Center for the Advanced Study of India

Wide Lens: Nandita Das on Courage in Art and Being an “Accidental” Actor and Filmmaker
https://casi.sas.upenn.edu/iit/wide-lens-rohan-venkat-nandita-das

Nandita Das insists she stumbled into cinema. “It was definitely accidental, in the sense that I had no aspiration of being an actor. I always enjoyed the performing arts, but I never thought of it as a full-time professional career.” Das came from the world of street theatre & social work, where she focused on improving the lives of women & children in slums & rural schools. But an early acting role catapulted Das to fame and a lifelong attachment to cinema, including three celebrated directorial ventures.

Three decades after her first film, with acting credits in more than 40 films across 10 different languages and having written and directed three movies, Das says her relationship with the film industry is still complicated.

“The film industry largely thinks of me as a social activist. The NGO world, from where I came, often thinks of me as a film person,” Das said. “I don’t think they made too much space for me in the [film] industry, but not in a bad way. They just didn’t think I was fully part of the industry and that was a fact.”

CASI Managing Editor Rohan Venkat spoke to Das about her “accidental” entry into cinema, whether she feels the industry has made more space for her over the decades, where courage fits into art, and what she is working on next.

Now available in HINDI & BANGLA:

"Nehru at Bandung: Notes from a Conference Slip Pad" by Vineet Thakur (Leiden University)

HINDI: https://casi.sas.upenn.edu/hindi/iit/vineet-thakur
BANGLA: https://casi.sas.upenn.edu/bangla/iit/vineet-thakur

"Nehru at Bandung: Notes from a Conference Slip Pad"
by Vineet Thakur (Leiden University)
https://casi.sas.upenn.edu/iit/vineet-thakur

In this issue of India in Transition, Vineet Thakur turns to an unusual historical artifact to reveal, among other things, Jawaharlal Nehru's unheralded talent for doodling.

Now available in HINDI & BANGLA

"'AI is Like a Child': The Dangers of an Oversimplified Narrative" by Anubha Singh (Vassar College)

HINDI: https://casi.sas.upenn.edu/hindi/iit/anubha-singh
BANGLA: https://casi.sas.upenn.edu/bangla/iit/anubha-singh

"'AI is Like a Child': The Dangers of an Oversimplified Narrative"
Anubha Singh (Vassar College)
https://casi.sas.upenn.edu/iit/anubha-singh

In this issue of India in Transition, Anubha Singh (Vassar College) examines the dangers of popular "AI is like a child" metaphor and how it oversimplifies AI systems by obscuring corporate control, labor exploitation, and political accountability.

Now available in HINDI & BANGLA:

"CASI Reading List: The Rise of Hindu Nationalism and the BJP"
Tariq Thachil & Rohan Venkat

HINDI: https://casi.sas.upenn.edu/hindi/iit/casi-reading-list-rohan-venkat-tariq-thachil
BANGLA: https://casi.sas.upenn.edu/bangla/iit/casi-reading-list-rohan-venkat-tariq-thachil

CASI Reading List: The Rise of Hindu Nationalism and the BJP
https://casi.sas.upenn.edu/iit/casi-reading-list-rohan-venkat-tariq-thachil

Tariq Thachil & Rohan Venkat

May 2026 marks 12 years in office for Indian PM Narendra Modi. Given the country's median age of 29, roughly half of all Indians have never known a different national leader as adults. Modi’s landmark 2014 victory gave India its very first Hindu nationalist majority government.

Today the BJP stands as the pole around which Indian politics is arrayed. Once described as a party that would find it hard to grow beyond its upper-caste base, the BJP now draws votes from every corner of the country and supporters from across castes, communities, and religions.

The underlying ideology that powers the BJP–Hindutva–and the party’s parent organization, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, is the most influential socio-political force in the country—and by dint of India’s sheer scale, one of the most important phenomena in global politics.

What turned the BJP and the RSS into social and political behemoths? How did a movement known for polarizing rhetoric and the instrumentalization of violence catapult to power? And how should we understand Modi’s individual role within the broader story of Hindu nationalism?

CASI Managing Editor Rohan Venkat spoke to Thachil about the books and papers he recommends and asked him about his own book as well as non-Indian scholarship that might offer a useful perspective on the success of Hindu nationalism.

Now Available in HINDI & BANGLA:

"Does India Have Too Many Doctors?"
In this issue of India in Transition, CASI Postdoctoral Research Fellow Kiran Kumbhar argues that India no longer suffers from a shortage of doctors, and that for future health policy to be meaningful, this new reality must be taken seriously by policymakers and experts.

HINDI: https://casi.sas.upenn.edu/hindi/iit/kiran-kumbhar
BANGLA: https://casi.sas.upenn.edu/bangla/iit/kiran-kumbhar

Don't miss our FINAL Spring 2026 seminar on April 23rd!
Read more: https://casi.sas.upenn.edu/events/thomas-f-tartaron

Please meet CASI Spring 2026 Visiting Fellow, Nityanand Jayaraman and Non-Resident Scholar, Karen Coelho!

Center for the Advanced Study of India (CASI) 3 likes. "Meet CASI Spring 2026 Visiting Fellow, Nityanand Jayaraman & Non-Resident Scholar, Karen Coelho"