The nature of Muslim knowledge concerning the West through travel accounts makes for fascinating reading. The eighteenth-century encounters of Munshi Ihtisamuddin and Mirza Abu Taleb Khan, embedded in their travelogues, however, seem very distant and less urgent. With Syed Ahmed, however, begins an entirely new phase.

Even though his portrait of England is sometimes facile, his account of his travels opens the door to new questions, particularly because this was the period when the relations between Europeans and Indians were at the centre of many debates. A Voyage to Modernism is the first ever English translation of Musafiran-i-Landan to be undertaken in full. The book is accompanied by a detailed ‘Introduction’ which provides an insightful perspective on Sir Syed and his legacy.