Asian Studies Centre

Oxford University
Asian Studies Centre

The Asian Studies Centre was founded in 1982 at St Antony's College and is primarily a co-ordinating organisation which exists to bring together specialists from a wide variety of different disciplines. Geographically, the Centre predominantly covers South, Southeast and East Asia. The Asian Studies Centre works closely with scholars in the Oriental Institute, the Oxford China Centre, the Contemporary South Asian Studies Programme and the Nissan Institute of Japanese Studies (in premises at St Antony's). The Asian Studies Centre is host to the Taiwan Studies Programme, Modern Burmese Studies Programme, the South Asian History Seminar Series and the Southeast Asian Studies Seminar Series.

  1. DEC 4

    Interview with Joe Cribb on the British Museum coin collection by Shreya Gupta

    This interview discusses Joe's interest and approach in studying and curating coins, as well as the research being undertaken on the British Museum's South Asian coin collection. In this interview Joe talks about his interest in Asian numismatics and his initial work at the British Museum. He discusses the idea and curation of the British Museum's HSBC Money gallery. We discuss his collaboration projects with scholars from South Asia and the access that different audiences have to these collections.

    1h 26m

  2. DEC 4

    The Trial that Shook Britain: How a Court Martial Hastened Acceptance of Indian Independence

    Book talk with Ashis Ray The Indian National Army (INA) trials of 1945–46 have generally been given short shrift by historians in their cataloguing of the Indian freedom movement. This book examines to what extent the trials had an impact on the final phase of India’s quest for independence. In so doing, it unveils that, while the Indian National Congress’s extended odyssey to win independence was essentially about a passive push-back, at a critical juncture of its campaign to extinguish British colonialism in India, it applauded and capitalised on the INA’s use of force. The central, explosive narrative is about Britain holding a court martial of three officers of the INA – Shah Nawaz Khan, Prem Sahgal and Gurbaksh Dhillon – convicting them, before a dramatic turn in events. The material unearthed by the book throws new light on a decisive juncture leading to the transfer of power in India. It will be indispensable for researchers interested in South Asia, especially the Indian freedom movement. It will be invaluable for students of history, colonialism, military studies, politics in pre-Partition India and law. Ashis Ray has been a foreign correspondent since 1977, broadcasting on BBC, CNN and ITN and writing for Ananda Bazar Group, The Times of India, The Tribune, The Hindu, Hindustan Times, The Guardian, The Observer, The Times, Financial Times and Nikkei Asia, among other publications. He was CNN’s founding South Asia bureau chief before becoming the network’s editor-at-large. He has been elected president of Indian Journalists’ Association (Europe) for several terms. In 1982, the Commonwealth Institute selected him among 10 ‘eminent Indians’ in Britain. In 1995, he was conferred a National Press Award in India. He was made an academic visitor by St Antony’s College, Oxford for 2021–22. He intends to continue in academia. The Trial that Shook Britain is his fourth book.

    42 min

  3. AUG 23

    Dr Shailendra Bhandare on the Ashmolean Museum’s South Asian coin collections

    Shreya Gupta interviews Dr Shailendra Bhandare, Curator of South Asian and Far-eastern Coins and Paper Money at the Ashmolean Museum Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 UK: England & Wales; http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/uk/

    41 min

  4. AUG 20

    Jan Lingen, President of the Royal Dutch Numismatic Society, on collecting South Asian Coins

    Shreya Gupta interviews Indian coin expert Jan Lingen on his collection. In this interview Jan Lingen recounts his story of coming to India in his architectural role and developing an interest in Indian coins and studying Indian languages. He talks about the people he met with and worked with on his coin collecting journey and his continuing work with Indian coins in the Netherlands. Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 UK: England & Wales; http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/uk/

    52 min

  5. JUL 31

    Interview with Robert Bracey on South Asian Coin Collections in the British Museum by Shreya Gupta

    This interview discusses the afterlives of coin collections from South Asia held in UK museums today. In this interview, Robert Bracey speaks about his past and ongoing work at the British Museum as the current Curator of Asian Numismatics. He talks about some of the research being conducted on the museum’s South Asian coins, particularly on the Kushan coin collection. The speakers discuss the services provided for visitors and scholars to the British Museum including the Study Room and Collections Online, and attempt to understand the lives of these coins inside the British Museum after they have made their journey from South Asia to the UK. Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 UK: England & Wales; http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/uk/

    1h 27m

  6. JUL 31

    Interview with Dr Paul Stevens on collecting Indian coins by Shreya Gupta

    This interview discusses Paul Steven’s journey of collecting and researching Indian coins In this interview Dr Paul Stevens recounts his story of getting interested in collecting Indian coins and his journey of building his collection. He talks about the books he has authored, 'The Coins of the English East India Company: Presidency Series - A Catalogue and Pricelist' (Spink, 2017), and with Randy Weir, 'The Uniform Coinage of India 1835 to 1947: A Catalogue and Pricelist' (Spink, 2012). Finally, he discusses his idea and motivation and current work in building an online database of Indian coins, http://psindiancoins.com Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 UK: England & Wales; http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/uk/

    38 min

  7. 10/26/2023

    Pakistan & India: Common Origins, Divergent Trajectories

    Pervez Hoodbhoy seminar given as part of the Modern South Asian Seminar series in October 2023 What had been a relatively small gap in 1947 between Pakistan and India is turning into an ever widening chasm. Given the common origins of these two countries what essential differences led to the present situation? Or were the trajectories predetermined? After discussing historical similarities and differences, I will explore whether Pakistan can now choose a different future for itself. Pervez Hoodbhoy taught physics at Quaid-e-Azam University in Islamabad (1973–2021) as well as other Pakistani universities for nearly five decades. He was visiting professor at MIT, Carnegie Mellon University, and the University of Maryland, and a post-doctoral research fellow at the University of Washington. His book “Islam and Science – Religious Orthodoxy and the Battle for Rationality” was translated into 8 languages.

    31 min

  8. 06/16/2023

    Along The Path To Gandhi's Neighbor

    Ajay Skaria - University of Minnesota, speaks at the Oxford South Asian Intellectual History Seminar on 1 May 2023. The figures of the neighbor and friend are ubiquitous in Gandhi’s writings. While he himself assumes he is only reaffirming old figures, something truly radical happens in his writings (as in those of his sharpest critic, Ambedkar). Both write at a time when a modern commandment, so to speak, exemplified in the categorical imperative, is displacing the Biblical and other analogous commandments. It is in order to criticize this new commandment that both affirm instead old commandments around neighbor and friend. But in their very questioning, they also borrow from the new commandment a key element—the injunction to equality. By doing so, they inaugurate a new politics—a politics that could be described as democratic neighborliness or political friendship. This talk will trace the conceptual prehistory of this new politics. Ajay Skaria is Professor in the Department of History and Institute for Global Studies at the University of Minnesota. Since the 2000s, his research interests have included twentieth century Indian intellectual history, modern caste politics, and postcolonial theory. In addition to articles in these fields, he is the author of Hybrid Histories: Forests, Frontiers and Wildness in Western India (1999) and Unconditional Equality: Gandhi’s Religion of Resistance (2016). He was a member of the Subaltern Studies editorial collective, and coedited Subaltern Studies Vol XII: Muslims, Dalits and the Fabrications of History (2005). Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 UK: England & Wales; http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.0/uk/

    51 min
See All (220)

Ratings & Reviews

4.2
out of 5
5 Ratings

About

The Asian Studies Centre was founded in 1982 at St Antony's College and is primarily a co-ordinating organisation which exists to bring together specialists from a wide variety of different disciplines. Geographically, the Centre predominantly covers South, Southeast and East Asia. The Asian Studies Centre works closely with scholars in the Oriental Institute, the Oxford China Centre, the Contemporary South Asian Studies Programme and the Nissan Institute of Japanese Studies (in premises at St Antony's). The Asian Studies Centre is host to the Taiwan Studies Programme, Modern Burmese Studies Programme, the South Asian History Seminar Series and the Southeast Asian Studies Seminar Series.

Information

  • Creator
    Oxford University
  • Years Active
    2014 - 2024
  • Episodes
    220
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © Oxford University
  • Show Website
    Asian Studies Centre

More From Oxford University

To listen to explicit episodes, sign in.

Stay up to date with this show

Sign in or sign up to follow shows, save episodes, and get the latest updates.
Select a country or region

Africa, Middle East, and India

Asia Pacific

Europe

Latin America and the Caribbean

The United States and Canada