Sources; Persian histories, memoirs: Jahangirnama; Maasir-i Alamgiri; Travelogues: Bernier, Manucci; Vernacular literary cultures: Mangalkavya and Rekhta; Political Alliances and State Formation; Mughal Conquest and limits of expansion: Deccan; Issues in the wars of succession; Rajput political culture and state formation: Eastern Rajasthan; Marathas: Shivaji and expansion under the Peshwas; Religion, Society and the State; Religious and intellectual ferment: Sikh, Vallabhi and Dara Shukoh; Reassessing Aurangzeb: Jaziya, temple grant, music and relations with the Sikh Gurus; Political Culture; Mughal courtly culture: Umara; Haram; Mirzanama; Shahjahanabad; Mughal painting: allegory and symbolism under Jahangir and Shah Jahan; Rajput paintings; Society and Economy; Understanding agrarian environment: forest, tribes, migrant communities; Indian Oceanic trade; European commercial enterprise – Kerala, Coromandel coast; western India; Crafts and technologies; Interpreting the 18th Century; Interpreting Eighteenth Century India: Recent Debates.