Join us for a lecture by Sociologist, Prof. Sanjay Srivastava.
How do young people in Kerala from Dalit and other non-upper caste backgrounds imagine the politics of caste at a time new consumer cultures and complex aspirations regarding social mobility? The Centre for Research, Education and Social transformation (CREST) is a state funded organisation that trains Dalit and other marginalised youth in a variety of soft skills to enable them to find jobs in the private sector. The students stay at CREST is also a period of reflection about the meaning and experience of caste and Dalit identity. However, this doesnt necessarily translate into any straightforward caste consciousness and a politics of the oppressed. What is the contemporary Dalit subject in a state that is frequently characterised as a casteless one? And, how does one understand the process of transformation that a training in soft skills is intended to produce?
About the Speaker
Sanjay Srivastava is Professor of Sociology at the Institute of Economic Growth, Delhi. His publications include Constructing Post-colonial India: National Character and the Doon School (Routledge, 1998); Passionate Modernity, Sexuality, Class and Consumption in India (Routledge, 2007); Sexuality Studies (OUP, 2013); Entangled Urbanism: Slum, Gated Community and Shopping Mall in Delhi and Gurgaon (OUP, 2015); and Critical Theme in Indian Sociology (SAGE, 2019, co-editor). His co-edited volume, (Hi)stories of Desire: Sexualities and Culture in Modern India is forthcoming with Cambridge University Press. Prof. Srivastava's current research focuses on urban cultures and changing identities in the context of new forms of work. In February 2020, he will take up the position of British Academy Global Professor at University College London.
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Event made possible with the support of the Sarah Kailath Chair of India Studies
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The event is FREE and OPEN to the public.
