Thinking Through 'Region'

Workshop Organised in collaboration with

Centre for Local Cultures, Kuvempu University

July 15-16, 2005

Kuvempu University Campus
Shankarghatta Shimoga District Karnataka

The workshop proposes to scrutinize the concept of 'region' that in explicit as well as implicit ways frame academic practices in the humanities and social sciences.

(Supported by The Ford Foundation, New Delhi)

At a time when unease with Region(al) Studies models finds frequent articulation, we need to begin investigating the stakes in the continuing deployment of notions of 'region' in disciplines from anthropology/sociology and economics to literary studies, political science and history to folklore and even emerging fields such as cultural studies.

Widespread criticism of research models and even research institutions structured around regions like 'South Asia' for example seem to be based on: The problem with empirically defining what exactly the term refers to; The historical problem of projecting contemporary political categories onto an understanding of the past; The problem of dissolving the specificity of community, state or nation through a focus on an apparently 'larger' category like region.

Responses to these criticisms have often taken the form of renaming the region (often taking its geography as given), historicizing its emergence, or refocussing on 'smaller' categories.

The workshop will attempt to grapple with 'region' as a key category structuring humanities and social science research in India by raising some questions and speculating on directions for future research. The workshop hopes to bring together researchers from various disciplines with theoretical stakes in the 'region' question.

Speakers include:
Arnab Dey ( St. Stephen's College, Delhi)
Ashish Rajadhyaksha (CSCS, Bangalore)
A.R. Venkatachalapathy (MIDS, Chennai)
J Devika (CDS, Trivandrum)
Praveena Kodoth (CDS, Trivandrum)
Rajaram Hegde (Kuvempu University, Shimoga)
Rochelle Pinto (CSCS, Bangalore)
S.V. Srinivas (CSCS, Bangalore)
Shivarama Padikkal (HCU, Hyderabad)
Udayakumar (CSSSC, Kolkata)
Udayon Misra (Dibrugarh University, Dibrugarh)
Pradeep Jegannathan (ICES, Colombo)
Ravikant (SARAI, Delhi)
Valerian Rodrigues (JNU, New Delhi)

Conference Organisers:

Dr. Sanghamitra Misra
Dr. Tejaswini Niranjana

For further information contact sanghamitra@cscsban.org