Changez Saleem Jan has a BSc in Economics from the London School of Economics. Since then, he has mostly worked in the banking industry from 1994 onwards in Pakistan and Singapore, apart from a brief stint as a lecturer in Economics at the Aitchison College in Lahore.

Changez is not a trained historian but his passion for the history of the subcontinent stems from his family—his great-grandfather was Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan (also known as the Frontier Gandhi), who played a key role in the Indian freedom movement, alongside several other leaders. Changez’s grandfather was Muhammad Yahya Jan, Minister of Education for the North West Frontier Province from 1946–1947, and his younger brother was Muhammad Yunus, a member of the Indian Foreign Service who is responsible for establishing the famous Pragati Maidan, the hub for large exhibitions and conventions, in New Delhi.