The region of south Asia stretches from the coastlines of the Persian Gulf and the Arabian Sea up to the Bay of Bengal and is an area of great strategic importance. In 1750 the east India trading companies like the British EIC, the Dutch VOC, the French CFIO, the Danish ATK and the Portuguese nation hold territory in the region and try to dominate trade.
But things are brewing.
In the north of east Asia, the Muslim Mughal Empire, with its proud ancestry, rules Balochistan, Sindh India and Bengal. They are flanked by the Durrani Empire in Afghanistan and the Zand dynasty in Persia, which ideally could be allies through cultural affiliation.
In the south of India a younger and fast growing Hindu nation, the Maratha Confederacy, has become the greatest regional power in east Asia, joined by the Hyderabad State. The Kingdom of Mysore is independent, but a natural ally. The Kandy kingdom still holds Ceylon, but the Dutch are gradually taking over the island.
There is no doubt that the Hindu and Muslim powers in southern Asia will continue their struggle for domination over the region, but they both face the same threat of colonial powers who have aggressively inserted themselves into the region. Of those powers Britain is by far the largest, dominating Bombay and Madras.
The native powers of the region have to decide which they consider the greatest threat, each other or the outsiders. They can continue their fight against each other with the aid of striking clever alliances with the Europeans, but they can also decide to make the purging of outside powers their first priority.
Britain has to realize that their greatest overseas empire, which accounts for more than half of their total population, is in danger of collapse depending on the choices the regional powers make. They have to be both aggressive and divisive to maintain their position.