Dr. Swati Goel is an Assistant Professor at Manipal Academy of Higher Education and a historian specializing in medieval Indian history, with a particular focus on the Braj region. She earned her Ph.D. (2023) from the Centre for Historical Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, following an M.A. from CHS, JNU, an M.Phil. from Ambedkar University Delhi, and a B.A. (Hons.) from Sri Venkateswara College, University of Delhi. Her doctoral research, The Development of the Region of Braj: Bhakti Sects, Political Groups and the Merchants (16th to mid-18th Century), explores sacred spaces through the interconnected lenses of patronage, religion, commerce, mobility, environmental consciousness, and the movement of deities.

Dr. Goel began her academic career as a Curator at the American Institute of Indian Studies, contributing to virtual exhibitions for the Google Cultural Institute using Catherine B. Asher’s archives. She later worked as a Research Consultant with the Aga Khan Trust for Culture on the project Celebrating Rahim-Khan-i-Khanan. She has served as a National Doctoral Fellow at ICSSR and taught as an Assistant Professor (Guest) at University of Delhi colleges, while also working as an Academic Counsellor at IGNOU.

An active scholar, she regularly publishes, presents at national and international conferences, and convenes an annual international conference in Vrindavan. She is a recipient of the Braj Adhyeta Samman and continues to organize academic conferences, cultural programmes, and heritage walks in the Braj region.