"Kanakalatha Mukund has a PhD in Economics. She was on the faculty of the University of Bombay, Bhopal University and the Centre for Economic and Social Studies, Hyderabad. An economist with a keen interest in history and a passion for textiles, she is the author of The Trading World of the Tamil Merchant, The View from Below and Traditional Industry in the New Market Economy. She lives in Coonoor in the Nilgiris. "