The Mughal Empress Nur Jahan: A Fashion Icon of Her Age (1577-1645)

Abstract

During the Mughal Empire rule between 1526 and 1707 fashion emerged as a way to show identity and power through art and culture. This study examines how Empress Nur Jahan (1577–1645) brought high fashion for Mughal India and made it a refined expression of modern style during her reign. This research examines both Mughal style and Nur Jahan's special role as a leading fashion designer of her era. Her elegant design principles from Persian culture helped the Mughal style evolve by adding multiple fabrics colors and patterns reflective of imperial openness. Through her stylistic blend of Persian and Indian materials and decoration Nur Jahan both transformed Mughal fashion and made it important worldwide. Female fashion designers studied Mughal trends because of Nur Jahan's worldwide influence as a fashion icon. It is a qualitative analysis  based on archive research and study of Tuzk-e-Jahangiri to examine how Nur Jahan shaped Mughal fashion. Secondary sources supplement primary research to show how Nur Jahan's work changed society during that era. This research places Nur Jahan's fashion achievements in the context of Mughal history to argue that her work molded an enduring design legacy which motivates fashion creators today.