After identifying the misconceptions attached to the figure of the Mughal Courtesan and then defining it in terms of the dual-component structure of adaa, in the face of a dearth of literature that exists on the culture and the agency of the courtesan, this analysis would reinterpret the status of the courtesan figure within the domain of feminist theories and self-assertion. The female desire for autonomy, according to Elaine Showalter, defines a female exclusivity in terms of the "dynamic phase," which is a combination of the feminine conflict between self-fulfillment and duty, the feminist...

After identifying the misconceptions attached to the figure of the Mughal Courtesan and then defining it in terms of the dual-component structure of adaa, in the face of a dearth of literature that exists on the culture and the agency of the courtesan, this analysis would reinterpret the status of the courtesan figure within the domain of feminist theories and self-assertion. The female desire for autonomy, according to Elaine Showalter, defines a female exclusivity in terms of the "dynamic phase," which is a combination of the feminine conflict between self-fulfillment and duty, the feminist...