About the Book: Courtesan The Mahatma & The Italian Brahmin : Tales From Indian
History
From a Maratha prince who parodied caste to a Muslim deity in a Hindu temple;
from a courtesan who became a warrior princess to another who sang for the
gramophone; from a woman with no breasts to a goddess with three; and from an
Englishman who venerated sacred Sanskrit to the imperious Victoria Maharani—the
essays in this collection open a window into India’s past, and to a world of
such astonishing richness that it is surprising how much of it has been
forgotten or expunged.
To dip into these essays is to be