CENTER FOR SOUTH ASIAN STUDIES SOUTH ASIAN University of Michigan Fall 2012 Newsletter LETTER FROM THE DIRECTOR I’D LIKE TO WELCOME everyone— lecture series (September 7). da titioners of this art form. Based students, community members, Cunha’s lecture contributes to in New Delhi, Farooqui will be staff, and faculty—to the 2012- our Trehan Theme Year for 2012, in residence in Ann Arbor for six 2013 academic year. Let me take “The Environment of India,” which weeks this Fall as a “Scholar this opportunity to thank Juan commenced earlier with lectures from the Muslim World” fellow Cole for his three years of leader- and an international mini confer- of the Islamic Studies Program. ship at the Center. Faced with ence. Under the theme-year ban- Farooqui is a former Rhodes the particular challenges of this ner, we look forward to welcoming scholar, historian, filmmaker, fiscal climate (including unan- Raman Sukumar of the Indian and storyteller, or dastango (you ticipated cuts in federal funding), Institute of Science, Bangalore, can read more about him on p.10 Juan nonetheless maintained the in November, who will be speaking of this newsletter). On September core mission of the Center: pro- about the sacred elephant of 27 he will be performing for us, viding a vibrant intellectual hub ancient India, and we will con- and on September 28 he will give for the study of South Asia. He clude the theme year with another a lecture on Urdu storytelling in was assisted in this task by a tire- international mini conference, history and practice. I hope you’ll less staff, a supportive Associate to be held on November 16, 2012. take advantage of this wonderful Director, and an executive com- Our fall program also features opportunity to participate in a mittee, three of whose members Anushiya Ramaswamy (Septem- world of storytelling that spans CONTENTS have now completed their service. ber 14) who will be speaking on across South Asia, and beyond. FACULTY NEWS & PUBLICATIONS 3 I would like to extend thanks to translating Tamil poetry and Dalit Christi Merrill for her service as literature, and Amitav Ghosh, who Finally, I am pleased to announce SUMMER IN SOUTH ASIA 3 Associate Director and to execu- is a Zell Distinguished Interna- that our Summer in South Asia tive committee members Meilu tional Writer in Residence this fall (SiSA) undergraduate fellowship THIRD TREHAN THEME YEAR 4 Ho and Aswin Punathambekar and will be speaking on December program continues to thrive. FLAS RECIPIENTS 6 for their contributions. With 7. We’re also very pleased that This summer we sent seven UM their support, the Center had a our colleague Varuni Bhatia of the students to India to work on an HARTLAND WORKSHOP 7 compelling program of events this Department of Asian Languages array of projects. Please join us PAKISTAN CONFERENCE 8 past semester, including visits by and Cultures will be sharing her on October 19, when the students Professor Tanika Sarkar of the current research with us in a will share their experiences FALL 2012 PROGRAM 9 Centre for Historical Studies at lecture entitled, “Chaitanya with us at the SiSA Fellowship MAHMOOD FAROOQUI 10 Jawaharlal Nehru University, New and the Politics of Recovery in colloquium. Our students are Delhi, and Harish Kapadia, moun- Colonial Bengal” (November 30). doing fabulous things under the ANTICASTEISM WORKSHOP 11 taineer and activist. We also had You’ll find complete details of all auspices of this program, one the pleasure of hearing about the of these events in this newsletter made possible by the generosity HOW TO GIVE A GIFT 12 current research of our own Mrin- and updated information on of an anonymous donor. alini Sinha and Tom Trautmann. our website (http://www.ii.umich. edu/csas/), where you’ll also As you can see, it promises to be This semester we have a diverse find plenty of other news about an exciting semester for the study DESIGN: program for you that will kick off the Center and its students of South Asia. Please join us. We’ll Marty Somberg/Somberg Design with a lecture that is sure to make and faculty. look forward to your contributions EDITOR: you question everything you to the conversation. Zilka Joseph/CSAS thought you knew about India’s As part of our Fall program, we rivers: Dilip da Cunha of the Parsons invite you into the world of das- COVER: School of Design and the Univer- tangoi, or the art of storytelling, Farina Mir, Director Downpour 2 (detail); courtesy Mathur/da Cunha sity of Pennsylvania will be the with Mahmood Farooqui, who is Center for South Asian Studies first speaker in our scholarly one of the world’s leading prac- Associate Professor of History 2 CSAS FACULTY NEWS AWARDS: Christi Merrill’s translation Student News of Choubuli and Other Stories by Robert Poulson-Houser, MA, South Asian Studies, won a Boren Vijaydan Detha (published by Fellowship to India. The fellowship, sponsored by the National Fordham Press and Katha) won an Security Education Program, provides up to $30,000 to US graduate AAS SAC Ramanujan Book Prize for students to bolster their education through specialization in area Translation (South Asia) at the AAS study, language study, or increased language proficiency. Conference in Toronto this year. The award is intended to recognize Poulson- Houser will be studying Urdu, and volunteering in local and encourage translations from elementary schools. South Asian languages into English and innovative work that reaches Harjeet Grewal, PhD, Asian Languages & Cultures won a Rackham a wide audience. International Research Award to pursue his work on India - “Languages of South Asian devotion: religious thought and experience.” Mrinalini Sinha, Alice Freeman Palmer Professor of History, was awarded the prestigious Guggenheim fellowship. Her research topic is — Complete political independence: the curious history of a nationalist Summer in South Asia Indian demand. Fellowships 2012 Funded by an anonymous donor, these undergraduate students, from various disciplines, traveled to India this summer to do research: Farina Mir’s The Social Space of Language: Vernacular Culture in Nicholas Pilarski, Theatre Arts and Global Media Studies; Carolyn British Colonial Punjab (Berkeley: Yarina, Chemical Engineering; Marisa Perera, Psychology and Spanish; University of California Press, 2010; Eric Ranyal, Chemical Engineering; Tessa Adzemovic, Biochemistry Delhi: Permanent Black, 2010) was and French; Rabia Mahmood, Psychology, Gender & Health; and awarded the 2012 Bernard S. Cohn Bradley Iott, Anthropology and Urban Studies. Book Prize from the Association of Asian Studies. The prize recognizes Congratulations to this year’s Fellows! “outstanding and innovative scholarship across discipline and We look forward to their presentations at the Summer in South Asia country of specialization for a Fellowship Colloquium to be held on October 19, 2012. Please come first book on South Asia.” and support our students! Read more at: permanent-black.blogspot.com/2011/10/farina-mir-wins-ahas- richards-books.html Aswin Punathambekar won the Best Essay award for “Reality Television and the Making of Mobile Publics” (published in ‘Real Worlds: Global Perspectives on the Politics of Reality Television, New York: Routledge, 2010) from the Society for Cinema and Media Studies. 3 THE THIRD TREHAN THEME YEAR: “The Environment of India” Conference – PART I A Report on the Trehan Conference March 9, 2012 By Richard Tucker, Adjunct Professor, SNRE T THE THEME OF this year’s Trehan Ann Grodzins Gold, Professor Initiative mini conference is “The of Religion and Anthropology, Environment of India.” The first of Syracuse University, gave the first two sessions was held on March lecture, “From Snakes’ Blood to 9, from 2 to 6 pm, at the Center Sewage: Mythology and Ecology for South Asian Studies. Three of a Minor River in Rajasthan,” in eminent scholars from India and which she drew on her many years Ann Grodzins Gold the United States presented their of experience in villages and cutting-edge research in major urban areas of Rajasthan to show addresses. Each presentation was how socio-economic hierarchies, followed by a lively discussion gender differences and cultural with a large and very knowledge- traditions collectively determine able audience of the university’s society’s use of water resources South Asia students, faculty and in a semi-arid setting. friends. The afternoon ended with Ashwini Chhatre a panel discussion and a final general discussion session. CSAS4 Three eminent scholars from India and the United States presented their cutting-edge Arun Agrawal research. The second speaker was Ashwini a number of questions and Chhatre, from the Department of addressed several issues that Geography, University of Illinois arose during the conference and at Urbana-Champaign. Professor was able to enlighten the audi- Chhatre spoke on the “Complex ence with information about Interdependence and Co-evolution some of his most recent projects. of Environment, Development, and Democracy,” using as a starting Arun Agrawal, Professor, School Mahesh Rangarajan point his years of research in rural of Natural Resources and Environ- Himachal Pradesh. His presenta- ment, brought the conference to tion demonstrated the importance a close with a brief summation of meeting rural people’s needs, and a panel discussion which he if natural systems are to be also chaired. We owe him en- maintained. thusiastic thanks for his major role in planning and hosting the The afternoon’s final speaker afternoon’s conference. was Mahesh Rangarajan, Director of the Nehru Memorial Museum We look forward to “The Environ- and Library, New Delhi, who ment of India” Conference— Part spoke on “Conserving Nature as II, to be held on November 16, Richard Tucker is Adjunct if Democracy Mattered.” Dr. 2012, which will feature three Professor in the School of Rangarajan is India’s leading more stellar scholars who will Natural Resources and historian of the national parks present the most recent research Environment, University of and wildlife conservation move- on environmental issues in India.