imperial law.
The book stands out because of its interdisciplinary method. It combines legal history with social and archival research, and it connects Mughal India with other early modern empires. The book’s micro-historical focus helps us see larger systems through the eyes of one family, making it easier to understand how legal and political change affected people’s daily lives.
𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧-𝙗𝙮-𝘾𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙎𝙪𝙢𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙮
𝑰𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒐𝒅𝒖𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏: 𝑳𝒂𝒘 𝒊𝒏 𝑴𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝑭𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒔
The introduction explains the main ideas of the book and introduces the family and their archive. Chatterjee argues that law in Mughal India was flexible and open to many groups. She describes the family’s in-between role—as both government agents and regular subjects—and outlines her method of using micro-history to explain big changes.
𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 1: 𝑴𝒂𝒍𝒘𝒂: 𝑳𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒐𝒇 𝑴𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝑬𝒎𝒑𝒊𝒓𝒆𝒔
This chapter describes the region of Malwa and its long history of different rulers and cultures. It shows how Malwa’s diversity made it a space where people had to constantly adjust to new political realities. The Purshottam Das family’s rise is placed within this rich and changing environment.
𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 2: 𝒁𝒂𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒅ā𝒓𝒔: 𝑳𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒔 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑴𝒂𝒓𝒄𝒉𝒆𝒔
Here, Chatterjee focuses on how the family gained official positions and land rights by working with the Mughal state. She uses documents to show how they managed political risks and negotiated power through imperial politics and alliances.
𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 3: 𝑪𝒐𝒏𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒐𝒓𝒔: 𝑬𝒏𝒈𝒂𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑺𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒆
This chapter looks at how the family worked as tax collectors. Legal documents show how they bargained with officials over taxes and finances. Chatterjee argues that these relationships show the importance of local actors in running the Mughal system.
𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 4: 𝑻𝒓𝒂𝒏𝒔𝒂𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒔: 𝑹𝒆𝒄𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑫𝒆𝒂𝒍𝒔
Focusing on economic life, this chapter examines how the family made deals, gave gifts, and made loans. It highlights the multilingual nature of the legal documents and the role of scribes in maintaining standard forms. It also shows that women and lower-status people were part of these legal activities.
𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 5: 𝑫𝒊𝒔𝒑𝒖𝒕𝒆𝒔: 𝑱𝒖𝒅𝒈𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝑪𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒕𝒔
This chapter explores how the family used courts to resolve problems such as land disputes and inheritance claims. Chatterjee shows that legal fights were also a way to gain recognition and assert rights. The chapter highlights the role of the qāzi as both a judge and a witness.
𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 6: 𝑰𝒏𝒗𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓𝒔: 𝑴𝒂𝒓𝒂𝒕𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑩𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒊𝒔𝒉
As the Mughal Empire declined, the family had to adjust again—this time to the Marathas and later the British. Chatterjee shows how they used new legal languages and forms, including Marathi records and British petitions, to maintain their status, even as their power weakened.
𝑪𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒕𝒆𝒓 7: 𝑰𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒕𝒊𝒕𝒚: 𝑷𝒓𝒐𝒇𝒆𝒔𝒔𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍𝒔 𝒐𝒓 𝑾𝒂𝒓𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒅𝒔?
In the final chapter, Chatterjee examines how the family saw themselves. They blended Hindu and Muslim identities and presented themselves as both scholars and fighters. Their use of seals, titles, and family trees shows how they carefully built their image over time.
𝙎𝙩𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙩𝙝𝙨
-One of the book’s biggest strengths is how it puts together a scattered archive from three different sources. Chatterjee’s work in identifying, translating, and analyzing these materials is a major achievement for South Asian history.
-The focus on one family gives readers a close-up view of how ordinary people dealt with big historical changes. The stories of individuals like Mohan Das and Jayanti Das help make the book more relatable and vivid.
-Chatterjee’s concept of “Islamicate law” is a useful way to understand how Islamic legal ideas worked in a diverse society. It allows for a more flexible and realistic picture of law in India under Muslim rule.
-The book speaks to scholars of Islamic law, South Asian history, and early modern empires. It also draws on micro-historical methods, showing how small stories can shed light on big issues.
-Chatterjee’s ability to read and explain documents in Persian, Hindi, and Marathi adds depth to her analysis and shows how language played a key role in legal culture.
𝙇𝙞𝙢𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨
-While the book mentions women in some documents, it doesn’t go into much detail about their roles or experiences. A deeper look at how women used the law would have added more to the book.
-Because the book stays focused on Malwa, it doesn’t offer many comparisons with other parts of the Mughal Empire. Readers might wonder how similar or different things were in places like Bengal or Punjab.
-Since most documents come from the Purshottam Das family’s archive, we mostly see their side of the story. The voices of poorer people, rivals, or ordinary villagers are harder to find.
-The theoretical parts of the introduction might be a bit hard for readers new to legal history or early modern studies. A simpler introduction could help the book reach a wider audience.
𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙘𝙡𝙪𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣
Negotiating Mughal Law is an outstanding book that adds a new dimension to our understanding of law, power, and society in early modern India. By focusing on a single family, Chatterjee shows how people at the local level could influence imperial systems and survive through great political changes. Even with a few small gaps, the book’s detailed research, strong ideas, and human stories make it a valuable read for students and scholars of South Asia, Islamic law, and early modern empires.
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