In 1658, Aurangzeb seized the Mughal throne after a war of succession against his brothers. His long reign expanded the empire territorially but also intensified political and religious tensions. It marked a turning point in Mughal imperial history.

Aurangzeb's reign affected Persianate court culture, regional patronage and the political settings of Indo-Persian and early Urdu expression. As imperial centres shifted, poets increasingly navigated courts, provincial elites and changing religious climates.