Maha Akhtar

Maha Akhtar is an American journalist and author of Lebanese and Indian origin, born in Beirut in 1965. She is a granddaughter of Anita Delgado, the Spanish flamenco singer and dancer who married the Maharaja of Kapurthala. ¹ She began her career in the music business in 1985, joined CBS News in January 1993 as Dan Rather's chief of staff and spokesperson, and has written speeches for public figures including Queen Noor of Jordan. ¹ Her Spanish-language books include the memoirs La nieta de la maharaní (2009) and La princesa perdida (2011) and the novels Miel y almendras (2012), Las huellas en el desierto (2014) and Medianoche en Damasco (2017). ¹

Akhtar was born in Beirut in 1965; the Spanish article's lead and Wikidata agree on the year, while the article's authority-control tag carries 1962, which her data record does not adopt. ^{1 2} She began working in the music business in 1985 at Fiction Records, Robert Smith's label for The Cure, and worked for the Zagat Guide before joining CBS News in January 1993, where over a career of nearly ten years she was Dan Rather's chief of staff, spokesperson and right hand. ¹ She has been a speechwriter for heads of state and public figures, among them Queen Noor of Jordan, and is also an acclaimed flamenco dancer who has studied and performed with Manuela Carrasco and Rafael Amargo. ¹ She graduated summa cum laude from Bryn Mawr College, speaks seven languages and resides in New York. ¹ The sources name no religion for Akhtar, so the museum records none. ^{1 2}

Her first book, La nieta de la maharaní (The Maharani's Granddaughter, 2009), tells the story of her grandmother Anita Delgado, the flamenco dancer from Ronda who married the Maharaja of Kapurthala. ¹ She followed it with La princesa perdida (The Lost Princess, 2011) and three novels — Miel y almendras (Honey and Almonds, 2012), Las huellas en el desierto (Footprints in the Desert, 2014) and Medianoche en Damasco (Midnight in Damascus, 2017) — all published by Roca Editorial in Enrique Alda's translations. ¹ She has written for the New York Times and Departures Magazines. ¹

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