Excavating hidden histories: Indian women in the early history of the United Nations

Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit and Hansa Mehta were amongst the first women representatives of independent India to the world and the UN. While Pandit was the leader of the Indian delegation to on multiple occasions and the first female President of the UN General Assembly, Mehta is remembered for her contributions in the international Human Rights discourse. There also exist personalities like Shareefah Hamid Ali, Lakshmi Menon, whose stories remain unwritten in the dominant accounts of the institution. This chapter attempts to fill these lacunae in international history. Building on the pioneering work of Patricia Owens, this archival study works towards carving out a research agenda that studies the international thought of Indian women in the history of the UN. This chapter highlights the intellectual thought of Pandit, Mehta, Ali, and Menon through their professional experiences at the UN and explains the essentiality of this avenue of research.