Stepwells14x3

India

at LSE South Asia Centre

LSE has had a long and rewarding relationship with India, attracting its best minds to come here to study, and in turn enrich the institution with their own energy. This mutual exchange has several important markers in LSE’s proud history with India.

In 1911-12, Beatrice & Sidney Webb, founding members of LSE, travelled through India; Beatrice Webb kept a detailed diary of her travels, often reflecting on how much she learnt from her visit. Amongst others, they met Sir Ratan Tata, who made an endowment for a Chair to encourage research on India’s economy & labour in 1913; Mr Clement Attlee, later Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, was the first holder of the position. 

Mr Nandlal Maneklal Mazumdar was the first non-European President of the LSE Student’s Union as early as 1912. Famous Indian alumni include Dr B R Ambedkar, architect of the Indian constitution; former President Dr K R Narayanan; Chief Minister Jyoti Basu; and former Permanent Representative of India to the UN Krishna Menon, amongst several others. 

Over the last century, LSE has welcomed thousands of students from India, several of whom have since had illustrious careers in different parts of the world, and especially in India. Some of LSE's best students have come from India, and every year applications and admissions continue to rise. 

Events on India

2019-2020

Covid_India

India: COVID-19 in South Asia: A Comparative Perspective

22 April 2020

SpeakerYamini Aiyar (@AiyarYamini) is President & Chief Executive of the Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi

ChairMukulika Banerjee (@MukulikaB) is Director, South Asia Centre, and Associate Professor in Anthropology, LSE.

Watch a recording of Yamini Aiyar's talk here, and to watch the full event click here.


 

Katie-Hickman-She-Merchants

She-Merchants, Buccaneers and Gentlewomen

12 March 2020

Speaker: Katie Hickman (@khickmanauthor) is the authour of She-Merchants, Buccaneers and Gentlewomen: British Women in India 1600 – 1900 (2019). 

Chair: Nilanjan Sarkar is Deputy Director, South Asia Centre, LSE.

This event is in collaboration with the British Association for Cemeteries in South Asia.


 

analytics-blur-close-up-commerce-590020

India 2020: Peculiar Changes in the Fiscal Structure of the Governments of India

28 February 2020

Speaker: Rathin Roy (@EmergingRoy) is Director, National Institute of Public Finance and Policy, New Delhi.

Chair: Nilanjan Sarkar is Deputy Director, South Asia Centre, LSE.

This event is in collaboration with India UK Young Professional Nework.


 

Screenshot 2020-01-13 at 10.43.12

Rakhine, Assam and Citizenship in India

4 February 2020

Speakers: Daniel Aguirre (@KDanielAguirre) is Senior Lecturer in Law, University of Roehampton; Mabrur Ahmed (@restlessmabrur) is Founder and Co-Director of Restless Beings; Rahima Begum (@RestlessRahima) is Founder and Co-Director of Restless Beings; Meenakshi Ganguly (@mg2411) is South Asia Director at Human Rights Watch UK; and Tarunabh Khaitan (@tarunkhaitan) is Professor of Public Law and Legal Theory and the Hackney Fellow in Law at Wadham College, University of Oxford (via Skype).

Chair: Nilanjan Sarkar is Deputy Director, South Asia Centre, LSE.

Listen to the podcast here. 


 

27440632475_bacd8d679a_c

The Indian Republic at 70: Crisis or Continuity? 

27 January 2020

Speakers: Mukulika Banerjee (@MukulikaB) is Director, South Asia Centre, and Associate Professor in Anthropology, LSE; Shruti Kapila (@shrutikapila) is Lecturer in History, University of Cambridge; Basharat Peer (@BasharatPeer) is Editor (Opinion section), The New York Times. 

Chair: Rajesh Venugopal (@rajeshvenugopal) is Associate Professor in International Development, LSE.

Listen to the podcast here


 

The-Indian-Empire-at-War

India's Great War: Forgotten Personal Stories of 1914-18

5 December 2019

This lecture recounted the story of India’s Great War through the forgotten personal stories of officers, men and those they left behind. George Morton-Jack is the author of the acclaimed The Indian Empire at War, the first global history of the Indian Army 1914-18, and explored the experiences of its British officers and Indian ranks across the fronts of Europe, Africa and Asia.

Speaker: George Morton-Jack (@GMortonJack) is a historian, and the author of the acclaimed The Indian Empire at War (2018).

Chair: Nilanjan Sarkar is Deputy Director, LSE South Asia Centre.

This event was in collaboration with the British Association for Cemeteries in South Asia.

Sachin_Pilot_at_the_India_Economic_Summit_2010_cropped

Beyond 2020: Students & Politics in India

4 December 2019

Against all odds, Sachin Pilot spearheaded the victory of the Congress Party in Rajasthan in December 2018. Now Deputy Chief Minister of one of the most important states in northern India, this interactive session with students discussed the future of politics in India over the next 10 years, and further.

SpeakerSachin Pilot (@SachinPilot) is Deputy Chief Minister of Rajasthan.

ChairMukulika Banerjee (@MukulikaB) is Director, LSE South Asia Centre, and Associate Professor in Anthropology at LSE.

To watch the Facebook live, click here.

This event is being held in collaboration with Talk JournalismNational Indian Students and Alumni Union UK (NISAU UK), LSESU India Society, and South Asia Society.

Freda

Nation, Gender and Religion: The Many Lives of Freda Bedi

29 November 2019

From the moment she married a handsome young Sikh at a registry office in Oxford in 1933, Freda Bedi, née Houlston, regarded herself as Indian, even though it was another year before she set foot in the country. She was English by birth and upbringing - and Indian by marriage, cultural affinity and political loyalty. Later, she travelled the world as a revered Buddhist teacher, but India would remain her home to the end.

Participants: David Arnold is Emeritus Professor in History, University of Warwick; Katie Hickman (@khickmanauthor) is the authour of She-Merchants, Buccaneers and Gentlewomen: British Women in India 1600 – 1900 (2019); Andrew Whitehead (@john_pether) is a journalist and author.

Chair: Mukulika Banerjee (@MukulikaB) is Director of the South Asia Centre, and Associate Professor in Anthropology at LSE. 

To listen to the podcast, click here.

22935445719_35bba5eac4_q

Interpreting the Constitution of India 

26 November 2019

To mark India’s Constitution Day, the South Asia Centre discussed how the lengthiest national constitution of the world has evolved to become more meaningful and relevant to the citizens of the country. Focusing particularly on the interpretations of the Constitution by the Supreme Court of India since the 1950s, and demonstrating how the Court has been both arbiter and keeper of the values enshrined in India’s Constitution, keeping it in tandem with the changing needs of the world’s largest democracy.

Speaker: Chintan Chandrachud (@Chintan_dc) is the author of Balanced Constitutionalism: Courts and Legislatures in India and the United Kingdom (2017), and The Cases that India Forgot (forthcoming, 2019).

Discussant: Gautam Bhatia (@gautambhatia88), Balliol College, University of Oxford. He is the author of  Offend, Shock, or Disturb: Free Speech under the Indian Constitution (2016) & The Transformative Constitution: A Radical Biography in Nine Acts (2019).

Chair: Mukulika Banerjee (@MukulikaB) is Director of the South Asia Centre, and Associate Professor in Anthropology at LSE.

To listen to the podcast, click here

This event was part of the 100 Foot Journey Club & held in collaboration with the High Commission of India in the UK.


 

Foreginpolicy

India's Foregin Policy

29 October 2019

This book discusses the major changes to India's foreign policy by the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, from strengthening relations with other South Asian countries, to looking further east towards Japan, to taking stronger action against Pakistan-sponsored militancy, and adopting a more robust attitude towards China. It examines how this stance has supplied new intellectual underpinnings for India's foreign policy, aiming to change how the world sees India.

Speaker: Ian Hall is Professor in the School of Government and International Relations, Griffith University, Brisbane.

DiscussantKate Sullivan de Estrada (@Kate_SdE) is Associate Professor in the International Relations of South Asia, University of Oxford.

Chair: Mukulika Banerjee (@MukulikaB) is Director, LSE South Asia Centre, and Associate Professor in Anthropology at LSE. 

To listen to the podcast, click here and to watch the Facebook live, click here.


 

Andersen-Damle-–-Messengers-of-Hindu-Nationalism-RGB-WEB

Messengers of Hindu Nationalism

How the RSS Reshaped India

23 September 2019

The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is a Hindu nationalist volunteer organisation, and the parent of India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. Prime Minister Modi was himself an RSS office-holder, or pracharakWalter K Andersen explores how the RSS and its affiliates have benefitted from India’s economic development and concurrent social dislocation, with rapid modernisation creating a sense of rootlessness, disrupting traditional hierarchies, and attracting many upwardly mobile groups to the organisation. The event was chaired by Mukulika Banerjee, with participation from James Chiriyankandath and Ananya Vajpeyi

To listen to the podcast, click here.


 

2018-2019

LIFF event photo

'My Home India' Film Screening with Q&A

25 June 2019 

In collaboration with the Bagri Foundation London Indian Film Festival, Director, Anjali Bhushan joined us to screen her third documentary 'My Home India' which uncovers one little-known story on the Polish refugees from Siberia.

To listen to the Q&A, click here.


 

Afan-India-Pakistan

Friends, Enemies, or just Neighbours? The Afghanistan, Pakistan and India Triangle

5 June 2019 

Panel discussion with Sarah Ashraf, Mukulika Banerjee, Elisabeth Leake and Avinash Paliwal examining the Afghanistan-Pakistan-India triad, the geopolitical and economic motivations for an increasing Indian role in Afghanistan, the effect, if any, of this on Pakistan’s foreign policy towards Afghanistan, whether the triangle is a reason for continued instability in the region, if India is simply exploring economic opportunities with a neighbour or, as some in Pakistan fear, is India attempting to ‘encircle’ their rival?

To listen to the podcast, click here.

Photo Credit: Pixabay_Charly_7777 - https://pixabay.com/photos/moped-motorcycle-handlebars-four-2252091/


 

Gun island book cover

Amitav Ghosh - Gun Island (2019)

28 May 2019  

Amitav Ghosh sat down with Mukulika Banerjee to have a public discussion about his latest book 'Gun Island' (2019) and his recent work. 

To listen to the podcast, click here.


 

Indian Elections Photograph

India Elections 2019 Live @ LSE 

23 May 2019 

Leading academics, journalists, political analysts and policy-makers joined the South Asia Centre to discuss what's at stake in India's 17th Lok Sabha elections and what the final results could mean for the future of India and its place in the world.

Panel 1: The 2019 Election Campaign: Taking Stock

To listen to the podcast, click here and to watch the Facebook live, click here.

Panel 2: Uttar Pradesh and Beyond

To listen to the podcast, click here and to watch the Facebook live, click here.

Panel 3: 2019 Results: First Thoughts

To listen to the podcast, click here and to watch the Facebook live, click here.


 

The Saffron Republic

The Saffron Republic - Documentary Screening 

15 May 2019 

Co-Directors, Saloni Saraf and Surya Elango screened their new documentary which explores the murders of Gauri Lankesh, Rohith Vemula & Asifa Bano, which was followed by a Q&A.

To listen to the podcast, click here.


 

Swaraj Abhiyan

Threats to the Constitution in India Today 

15 May 2019  

Public discussion with Prashant Bhushan, public interest lawyer for the Supreme Court of India and one of the founders of Swaraj Abhiyan.

To listen to the podcast, click here.


 

Majorian_State.v1 (2)

Majoritarian State: How Hindu Nationalism is Changing India

10 May 2019 

In the run up to the Indian elections, Christophe Jaffrelot and Mukulika Banerjee was joined by Edward Anderson, Shakunatala Banaji, James Manor and Champa Patel to discuss Christophe's latest volume exploring how Hindutva ideology has permeated the state apparatus and formal institutions, and how its activists exert control over civil society via vigilante groups, cultural policing and violence.

To listen to the podcast, click here.


 

Scotlands-Empire

Scotland's Empire: The Scots in British India

8 April 2019 

In collaboration with the British Association for Cemeteries in South Asia, Thomas Martin Devine considers the role of Scots in India in administration, the military and trade with special reference to the period from the late 17th to the early 19th centuries.

To listen to the podcast, click here.


 

End of an Empire

End of Empire

11 March 2019 

In collaboration with the British Association for Cemeteries in South Asia, Alex von Tunzelmann considers the interplay of personalities and politics in the events leading up to Britian's exit from India.


 

March 8th Image

Inclusive Development Transformation in India

A critique and a proposal? 

8 March 2019 

Panel discussion with Rathin Roy (NIPFP, Delhi), Maitreesh Ghatak (LSE) and Mukulika Banerjee (LSE).

Listen to the podcast here.


 

Ruchir Sharma Book

DEMOCRACY ON THE ROAD

18 February 2019 

Ruchir Sharma in conversation with Mukulika Banerjee discussing his latest publication of his new book, which offers a portrait of how India and its democracy work.

Watch the Facebook Live video here.


 

Dark Hero

Dark Hero: Nicholson of Delhi 

11 February 2019 

In collaboration with the British Association for Cemeteries in South Asia, Stuart Flinders considers the life and reputation of Brigadier General John Nicholson.

To listen to the podcast, click here.


 

The Great March Picture (2)-1

The Great March of India's Democracy 

1 February 2019 

The Election Commission of India celebrates its 70th anniversary in 2019, as it prepares for the 17th Lok Sabha elections. The Great March of Democracy (2019) celebrates seven decades of the Election Commission’s excellence in conducting free and fair elections in the world's largest democracy.

Speakers on the night included Taylor Sherman, Karamjit Singh and S Y Quraishi and Mukulika Banerjee

Contributors from the UK include Mukulika Banerjee (LSE), Taylor Sherman (LSE), Meghnad Desai (LSE & House of Lords), Bhikhu Parekh (House of Lords), and Karamjit Singh (Member of the Electoral Board, UK). 

This event was recorded via Facebook live, which can be watched by clicking the links below.  

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3


This event is in collaboration with Bridge India , National Indian Students and Alumni Union UK , Indian Journalists’ Association and Indian Young Professionals Network.


 

Empress Queen Victoria

Empress: Queen Victoria and India

14 January 2019

In collaboration with the British Association for Cemeteries in South Asia, Professor Miles Taylor discusses the impact India had on the Queen and the pivotal role she played in India. 


 

Claude Martin

Claude Martin: An Enlightment Figure in 18th-Century India

03 December 2018 

In collaboration with the British Association for Cemeteries in South Asia, Rosie Llewellyn-Jones explores the life and legacy of Major General Claude Martin, a Frenchman in the service of the HEIC.


 

1Indian Elections Workshop Photo

Workshop on Indian Elections 

30 November 2018

A discussion on India's forthcoming elections with Former Chief Election Commissioner of India, S Y Quraishi

in collaboration with the National Indian Studnets and Alumni Union UK (NISAU).


 

IndiaMoving

India Moving: A History of Migration 

14 November 2018 

A panel discussion between Chinmay Tumbe (Author), Tirthankar Roy (Professor in Economic History, LSE), Sunil Kumar (Lecturer in Social Policy and Development, LSE) and Mukulika Banerjee (Director, South Asia Centre) to understand how millions of people have moved — from, to and within India.

To listen to the podcast, click here.


 

 

billionaire raj

The Billionaire Raj: Growth and Inequality in an Era of Crazy Rich Indians 

13 November 2018 

A panel discussion with James Crabtree (Author), Meghnad Desai (Economist), David Graeber (Professor in Anthropology, LSE), Seema Malhotra (House of Commons) and Dr Mukulika Banerjee (Director, South Asia Centre) on the contradicitions of economic growth and prosperity in India as it emerges as one of the fastest growing economies of the world.

To listen to the podcast, click here.


 

Thank You Poppy Logo

The Red 'Khadi' Poppy & the Indian Story

9 November 2018 

The Royal British Legions collaborated with the South Asia Centre to begin their "Thank you" campaign which launched their Khadi Poppy to commemorate the role of more than 1.3 million soldiers from undivded India who served in WW1. The panel discussion included Field Marshal Sir John Chapple (Retd.), Lord Jitesh Gadhia (House of Lords), Major S S Gogna, Ms Shrabani Basu (Author) and Dr Mukulika Banerjee (Director, South Asia Centre).

To listen to the podcast, click here


 

DG The British In India

The British in India: Three Centuries of Ambition & Experience 

5 November 2018 

Chaired by Dr Mukulika Banerjee, Sir David Gilmour in disucssion with Mark Havelock-Allan (President of British Association for Cemeteries in South Asia) outlines the social history of an extraordinary endeavour. 

This event was in collaboration with British Association for Cemeteries in South Asia).

To listen to the podcast, click here


 

Manto

Manto: A Conversation with Director, Nandita Das 

12 October 2018 

In collaboration with LSESU South Asia Society and Baithak UK, the South Asia Centre hosted a conversation between Ms Nandita Das (Director), Dr Mukulika Banjeree (Director, South Asia Centre) and Ms Sangeeta Datta.

 

 

2017-2018

RahulGandhi4

In Conversation with Rahul Gandhi

24 August 2018

Rahul Gandhi (Indian National Congress) with Dr Mukulika Banerjee (LSE) discussed contemporary Indian politics to an audience of students, academic staff, members of the Indian diaspora and journalists. This event was in collaboration with the National Indian Students and Alumni Union (UK) to mark the launch of the NISAU India Perspective Townhall.

To listen to the podcast, click here. To watch the video, click here. To read the report, click here.


 

Newspaper2

Social Media, Journalism and Free Speech

Rana Ayyub in conversation with Salil Tripathi

2 July 2018

A discussion by the South Asia Centre with English PEN and Reporters Without Borders (RSF). Salil Tripathi an award winning journalist and Chair of PEN International’s Writers in Prison Committee, with Rana Ayyub a former editor with Tehelka magazine and author of Gujarat Files: Anatomy of a Cover Up (2016), discussed the use and abuse of social media, the state of journalism and free speech in India. The session was chaired by Dr Mukulika Banerjee (LSE). To listen to the podcast click here.

Image credit: Photo taken at Pushkar, India by Fancycrave on Unsplash. 
Bengal-Shadows_Still2x2

'Bengal Shadows'

A Documentary Screening on the Bengal Famine of 1943

22 June 2018

'Bengal Shadows' is about the 1943 famine in Bengal, India which led to the death of 3-5 million people.This screening was in collaboration with the Bagri Foundation London Indian Film Festival 2018 and followed by a discussion between Professor Amartya Sen (Harvard) and Professor Tirthankar Roy (LSE), chaired by Dr Mukulika Banerjee (LSE). To listen to the post-screening discussion, click here.


 

HinduBookcover

Why I am a Hindu

Shashi Tharoor in conversation with Mukulika Banerjee

7 June 2018

Why I Am a Hindu (2018), is Tharoor’s latest book, which offers a profound re-examination of Hinduism, one of the world’s oldest and greatest religious traditions. Dr Mukulika Banerjee (LSE) chaired the session. To listen to the podcast click here.


 

Akbartomb

The Urgency of Secularism

6 June 2018

Professor Amartya Sen (Harvard) and Mr Yogendra Yadav (Swaraj India) discussed contemporary Indian politics and the challenges of secularism in a session chaired by Dr Mukulika Banerjee (LSE). to watch the video on YouTube click here. To listen to the podcast click here.


 

BusinessHistory

A Business History of India: Enterprise and the Emergence of Capitalism from 1700

31 May 2018

Professor Tirthankar Roy (LSE) launched his latest book at a panel discussion with Professor Bishnupriya Gupta (Warwick), Dr Michael Aldous (Queen's University) and Dr D. Rajeev Sibal (Pratham UK), moderated by Dr Sanchari Roy (KCL).To listen to the podcast click here.


 

AB

What's Wrong with Indian Democracy?

17 May 2018

Professor Abhijit Banerjee (MIT) discussed poverty, governance and elections at a workshop chaired by Dr Mukulika Banerjee (LSE). To listen to the podcast click here.


 

logo of 100ft journey club

Shri Guru Gobind Singh Ji: Understanding the Sacred Word

22 March 2018

This unique event brings together academic and community leaders, H.E. Mr Y K Sinha  (HC India), Professor James Hegarty (Cardiff), Mr Prab Seyan (Watford Sikh Assoc.), Professor Pritam Singh (OBU) , and Professor M P S Bedi (PCPirthi Foundation), moderated by Dr Nilanjan Sarkar (LSE) to discuss the importance and relevance of The Shri Guru Granth Sahib, and the life of Shri Guru Gobind Singh ji, to conclude the celebrations marking the 350th Prakash Parv of the Guru. To learn more click here.


 

9781108415927

The Broken Ladder: The Paradox and Potential of India's One-Billion

14 March 2018

Panelists came together for a book discussion on The Broken Ladder by Professor Anirudh Krishna (Duke), with Professor Maitreesh Ghatak (LSE) and Dr Sohini Kar (LSE) chaired by Dr Mukulika Banerjee (LSE). To listen to the podcast click here.


 

Varadarajan2

Challenges to Press Freedom in a Democracy

9 March 2018

Mr Siddharth Varadarajan (The Wire)  presented a lecture that explored the challenges and potential of the press in the region which was moderated by Dr Mukulika Banerjee (LSE). To watch the video on YouTube, click here.

SUPREME_COURT

Democracy and Defiance in the Supreme Court of India

9 February 2018

Dr Aditya Sondhi (NLSIU) discussed the unprecendeted press conference held on 12 January 2018 by four Senior Justices of the Supreme Court of India, with Dr Siva Thambisetty (LSE). To listen to the podcast click here.


 

Privacy

Privacy and Law in India

7 February 2018

This panel discussed the development of the right to privacy in the Indian judicial context, and examines the Privacy Judgement (August 2017) and its implications on the Aadhaar mandate issued by the Government of India by Dr Chintan Chandrachud (Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP), Ms Sarah George Kotak (NLSIU) and Dr Mayur Suresh (SOAS). To listen to the podcast, click here.


 

TimesofIndiaweb

Law and Nationhood: India at 70

13 November 2017 to 7 December 2017

To commemorate India's 70 years of independence, Dr Nilanjan Sarkar (LSE) and Dr Charlotte de Mille (Courtauld) curated an exhibition in collaboration with The Courtauld Institute of Art, London, and the High Commission of India, London. The exhibit explored the relationship between legality and nationhood in independent India, placing her Constitution at the heart of it. It focused on four prominent Indians – Shyamaji Krishnavarma, Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, and Dr B R Ambedkar. Read the interview with H.E Mr Y K Sinha here.


 

leaf of SAC logo

Can Intelligence Services do Good? A Conversation between Indian and Pakistani Former Chiefs

6 October 2017

Amarjit Singh Dulat (ex-RAW), with Ehsan ul Haq (ex-ISI), Aamir Ghauri (SAFF), and Rahul Roy-Chaudhury (IISS), chaired by Dr Mukulika Banerjee (LSE), explored the nature of intelligence services in India and Pakistan, their challenges, limits and potentials towards domestic and international security issues. To listen to the podcast click here.

Adair Turner

Talking Economics: Finance and Reform in India

5 October 2017

A discussion by the South Asia Centre in partnership with the Institute for New Economic Thinking, New Delhi as part of the series ‘Artha Vivaad: Lectures in New Economic Thinking’ by INET featuring Lord Adair Turner (INET) with Mr Nasser Munjee (Tata Motor Finance).


 

 

Utsav Singh Bains

Ram Rahim: Faith and Justice in India

3 October 2016

Utsav Singh Bains a human rights lawyer at the Supreme Court of India examined the landmark judgement against Gurmeet Ram Rahim, chaired by Dr Mukulika Banerjee (LSE). This was a discussion by the South Asia Centre in partnership with the National Indian Students and Alumni Union, UK.


 

Faisal Devji

Barrister Gandhi Takes the Stand

2 October 2017

This special lecture by Dr Faisal Devji (Oxford) in collaboration with The Honourable Society of the Inner Temple commemorates the birth anniversary of M. K. Gandhi, the 70th Anniversary of India’s independence and the UK-India Year of Culture 2017.


 

 

2016-2017

Amartya Sen

Film screening: The Argumentative Indian

27 June 2017

A European premiere of a new documentary about Amartya Sen in collaboration with the Bagri Foundation London Indian Film Festival, featuring a live Q&A with Professor Amartya Sen (Harvard) and chaired by Dr Mukulika Banerjee (LSE).


 

leaf of SAC logo

The Theft of History: The British Empire in India

21 May 2017

Roy Moxham and Dr Shashi Tharoor (MP India) in conversation with Dr Mukulika Banerjee (LSE) at ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival @ British Library.

Movie poster Viceroys House

"History is Written by the Victors": The Making of Viceroy's House

21 March 2017

Gurinder Chadha discussed the making of the film Viceroy's House (2017), followed by an audience Q&A chaired by Dr Mukulika Banerjee (LSE).


 

 

M N Roy

A Revolutionary At Large: Scenes from the Life of M.N. Roy

17 March 2017

Professor Dilip Gaonkar (Northwestern) spoke on M.N. Roy, an Indian revolutionary, radical activist, philosopher and founder of both the Mexican Communist Party and Communist Party of India, which was chaired by Dr Mukulika Banerjee (LSE).


 

Jahnavi Phalkey

Flights of Empire: Allies, Aeronautics, and Adversary in World War II Bangalore

 8th March 2017

Dr Jahnavi Phalkey (KCL) explores the story of an aircraft base in Bangalore which was part of Britain’s Southeast Asia Command during World War II, with Emeritus Professor David Arnold (Warwick).


 

Book cover Inglorious Empire

Inglorious Empire: What the British did to India

6 March 2017

Focusing on his latest book Inglorious Empire: What the British did to India (2017), Dr Shashi Tharoor takes on and demolishes the argument that British imperialism in the Indian subcontinent was a form of enlightened despotism

Arun Jaitley at LSE

100 Foot Journey Club event with Indian Finance Minister Mr Arun Jaitley

25 February 2017

The Indian Minister for Finance Mr Arun Jaitley spoke at LSE on India's current economic and financial climate, and engaged in a Q&A with LSE students and staff. The event was jointly hosted by the High Commission of India, the South Asia Centre and the LSE Financial Markets Group. It formed part of the 100 Foot Journey Club series. A podcast of the event is available here.


 

soldiers during the British Raj

Forgotten Soldiers of the Raj

8 February 2017

Shrabani Basu (writer) spoke with Professor Tirthankar Roy (LSE), about the nearly one and a half million soldiers from the Indian subcontinent who fought in the British army in the First World War, drawing from her book For King and Another Country: Indian Soldiers on the Western Front 1914-1918 (2015).


 

Susheila Nasta

‘The Bloomsbury Indians’: Writing Across the Tracks in Colonial London

26 January 2017

Drawing on recent research, Professor Susheila Nasta’s (Open University) lecture revealed how the Indian presence in Bloomsbury began to shape a transnational global modernity, simultaneously shifting British perspectives and angles of vision.


 

Cover of book Collective Choice and Social Welfare

Collective Choice and Social Welfare: a conversation with Professor Amartya Sen

19 January 2017

The conversation by Professor Amartya Sen (Harvard) with Professor Kevin Roberts (Oxford) surrounds the re-issue of Collective Choice (1970), with new arguments and results, alternating between the mathematical and non-mathematical to discuss choice, welfare, inequality, poverty and rights. To listen to the podcast click here.


 

Tristram Hunt at LSE

Cities of the Empire

23 November 2016

The Hon Dr Tristram Hunt, MP, discussed the cities of Calcutta, Bombay and New Delhi, and their role in making the British Empire over a century, drawing from his book Ten Cities That Made an Empire (2014). Listen to the event podcast here, and read the South Asia @ LSE interview with Dr Hunt here.  This was a 100 Foot Journey Club.


 

Ashwini Deshpande at LSE

Who Gets Ahead? Caste, Class, and Socio-Economic Mobility in India 

22 November 2016

The Centre hosted a workshop for LSE faculty & doctoral researchers by Professor Ashwini Deshpande (DSE). Read the South Asia @ LSE interview with Professor Deshpande here.


 

Rajeev Gowda at LSE

Flawed Political Finance Laws and Corruption in India

9 November 2016

Professor M.V. Rajeev Gowda (MP) discussed the complex election expenditure, political party funding, reporting and disclosure laws in India's democracy. Listen to the event podcast here and read the South Asia @ LSE interview with Professor Gowda here.


 

Ashutosh Varshney at LSE

India's Democracy: Electoral Vibrancy, Liberal Deficits

4 November 2016 

Professor Ashutosh Varshney (Brown) with Ashis Ray (journalist) explored India’s democratic and electoral record, to provide an analysis of state elections in India since 2014 and assess the BJP national government’s record half way into their term.Listen to the event podcast here and read the South Asia @ LSE interview with Professor Varshney here.


 

 

2015-2016

logo of 100ft journey club

India's Greatest CEOs by Suhel Seth

16 June 2016

India's Greatest CEOs by Suhel Seth was launched by The Rt Hon. Jo Johnson, Minister of State for Universities and Science, followed by a panel discussion including H.E. Mr Navtej Sarna, High Commissioner of India to the UK. Read Seth's interview by Saanya Gulati for the South Asia @ LSE blog here.


 

Book cover Beyond Caste: Identity and Power in South Asia, Past and Present

Beyond Caste: Identity and Power in South Asia, Past and Present

7 June 2016

Professor Sumit Guha (UT Austin) gave a public lecture based on his book Beyond Caste: Identity and Power in South Asia, Past and Present (2013), which tracks the long history of the practices amalgamated under the label of caste and shows their connection to changing patterns of social and political power down to the present. The discussion was chaired by Professor Tirthankar Roy (LSE).


 

Sumit Guha

The Indian Village: Romantic Images versus Historical Realities Lecture  

6 June 2016

Professor Sumit Guha (UT Austin) gave a public lecture on  the realities of Indian village life and its social and political setting up to the late twentieth century.  The discussion was chaired by Professor Edward Simpson (SOAS).


 

Sumathi Rumaswamy

 “India is Indira, Indira is India.” M. F. Husain and the aesthetics of India’s Emergency, June 1975

31 May 2016

Professor Sumathi Ramaswamy (Duke) explored through M F Husain's painting 'India June 1975: The Triptych in the Life of a Nation', the place of the visual artist in sustaining and deepening India’s much-vaunted democracy. The discussion was chaired by Dr Mukulika Banerjee (LSE).


 

S Y Quraishi

The Wonder that is Indian Elections, Challenges & the Way Ahead

13 May 2016

A conversation with the Former Chief Election Commissioner of India, Dr S. Y. Quraishi, led by Dr Mukulika Banerjee (LSE). This event was in collaboration with the Hundred Foot Journey Club,  the National Indian Students and Alumni Union UK, and Pravasi Bharat.


 

Raghuram Rajan

Rethinking the Global Monetary System

10 May 2016

This was the inaugural event for the ‘100 Foot Journey Club’, a collaboration between the High Commission of India and the LSE South Asia Centre, which featured H.E. Mr Navtej Sarna High Commissioner of India to the UK, Dr Raghuram Rajan (RBI), chaired by Professor Erik Berglof (LSE). Click here for the video/podcast.


 

Swetha Rao Dhananka

Of Housing and Politics: Mapping political opportunities for mobilising in Bangalore, India.

16 March 2016

Dr Swetha Rao Dhananka (UCL) presented her PhD research on the conditions for the emergence of a social movement on the issue of adequate housing for the urban poor in the city of Bangalore. The discussion was chaired by Dr Taneesha Mohan (York).


 

Meghnad Desai

'A Revolutionary Act: The Making of the Indian Constitution'

26 November 2015

This special lecture by Lord Meghnad Desai celebrates the anniversary of the adoption of the Constitution by the Government of India on 26 November 1949. The discussion was chaired by Mr Prashant Pise (HCI).


 

Indelible ink used during elections

Bihar Vidhan Sabha Election Results 2015

9 November 2015

A South Asia Centre Google Global Hangout discussion featured Giles Veniers (Ashoka), Jeffrey Witsoe (Union College), Manisha Priyam (NUEPA), Milan Vaishnav (CEIP), Neelanjan Sircar, and Pranav Gupta (CPR New Delhi), Sarthak Bagchi (Leiden), which was chaired by Dr Mukulika Banerjee (LSE). To watch the video of the converstion click here.


 

Amartya Sen

In conversation: The Country of First Boys

6 November 2015

Professor Amartya Sen (Harvard) discussed his book, The Country of First Boys (2015), with Professor Lord Nicholas Stern (LSE), which is a collection of cultural essays in which Sen examines social justice and welfare, by addressing some of the fundamental issues of our time like deprivation, disparity, hunger, illiteracy, alienation, globalisation, media, freedom of speech, injustice, inequality, exclusion, and exploitation. The discussion was chaired by Dr Mukulika Banerjee (LSE). To listen to the podcast click here. To read the book review, click here.


 

Shobhana Bhartia

The Role of Media in Indian Public Life

13 October 2015

Shobhana Bhartia (Hindustan Times) in conversation with Mukulika Banerjee (LSE) on the India Media. The podcast and video are available here.


 

FloodofFire

29 May 2015

Amitav Ghosh launched his latest book Flood of Fire (2015). The disucssion was chaired by Mukulika Banerjee (LSE).


 

 

The India Programme

Research on India is a global phenomenon, with every aspect of the country subject to academic scrutiny, debate, discussion, and analyses. The South Asia Centre networks with over 50 academics within LSE whose teaching and research expertise is on India either directly or indirectly.

The Centre is working to develop a futuristic research agenda for India – one that builds on the strength of current global research, and addresses foreseeable issues of interest and concern in India over the next few decades – making the Centre the hub for India-related issues in the UK.

Read the South Asia Centre's White Paper on India to learn more about the Centre's engagement with the country and the wider region. This White Paper was written in 2016, and will be updated soon.

 

Banner image credit: Wim Arys on Unsplash.