the rights of a muslim woman were impacted by the custom of hijab or purdah in persian. despite of this, women took part in arts, writing, rites and rode horses while their habits sometime swayed from the opinion of the "ulama". the hijab and burqah was a practice in west asia and became a part of regal practice under the delhi sultanate and mughal empire. the practice of purdah was later emulated by hindus in north india. the queens often played a part in imperial politics behind the scene. in south india, some communities who adopted islam have continued their ancestral matriliean traditions like the mappila. ibn battuta in the muslim principality of hannaur, witnessed 13 schools teaching muslim women. both genders were taught by mullahs, however lower-classes were more uneducated.