Abraham Eraly was born in Kerala and was educated there and in Chennai. He has taught Indian history in colleges in India and the United States, and was the editor of a current affairs magazine for several years. His works include two critically acclaimed and bestselling books on India: The Last Spring: The Lives and Times of the Great Mughals (later published in two volumes as Emperors Of The Peacock Throne, and The Mughal World) and Gem In The Lotus: The Seeding of Indian Civilization.