A South Asia Guest Section at New Mandala

Hosted by New Mandala, Near West offers a series of perspectives from South Asian scholarship generated by members and affiliates of ANU’s South Asia Research Institute (SARI). Near West responds to New Mandala’s Southeast Asian locus, looking at this region’s immediate western neighbourhood.

Established in 2012, SARI builds on a rich legacy of research on South Asian subjects across the humanities and social sciences at ANU. Encompassing work on history, literature, public policy, languages, economics, visual culture and gender issues, SARI’s membership continues to produce multidisciplinary research on South Asia (Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka). Examining the region’s rich past, complex present, and global impact, Near West aims to illuminate the importance of South Asia as reflected in current work by SARI members and affiliates. As India gears up for General Elections (April/May 2019), Near West will deliver timely and critical updates on issues that matter for the South Asian region, and for the world.

Yoga, magic, and politics

Contemporary Indian fiction shows a different awareness regarding the politics of spirituality.

Performing pluralism: why the BJP wants Muslim friends

In our guest series on South Asia, a look at how the BJP tries to detoxify its Hindu nationalist image with calculated appeals to select Muslim groups.

Death by sewage: clean-ups, caste and contracts in India

A lasting, cleaner India depends on undermining the enduring belief that removal of tainted things is the responsibility of people who are born to the task.

Women at the Water’s Edge: lives of women in a climate changed world

In India's Sundarbans, climate change is fundamentally transforming the everyday lives of women living in remote chars, or river islands.

Welcoming ‘Near West’ to New Mandala

New Mandala will be home to a South Asia guest section in the lead up to India's general elections.