Romila Thapar is Professor Emerita in History at Jawaharlal Nehru University and an elected member of American Philosophical Society. She has served as visiting professor at a number of academic institutions around the world including London University, Cornell University, University of Pennsylvania, and College de France in Paris. She received the Kluge prize for The Study of Humanity in 2008. During her career, Thapar has authored over twenty volumes including The Penguin History of Early India: From the Origins to A.D. 1300, Asoka and the Decline of the Mauryas, and Ancient Indian Social History: Some Interpretations, and most recently Voices of Dissent.