Manu V. Devadevan, Associate Professor of History

Manu V. Devadevan

Office: No. A4 301, South Campus, Indian Institute of Technology Mandi, VPO Kamand, Mandi District, Himachal Pradesh 175005, India.
Residence: No. C20 S1, North Campus, Indian Institute of Technology Mandi, VPO Kamand, Mandi District, Himachal Pradesh 175005, India.

Phone and Email

Office Phone: 91-1905-267147
Residence Phone: 91-1905-267958
Cell Phone: 91-9418162555
Official Email: manu@iitmandi.ac.in
Personal Email: discoverie@gmail.com

EDUCATION

  • BA (Sociology) : Annamalai University, Annamalainagar, Chidambaram, 2001.
  • MA (History) : Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, 2005.
  • PhD (History) : Mangalore University, Mangalagangothri, Mangalore, 2012.

RESEARCH INTERESTS

  • Epochal Transformations in South Asian History
  • The Intellectual History of South Asia
  • The History of Capitalism
  • The History of European Political Thought Since the Renaissance
  • Literary and Performative Traditions of South Asia
  • South Asian Epigraphy and Manuscriptology
  • Religious Traditions in South Asia
  • Evolution of Vernacular Languages in South Asia
  • Environmental History of the Anthropocene

TEACHING

Undergraduate Courses

  • HS255: India Since Independence
  • HS261: The Indian Constitution
  • HS355: India Through Its Epics
  • HS381: Indian Society: Structure and Change
  • HS404: Technology in Premodern India

Graduate and Postgraduate Courses

  • HS522: Research Methodology in the Social Sciences
  • HS525: History of Development Thought
  • HS530: Planning, Welfare and Development
  • HS556: Classical Social Theories
  • HS601: Literary Methods: Theory and Interpretation
  • HS608: Modern Western Social Thought
  • HS611: Research Writing
  • HS621: Advanced Qualitative Research Methods
  • HS631: Historical Theory and Methodology
  • HS632: South Indian Epigraphy
  • HS633: Manuscriptology
  • HS634: British Factories in South India

RESEARCH PROJECTS

Principal Investigator

  • The Sixteenth-Century Renaissance in India, joint research with Prof David Shulman, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, jointly funded by the University Grants Commission and Israel Science Foundation, October 2014 to September 2017. (Project amount: Rs. 48,00,000).

Member

  • The New Ecology of Expressive Modes in Early Modern South India, Sixteenth to Eighteenth century, European Research Council (ERC) project directed by Prof David Shulman, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, 2018-2023.
  • Framing Inter-Regional Comparisons: Historical Demarcations and Developmental Transitions in South Asia, 1905-1960, Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR) project directed by Prof Veena Naregal, Institute of Economic Growth, Delhi, 2018-2019.

FELLOWSHIPS

  • The Transformed Structure of Language in Sixteenth-Century South Indian Kavya Texts: A one-month residence fellowship at International Institute of Asian Studies, Leiden, awarded by J. Gonda Foundation, 3 January 2020 to 1 February 2020 (Honorarium: Euros 2000).
  • Mantesvami Parampare (in Kannada): A one-year research project on the Mantesvami tradition of Karnataka, undertaken through a grant made by India Foundation for the Arts, Bangalore, July 2007 to June 2008. (Project amount: Rs. 200,000).
  • Kalyanada Mythika Itihasa (in Kannada): A two-year research project on the history of Kalyana and its discursive transformations in medieval Karnataka, undertaken as part of the Junior Fellowship awarded by Dept. of Culture, Government of India, September 2005 to August 2007. (Project amount: Rs 144,000).

AWARDS AND HONOURS

  • Infosys Prize for Humanities, 2019

DOCTORAL RESEARCH SUPERVISED

Completed

  • Abhilash Malayil: Land Regime, Agricultural Production and the Politics of Credit Money in Eighteenth Century Malabar (2020).

In Progress

  • Anindita Ghosh: The Ideology of the Urban Imaginaire in R.K. Narayan's Malgudi Novels.
  • Aman Mishra: The Economic Foundations of Third Urbanization in South Asia, 600-1000 CE.
  • Raj P. Shirode: The Historical Geography of Religion in the Mahanadi Delta, 600-1300 CE.
  • Shahyar Husain: An Intellectual Biography of Sheikh Bandanawaz Gisudaraz.
  • Kalyani Sanjay Muzumdar: The Evolution of Srauta Rituals in the Vedic Period.

PUBLICATIONS

Books

    The Early Medieval Origins of India The Early Medieval Origins of India The Early Medieval Origins of India The Early Medieval Origins of India The Early Medieval Origins of India
  • A Cultural History of South Asian Literature, Vol. 2 (Middle Ages), (edited volume), Bloomsbury, London, contract signed
  • Devanura Mahadeva: From the Margins to the Mainstream, (edited volume), Routledge, New Delhi, contract signed
  • Avakashikal Illatta Bhoomi (in Malayalam), forthcoming
  • Prithviyallodagida Ghatavu… Karnatakada Ninnegalu (in Kannada), revised edition, Akshara Prakashana, Heggodu, 2021
  • Ninna Yuga (in Kannada), Sangaatha Pusthaka, Rajoor, 2020.
  • The ‘Early Medieval’ Origins of India, Cambridge University Press, New Delhi, 2020.
  • God Is Dead, There’s No God: Vachanas of Allama Prabhu, Translation of the Vachanas of Allama Prabhu from the Kannada, Speaking Tiger Classics, New Delhi, 2019.
  • Clio and Her Descendents: Essays for Kesavan Veluthat, (edited volume), Primus Books, Delhi, 2018.
  • Kavyamimamse Taulanika Parisheelane, (In Kannada), Translation of C. Achyuthan Unni’s Malayalam book into Kannada, Dravidian University, Kuppam, 2017.
  • A Prehistory of India, De Gruyter, Berlin, 2016.
  • Itihasa 2 (In Kannada), A Text Book for 2 Year PUC (Government of Karnataka), Chaitra Prakashana, Bangalore, 2010.
  • History 2, A textbook for 2nd PUC, Govt. of Karnataka, Chaithra Prakashana, Bangalore, 2010.
  • History 1, A textbook for 1st PUC, Govt. of Karnataka, Chaithra Prakashana, Bangalore, 2010.
  • Khandavide Ko Mamsavide Ko, Nag Hammadi, Bangalore, 2010.
  • Suryagayathri, Nag Hammadi, Bangalore, 2009.
  • Tabbaliyu Neenade Magale: Portuguese-Poorva Yugada Sub-Saharan Gulama Vyapara, Nag Hammadi, Bangalore, 2009.
  • Prithviyallodagida Ghatavu… Karnatakada Ninnegalu (In Kannada), Akshara Prakashana, Heggodu, 2009.
  • Selected Vacanas of Saranas, English translation of twelfth century Vachanas in Kannada as part of a five-member team of translators, (General Editors H.S. Shivaprakash and O.L. Nagabhushana Swami), Basava Samiti, Bangalore, 2005.

Journal Papers

  • ‘The Tarisappalli Copperplate Grant and the Early Christians of India,’ Nidan, Vol. 5, No. 2, 2020, pp. 5-26. (ISSN: 2414-8636).
  • ‘Ekantate Emba Vargaprajne,’ (in Kannada), Sangata, No. 10-11, 2020, pp. 7-11.
  • ‘Shivasharanara Vachanagala Moolaroopa,’ (in Kannada), Itihasa Darpana, No. 40-41, 2019, pp. 81-92. (ISSN: 2321-3590).
  • ‘Vishvasahitya: Parikalpaneya Savalugalu,’ (in Kannada), Sangata, No. 7, 2019, pp. 7-12.
  • ‘Sangam Tamilagam,’ (in Kannada), Dravida Kasturi, Journal of the Dravidian University, Vol. 1, No. 1, 2018, pp. 132-141.
  • ‘Problems and Prospects in the History of Literature,’ Beyond Disciplines, Journal of the Central University of Karnataka, Vol. 1, No. 1, 2017.
  • ‘Reflections on Time from India’s Literary and Intellectual Traditions,’ Humanities and Social Sciences Latvia, Vol. 25, No. 2, 2017, pp. 36-59. (ISSN: 1022-4483).
  • ‘From Lineage to Territory: The Making of Territorial Self-Consciousness in Kalinga,’ Indian Historical Review, Vol. 44, No. 2, 2017, pp. 173-197. (ISSN: 0376-9836).
  • ‘From the Cult of Chivalry to the Cult of the Personality: The Seventh-Century Transformation in Pallava Statecraft,’ Studies in History, Vol. 33, No. 2, 2017, pp. 127-150. (ISSN: 0257-6430).
  • ‘Deviyoo Vaishnavadharmavoo, Pradeshika Melugai Sadhisuva Tavakadalli: Raja Odeyar Kalada (kri.sha.1578-1617) Odeyar Daivabhakti Paramparegalu,’ (Kannada translation of Caleb Simmons’ English essay), Itihasa Darpana, Vol. 28, 2016, pp. 43-62. (ISSN: 2321-3590).
  • ‘Puri Jagannatha Devalayada Itihasa–8,’ (in Kannada), Itihasa Darpana, No. 27, 2015, pp. 41-52. (ISSN: 2321-3590).
  • ‘Puri Jagannatha Devalayada Itihasa–7,’ (in Kannada), Itihasa Darpana, No. 26, 2015, pp. 23-40. (ISSN: 2321-3590).
  • ‘Puri Jagannatha Devalayada Itihasa–6,’ (in Kannada), Itihasa Darpana, No. 24, 2014. (ISSN: 2321-3590).
  • ‘Puri Jagannatha Devalayada Itihasa–5,’ (in Kannada), Itihasa Darpana, No. 23, 2014. (ISSN: 2321-3590).
  • ‘Puri Jagannatha Devalayada Itihasa–3 & 4,’ (in Kannada), Itihasa Darpana, Nos. 21-22, 2014. (ISSN: 2321-3590).
  • ‘Puri Jagannatha Devalayada Itihasa–2,’ (in Kannada), Itihasa Darpana, No. 20, 2014, pp. 39-52. (ISSN: 2321-3590).
  • ‘Puri Jagannatha Devalayada Itihasa–1,’ (in Kannada), Itihasa Darpana, No. 19, 2013, pp. 9-24. (ISSN: 2321-3590).
  • ‘The Taste of the Nation: Golwalkar’s Nationhood and Its Implied ‘Mentality,’ Phalanx: A Quarterly Review for Continuing Debate, No. 9, 2013. (ISSN: 2320-7698). (http://www.phalanx.in/pages/article_i009_Nationhood.html).
  • ‘Abraham Bin Yeeyu,’ (in Kannada), Itihasa Darpana, No. 17, 2013, pp. 39-46. (ISSN: 2321-3590).
  • ‘An Overview of Mathematics and Astronomy in India (1300-1800 CE),’ Essent, Vol. 1, No. 1, 2013, pp. 63-68.
  • ‘Nadu-Nudiya Adhyayana,’ (in Kannada), Lokajnana, Journal of the Tumkur University, Vol. 1, No. 2, 2013. (Reprinted from Lokajnana, Vol. 1, No. 1, 2013).
  • ‘Nadu-Nudiya Adhyayana,’ (in Kannada), Samshodhana Vyasanga, Vol. 25, (No. 149), 2013. (Reprinted from Lokajnana, Vol. 1, No. 1, 2013).
  • ‘Nadu-Nudiya Adhyayana,’ (in Kannada), Lokajnana, Journal of the Tumkur University, Vol. 1, No. 1, 2013.
  • ‘Narcissus and His Empire: The Trajectory of Desire in Malayalam Cinema,’ Journal of South Indian History, Vol. 3, No. 1, 2011, pp. 43-63.
  • ‘Pullaragimathada Mallikarjunana Dakshinamurti Stotra,’ (in Kannada), Kannada Sahitya Parishat Patrike, Vol. 89, Nos. 3-4 and Vol. 90, Nos. 1-2, 2010-11.
  • ‘Papareddigala Prapancha,’ (in Kannada), Hosathu, December 2010.
  • ‘Shirapureshvara Charite,’ (in Kannada), Kannada Sahitya Parishat Patrike, Vol. 89, Nos. 1-2, 2010.
  • ‘The Ravaging Hand: Abdul Karim Khan and the Decline of Bijapur,’ Deccan Studies, Vol. 8, No. 1, 2010, pp. 59-72. (ISSN: 0973-2292).
  • ‘Narseesgala Lokadalli,’ (in Kannada), Desha Kaala, No. 16, 2009, pp. 112-117.
  • ‘Bhashe Pramanavadaga,’ (in Kannada), Kannada Sahitya Parishat Patrike, Vol. 88, Nos. 1-4, 2009.
  • ‘Itihasakara Ram Sharan Sharma,’ (in Kannada), Itihasa Darpana, No. 3, 2009. (ISSN: 2321-3590)
  • ‘The Shadow Lines: The Advent of Territoriality in South Asia,’ Phalanx: A Quarterly Review for Continuing Debate, No. 4, 2009. (ISSN: 2320-7698). (http://www.phalanx.in/pdf/territoriality.pdf).
  • ‘Jana Marulo Jatre Marulo,’ (in Kannada), Mathukathe, No. 89, 2009.
  • ‘Prithviyallodagida Ghatavu… Karnatakada Ninnegalu,’ (in Kannada), Desha Kaala, No. 15, 2008, p. 13-31.
  • ‘Adhunikateya Uttara,’ (in Kannada), Desha Kaala, No. 14, 2008, p.14-31.
  • ‘Lying on the Edge of the Burning Ground: Rethinking Tinais,’ Journal of the Economic and Social History of the Orient, Vol. 49, No. 2, 2006, pp. 199-218. (ISSN Print: 0022-4995; ISSN Electronic: 1568-5209).
  • ‘Bhavabhuti’s Uttara Ramacharitam’ (English translation of Kirtinath Kurtkoti’s Kannada essay), Theatre India, No.10, 2004, pp. 168-177.
  • ‘The Life and Death of White Desdemona and Black Othello: Through Abhinava Kalidasa – A Re-interpretation,’ (English translation of H. S. Shivaprakash’s article from Kannada), Theatre India, No. 9, 2004, pp. 40-43.

Book Chapters

    The Early Medieval Origins of India The Early Medieval Origins of India The Early Medieval Origins of India The Early Medieval Origins of India The Early Medieval Origins of India
  • ‘Hinduism in Karnataka’, in Tracy Coleman (ed), Oxford Bibliographies in Hinduism, Oxford University Press, Oxford, forthcoming.
  • ‘From Corporal Time to Cognitive Time: Kannada Word-scape in Transition, 10th to 12th Century’, in Shonaleeka Kaul (ed), Retelling Time: Alternative Temporalities from Premodern South Asia, Routledge, Oxon and New York, 2022. pp. 137-156.
  • ‘Knowing and Being: Kutiyattam and Its Semantic University,’ in David Shulman and Heike Oberlin (eds), Two Masterpieces of Kutiyattam: Mantrankam and Anguliyankam, Oxford University Press, New Delhi, 2019, pp. 275-305.
  • ‘Temple and Territory in the Puri Jagannatha Imaginaire,’ in Shonaleeka Kaul (ed), Eloquent Spaces: Meaning and Community in Early India, Routledge, London and New York, 2019, pp. 105-128.
  • ‘Introduction: The Burden of Being Kesavan Veluthat,’ in Clio and Her Descendants: Essays for Kesavan Veluthat, Primus, Delhi, 2018, pp. 1-29.
  • ‘The Making of Territorial Self-Consciousness in South Asia (with a Case-Study of Kalinga), in Clio and Her Descendants: Essays for Kesavan Veluthat, Primus, Delhi, 2018, pp. 783-841.
  • ‘Bhoomaleekatvada Modala Hanta: Mandya Jilleyinda Odagibaruva Olanotagalu,’ (in Kannada) in B. Surendra Rao and S. Chandrasekhar (eds), Karnatakada Samajika Mattu Arthika Charitreya Kelavu Nelegalu, Kuvempu Bhashabharati Pradhikara, Bangalore, 2017.
  • ‘Karnatakadalli Dharmika Samudayagala Vikasa,’ (in Kannada) in B. Surendra Rao and S. Chandrasekhar (eds), Karnatakada Samajika Mattu Arthika Charitreya Kelavu Nelegalu, Kuvempu Bhashabharati Pradhikara, Bangalore, 2017.
  • ‘Voyages of Desire: The Self and Its Grammar in Contemporary Malayalam Cinema,’ in Sajeev P. V. and Ramdas P. (eds), (Un)common Places: Essays on Cultures in Kerala, Publication Division, C. K. G. Memorial Government College, Perambra, 2014, pp. 245-272. (ISBN: 978-81-928-395-0-9).
  • ‘Changes in Land-Relations During the Decline of the Cera State,’ in Kesavan Veluthat and Donald R. Davis (eds), Irreverent History: Essays for M. G. S. Narayanan, Primus, Delhi, 2014, pp. 53-79. (ISBN: 978-93-84082 -14-7).
  • ‘Kartarana Kammata: Negilu, Neeravari Mattu Modala Ghattada Prabhutvagalu,’ (in Kannada), in M.V. Vasu (ed), Kannadadol Bhavisida Janapadam, Chinthana, Bangalore, 2009, pp. 95-108.

Encyclopedia Entries

  • ‘Sulbasutras,’ in Helaine Selin (ed), Encyclopedia of the History of Science, Technology and Medicine in Non-Western Cultures, third edition, Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg and New York, 2016. (ISBN: 978-94-007-7748-4).
  • ‘Paksha,’ in Ibid.
  • ‘Achyuta Pisharati,’ in Ibid.
  • ‘Armillary Spheres in India,’ in Ibid.
  • ‘Samanta Cgandrasekhara,’ in Ibid.
  • ‘The Decimal Notation in India,’ Ibid.
  • ‘Desantara’ in Ibid.
  • ‘Haridatta,’ in Ibid.
  • ‘Jayadeva,’ in Ibid.
  • ‘Lalla,’ in Ibid.
  • ‘Mahendra Suri,’ in Ibid.
  • ‘Munisvara,’ in Ibid.
  • ‘Nilakantha Somayaji,’ in Ibid.
  • ‘Satananda,’ in Ibid.
  • ‘Vatesvara,’ in Ibid.
  • ‘Yavanesvara,’ in Ibid.
  • ‘Banas,’ in The Encyclopedia of Ancient History: Asia and Africa, Wiley, forthcoming.
  • ‘Kadambas,’ in Ibid.
  • ‘Yadavas,’ in Ibid.
  • ‘Silaharas,’ in Ibid.
  • ‘Early Kannada Literature,’ in Ibid.
  • ‘Sanjan,’ in Ibid.

Book Reviews

  • Review of Bhairabi Prasad Sahu, The Making of Regions in Indian History: Society, State and Identity in Premodern Odisha, Primus Books, Delhi, 2020, Frontline, forthcoming.
  • ‘From the 14th Century, a Political Satire for All Times,’ Review of Jyotirmaya Sharma, The Ocean of Mirth: Reading Hasyarnava Prahasanam of Jagadesvara Bhattacharya, A Political Satire for All Times, Routledge, London and New York, 2020 (https://thewire.in/books/from-the-14th-century-a-sanskrit-political-satire-for-all-times), The Wire, 9 January 2020.
  • Review of Whitney Cox, Politics, Kingship, and Poetry in Medieval South India: Moonset on Sunrise Mountain, Indian Economic and Social History Review, Vol. 52, No. 2, 2019, pp. 230-232.
  • ‘Quest for Kashmir,’ Review of Shonaleeka Kaul, The Making of Early Kashmir, Oxford University Press, New Delhi, 2018, Frontline, June 22 2018. (ISSN: 0970-1710).
  • Review of Yigal Bronner, Whitney Cox and Lawrence McCrea (eds.), South Asian Texts in History: Reconstructions from South Asia, Primus, Delhi, 2016, Indian Historical Review, Vol. 44, No. 2, 2017, pp. 327-329. (ISSN: 0376-9836).
  • Review of Satheese Chandra Bose and Shiju Sam Varughese (eds.), Kerala Modernity: Ideas, Spaces and Practices in Transition, Orient BlackSwan, New Delhi, 2015, Indian History, Vol. 3, 2016, pp. 166-171. (ISSN: 2348-2850).
  • Review of Richard M. Eaton and Phillip B. Wagoner, Power, Memory, Architecture: Contested Sites on India’s Deccan Plateau, c. 1300-1600, Oxford University Press, New Delhi, 2014, Indian History, Vol. 2, 2015, pp. 182-186. (ISSN: 2348-2850).
  • ‘Understanding Culture,’ Review of Shonaleeka Kaul, Cultural History of Early South Asia: A Reader, Orient BlackSwan, New Delhi, 2014, Frontline, Vol. 32, No. 6, 2015. (ISSN: 0970-1710).
  • Review of Judith G. Kelley, Monitoring Democracy: When International Election Observation Works, and Why It Often Fails by Judith G. Kelley. Princeton and Oxford: Princeton University Press, 2010, Human Rights Review, Vol. 16, No. 4, 2015, pp. 405-407. (ISSN Print: 1524-8879; ISSN Electronic: 1874-6306).
  • ‘More than a Book,’ Review of David Shulman, More Than Real: A History of the Imagination in South India, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, Massachusetts, and London 2012, Indian History Vol. 1, 2014, pp. 177-180. (ISSN: 2348-2850).
  • ‘Translation of a Premodern Classic,’ Review of Allasani Peddana’s Manucharitramu, translated in the English by Shrinivas Sistla, Drushya Kala Deepika, Visakhapatnam, 2012, Indian Literature, Vol. 57, No. 5, 2013.
  • ‘A Passe on Somanathapura,’ Review of S. Settar, Somanathapura, second edition, Ruvari, Bangalore, 2012, Indian Literature, Vol. 57, No. 1, 2013.
  • ‘The Sea and the Rain,’ (Review of The Sea and the Rain, English translation of Nagathihalli Ramesh’s Kannada poetry collection), Indian Literature, Vol. 52, No. 5, 2008.
  • ‘Theatre of Lacanian Desire,’ Review of Ralph Yarrow, Indian Theatre: Theatre of Origin, Theatre of Freedom by Ralph Yarrow, Theatre India, No.10, 2004, pp. 188-191.

Opinions and Comments

  • ‘Ee Shatamanada Kavigalu,’ (in Kannada), Janashakthi Media, 12 January 2021 (https://janashakthimedia.com/ee-shatamanada-kavigalu/).
  • ‘A History to Fit Hindutva,’ Deccan Herald, 18 October 2020 (https://www.deccanherald.com/specials/sunday-spotlight/a-history-to-fit-hindutva-903488.html).
  • ‘Fashisattinde Kanappurangal,’ (in Malayalam), Navamalayali, 17 January 2020 (https://navamalayali.com/author/manu-v-devadevan-2/)
  • ‘The Temple was Not a Vedic Institution,’ Interview in The Hindu, 2 February 2019. (https://www.thehindu.com/society/history-and-culture/the-temple-was-not-a-vedic-institution-manu-v-devadevan/article26149218.ece)
  • ‘Acharalanghanam Enna Paramparyam,’ (in Malayalam), Navamalayali, 27 December 2018. (https://navamalayali.com/2018/12/27/tradition-of-violation-manu-v-devadevan/)
  • ‘Learning from the Kerala Floods,’ Dool News, 19 August 2018. (https://www.doolnews.com/manu-v-devadevan-writes-about-kerala-flood258.html).
  • ‘Matavum Jalakshamavum Oru Tiranjeduppum,’ (in Malayalam), Dool News, 14 May 2018. (http://www.doolnews.com/karnataka-election-manu-v-devadevan-writes258.html).
  • ‘What MM Kalburgi’s writings on the origin of the Lingayats tell us about their demands,’ Scroll.in, 28 April 2018, reprinted from South Asia @ LSE, 18 April 2018. (https://scroll.in/article/876381/what-mm-kalburgis-writings-on-the-origin-of-the-lingayats-tell-us-about-their-demands)
  • ‘Examining the Kalburgi Thesis on the Origin of the Lingayats,’ South Asia @ LSE, 18 April 2018. (http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/southasia/2018/04/18/examining-the-kalburgi-thesis-on-the-origin-of-the-lingayats/)
  • ‘In light of ill-defined character of Hinduism, any group within its fold can argue that it is not part of it,’ Interview in the Times of India, 6 April 2018. (https://blogs.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/the-interviews-blog/in-light-of-ill-defined-character-of-hinduism-any-group-within-its-fold-can-argue-that-it-is-not-part-of-it/)
  • ‘The Lingayat Sect: Why Hindu and Why Not Hindu?’ Interview in The Indian Express, 21 March 2018. (https://indianexpress.com/article/research/lingayat-karnataka-hinduism-basava-veerashaivism-4982608/)
  • ‘Lingayat Agitation is Stirring Up a Hornet’s Nest of Religious Fundamentalism,’ South Asia @ LSE, 30 November 2017. (http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/southasia/2017/11/30/lingayat-agitation-is-stirring-up-a-hornets-nest-of-religious-fundamentalism/)
  • ‘Conflicting Realities,’ Outlook (web edition), 20 March 2013. (http://www.outlookindia.com/article.aspx?284509)
  • ‘Sangha Parivar Tirichu Varunnu,’ (in Malayalam), Delhi Post, 5 January 2010. (url defunct).

Forewords and Introductions

  • ‘The Quest for Tripurasundari,’ introduction to H.S. Shivaprakash’s English translation of the Saundaryalahari, forthcoming.
  • ‘Gajina Maiya Saundarya,’ (in Kannada), Foreword to Arif Raja’s collection of poems, Ede Halina Pali, Sangaatha Pusthaka, Rajoor, forthcoming.
  • ‘Bhavanirmitiyoo Roopanirmitiyoo,’ (in Kannada), Foreword to T.S. Goravar’s collection of prose-poems, Gayagondive Tuti Ninnavv Pada Hadi, Sangaatha Pushtaka, Rajoor, 2020.
  • ‘Will the Blue-Throated Bird Descend Again,’ Foreword to H.S. Shivaprakash, The Word in the World: Essays and Lectures on Indian Literature and Aesthetics, edited by Kamalakar Bhat, Manipal University Press, Manipal, 2019.
  • ‘Adondu Ayata Galige,’ (In Kannada), critical introduction to Keshava Malagi’s Kannada novel, Angada Dhare, Abhinava, Bangalore, 2006, p. 9-26.

Obituaries

  • ‘The Many Lives of Oscar Fernandes,’ The Wire, 14 September 2021. (https://thewire.in/politics/the-many-lives-of-oscar-fernandes)
  • ‘Iravatam Mahadevan,’(in Kannada), Itihasa Darpana, No. 39, 2019, pp. 71-74. (ISSN: 2321-3590).
  • ‘The Legacy of Iravatham Mahadevan,’ The Wire, 29 November 2018. (https://thewire.in/culture/the-legacy-of-iravatham-mahadevan).

Journals Edited

  • Indian Theatre Journal, Book Review Editor since February 2019.
  • Indian History, Member, Editorial Board, 2014-2017. (ISSN: 2348-2850).
  • Itihasa Darpana, Vol. 25, 2015, (in Kannada, Guest editor of a special issue on the documents of Haider Ali and Tipu Sultan). (ISSN: 2321-3590).
  • Abhinava Chaturmasika, No. 33-34, 2004-05 (in Kannada, Guest editor of a special issue of Abhinava’s four-monthly literary journal on contemporary poetry in Malayalam, entitled Navilata Neenadu He Mana: Malayalam Kavitegalu).

INVITED TALKS

  • ‘The Evolution of Kannada as a Vernacular Language,’ Invited webinar lecture, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT Delhi, 29 March 2022.
  • ‘When Allama Prabhu Rejected Bhakti,’ Invited webinar lecture, Department of History, University of Delhi, 23 February 2022.
  • ‘Shakambhari: Em. Ke. Dhavalikar Avara Vicharagalu,’ (in Kannada), Invited lecture at the National Webinar Series, Hennudevaru, Bhandara Prakashana, Maski, 14 October 2021.
  • ‘Bhakti Sampradayagala Adhyayanada Nelegalu,’ (in Kannada), Invited lecture at the International Lecture Series, Bhakti: Bahu Abhivyakti, Centre of Excellence for Studies in Classical Kannada, Central Institute of Indian Languages, Mysore, 2 August 2021 to 1 October 2021 (presented on 1 October 2021).
  • ‘M.G.S. Narayanan, the Keralolpatti and the Roots of Military Fiscalism in Kerala,’ Invited lecture at the Three-Day Webinar on MGS @ 90, Bookart Kozhikode LFE 2021, Kozhikode, 11-13 September 2021 (presented on 12 September 2021).
  • ‘Allama Prabhu’s Critique of Bhakti,’ Invited lecture at the National Webinar Series on Perspectives on Gender, Religion and Craftsmen in Pre-Colonial India in honour of Prof Vijaya Ramaswamy, 27 August 2021.
  • ‘Literary Conventions in Premodern Karnataka,’ Invited lecture at the American Institute for Indian Studies, Gurgaon, 2 August 2021.
  • ‘The Lakshmi Purana of Balaramadasa and Some Reflections on Alienation,’ Invited lecture, Gangadhar Meher University, Sambalpur, Webinar Series on Configuring Vernacular Regions and Belongingness: Historical Perspectives, 26 July 2021.
  • ‘Malenadina Itihasada Chalaka Shaktigalu,’ (in Kannada), K.V. Subbanna Memorial Lecture, Ninasam, Heggodu, 16 July 2021.
  • ‘Kavyabhasha: Padinaram Noottandinu Mumbum Sheshavum,’ (in Malayalam), Invited lecture at the Conference on Mamipravalam: Sahityam, Charitram, Samskaram, Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit, Kalady, 2-5 July 2021 (presented on 5 July 2021).
  • ‘Karshika Bandhangalum Varamohiyude Verukalum,’ (in Malayalam), Invited webinar lecture, Kerala Council for Historical Research, Thiruvananthapuram, 23 April 2021.
  • ‘Malgudiyiloode, Indyan Madhyavargatte Tedi,’ (in Malayalam), Invited webinar lecture, Institute for Social and Ecological Studies, 31 October 2020.
  • ‘The Time of Rasa and the Time of Bhava: Kannada Word-scape in Transition, ca. 900-1200 CE,’ Invited lecture, Department of History, University of Hyderabad Webinar Series No. 11, 3 September 2020.
  • ‘The Clamour of Innocence: In Memory of M.M. Kalburgi,’ Invited webinar lecture, Bangalore International Centre, 30 August 2020.
  • ‘The Evolution of Kannada as a Vernacular Language,’ Invited webinar lecture, Ahmedabad University, Ahmedabad, 20 March 2020.
  • ‘Hindumatam,’ (in Malayalam), Invited lecture, E.M.S. Academy, Thiruvananthapuram, 15 July 2018.
  • ‘Manusmriti,’ (in Malayalam), Invited lecture, E.M.S. Academy, Thiruvananthapuram, 14 July 2018.
  • ‘From the Womb of Dearth: The Origin of the State in South India,’ Public Lecture, Archive India Institute, Bangalore, 14 January 2013.
  • ‘Aspects of Labour in Indian Temple Architecture,’ Foundation Lecture, Archive India Institute, Bangalore, 9 November 2011.

CONFERENCE PAPERS

  • ‘The Life and Times of Narayana Guru: Preliminary Thoughts on His Changing World-View,’ Webinar Conference, Critique and Constructions: Contemporary Writings on Histories of Keralam (In Honour of Dr. A. Paslithil and Dr. M.T. Narayanan on their retirement), 24 February to 13 March 2021 (presented on 5 March 2021).
  • ‘Sanskrit in Indian Epigraphy,’ Keynote addressed to be delivered in the session of Epigraphy at the conference on Sanskrit in Medieval India: Retrieving Lost Traditions, Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit, Kalady, 10-12 December 2019 (presented on 11 December).
  • ‘From Pashyema Sharadah Shatam to Kalaya Tasmai Namah: The Early Life of Time as an Idea’ at the Pandit Subbarama Pattar Endowment National Conference on New Horizons of Indological Research, Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit, Kalady, 10-12 July 2019 (presented on 12 July).
  • ‘The Language Structure of Sixteenth Century Kannada Poetry’, at the conference, Sense, Tone, and Topic in Early-Modern South Indian Prabandhas and Padams in the European Research Council Project, The New Ecology of Expressive Modes in Early Modern South India, Sixteenth to Eighteenth Century, Hebrew University, Jerusalem, 25-27 June 2019 (presented on 26 June).
  • ‘Religious Encounters in the Context of Changing Systems of Knowledge’, at the conference on “Conversion” Religions and Multi-Religious Entanglements in South Asia (8th to 19th c.): Contexts and Perspectives, CNRS Paris, 25 April 2019.
  • ‘Causality and Historical Consciousness in the Keralolpatti’, at the conference of the UGC-ISF Project, The Sixteenth-Century Renaissance in South India, Tirur, 5 August 2017.
  • ‘Highways, Crossroads and Sravanabelagola’s Rise to Prominence,’ at the 74th Session of the Indian History Congress, held at Ravenshaw University, Cuttack, 28-30 December 2014.

CONFERENCES AND MEETINGS ATTENDED

  • Online conversation with E.V. Ramakrishnan and Sukrita Paul Kumar on ‘Multilingualism and Diversity in Modern Indian Literature: Issues and Problematics,’ Kalinga Literary Festival Bhasha Utsav, 17 March 2022.
  • Discussant in ‘When Transnational Imagination Deconstructs the Novel Form: Language in Search of Space,’ lecture delivered by E.V. Ramakrishnan, Confluences 2022, 11th lecture of I-SHORE, organized jointly with St. Brechmans College, Changanassery, 29 January 2022.
  • Review Meeting of the ICSSR Project, Framing Inter-Regional Comparisons: Historical Demarcations and Developmental Transitions in South Asia, 1905-1960, Institute for Economic Growth, New Delhi, 29 April 2019.
  • Review Meeting of the conference on “Conversion” Religions and Multi-Religious Entanglements in South Asia (8th to 19th c.): Contexts and Perspectives, CNRS Paris, 26 April 2019.
  • Review Meeting of the ICSSR Project, Framing Inter-Regional Comparisons: Historical Demarcations and Developmental Transitions in South Asia, 1905-1960, Department of History, Savitribai Phule Pune University, 12 January 2019.
  • 2012 Inter-Congress of the International Union of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences (IUAES) on “Children and Youth in a Changing World”, held at the Kalinga Institute of Social Sciences, Bhubaneswar, 26-30 November 2012.

CONFERENCES ORGANIZED

  • A two-day International Conference organised in Tirur, Kerala, on 5 and 6 August 2018 as part of the joint Indo-Israel research project, ‘The Sixteenth-Century Renaissance in South India.’
  • ‘Violence in Indian History’ a one-day International Conference organised in New Delhi on 1 November 2013 on behalf of the Archive India Institute, Bangalore.
  • ‘Kingship in Indian History’ a one-day International Conference organised in New Delhi on 2 November 2012 on behalf of the Archive India Institute, Bangalore.

MEMBERSHIP OF PROFESSIONAL BODIES

  • Formerly Fellow, Royal Asiatic Society of Great Britain and Ireland
  • Formerly Secretary, Archive India Institute, Bangalore
  • Formerly Member, Indian History Congress
  • Executive Member, Institute for Social Science, Humanities and Oceanic Research (I-SHOR), Kozhikiode
.