Unsavoury Cosmopolitanism: Reflections on Sanjay Subrahmanyam’s “The Hidden Face of Surat”

Abstract

Abstract This article reflects on Sanjay Subrahmanyam’s article on early modern cosmopolitanism entitled “The Hidden Face of Surat: Reflections on a Cosmopolitan Indian Ocean Centre, 1540-1750,” and suggests that the cosmopolitan space was a political space where competing ideas of sovereignty clashed with each other. Therefore, the article argues that the study of political ideas and competing forms of constitutional programs should accompany the focus on life-style preferences of early modern cosmopolites when we study cosmopolitanism.