Kunal Purohit

Kunal Purohit is an independent journalist based out of Mumbai, writing on issues of rightwing politics, gender and social justice at the intersection of development. He is also the creator of a four-part podcast series ‘The Last Courtesans of Bombay’, an audio documentary on the city’s secretive tawaif community that was released in September 2019.

Chronicling courtesans

A new book documents the forgotten history of tawaifs – or courtesans – in northern India.

Feb 11, 2020

Latest Articles

Pakistan embraces military rule without martial law

New laws have created jurisdiction for the military to operate at both federal and provincial levels of government, with serious implications for Pakistan’s already precarious federation.

Strains between Malé and the atolls in the Maldives

Forced migration, “development” pressures, political neglect and the climate crisis have assailed the Maldives’ less-populous atolls, eroding the country’s identity and driving thousands to the capital

Manipur’s conflict has harsh lessons for all of India’s Northeast

Rampant ethnic chauvinism of the kind that has shattered Manipur’s civil society is ingrained in communities across the Northeast

How Southasia and Oman intertwined

In ‘Sovereigns of the Sea’, the histories of Omani sultans in the age of empire speak to the interconnectedness of Southasia, West Asia and East Africa