{"id":1289,"date":"2026-06-05T08:30:00","date_gmt":"2026-06-05T07:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.exeter.ac.uk\/hasspgrblog\/?p=1289"},"modified":"2026-05-28T09:59:46","modified_gmt":"2026-05-28T08:59:46","slug":"south-asia-conference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.exeter.ac.uk\/hasspgrblog\/2026\/06\/05\/south-asia-conference\/","title":{"rendered":"Behind the scenes at a PGR conference"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Featured image: Dr Aparna Mahiyaria, who chaired the panel on Performance, with Bhavana Ram Mohan, a first-year PhD researcher in Drama.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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On Friday 8 May, the Exeter South Asia Centre hosted the 2026 PGR-ECR conference. We sit down with two of the team to find out what it was like to curate such an opportunity as a PGR.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hello! Thanks so much for taking time to talk to Slipway<\/em>. Let\u2019s start by hearing a little about you and your research projects.<\/strong>
Hi, I\u2019m Karishma<\/strong>, a first-year PhD researcher and a book enthusiast! My life and work revolve around literature and art, and the production and consumption of books. At different times in the last five years, I have edited fiction and non-fiction books, worked for a magazine of long-form investigative journalism, and written about South Asian art histories. I read English Literature at the University of Delhi and Publishing Studies at the University of Stirling. My research, which is funded by the AHRC, challenges British and American multinational publishers\u2019 monolithic construction of the literary market in South Asia and investigates India\u2019s hegemonic control over literary production in the region. Through my research, I aim to provide a groundbreaking history of reading, writing, and publishing books in Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and India.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And I\u2019m Surangama<\/strong>, a first-year PhD scholar at the Department of Communications, Drama and Film, University of Exeter. I graduated with Distinction from Goldsmiths, University of London from where I obtained my second master’s degree, in Media and Communications. My research looks at developing an alternative paradigm of studying the Hindu core concept of\u00a0darshan<\/em>, or the act of \u2018seeing\u2019 god, in Indian film scholarship via the stardom of the 1950s Bengali matinee idol, Uttam Kumar.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Conferences are a vital part of PGR life, but many students don\u2019t realise what it takes to make them happen. Why did you become involved in running a PGR-ECR conference for the South Asia Centre?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Karishma<\/em><\/strong> For a researcher working on South Asia, the Centre is a very exciting place to be because of the sheer range of research interests, projects, events, and publications associated with it. It\u2019s also a very supportive research community. So, when the question of becoming a PGR representative and organising a conference at the Centre arose, I was happy to volunteer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Surangama<\/em><\/strong> This was a great opportunity to meet people, make friends, network, and learn about the diverse range of research happening across departments. It facilitated a respectful, democratic space for a creative exchange of ideas, which was very stimulating at the PhD level.
<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What was the theme of the conference? Did it work well to include both PGRs and ECRs?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Surangama<\/em><\/strong><\/strong> The conference focused on academic research being done within the South Asian region. It included both PGRs and ECRs and we managed to make it a collegial event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Karishma<\/em><\/strong> At the end of the day, PhD researchers are in this liminal space between students and faculty. While ECRs, more than anyone, understand the pressures and precarity of a PhD most clearly. Therefore, an ECR-PGRs conference was the perfect occasion to initiate networks between these two groups.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What were the most challenging aspects of planning and delivering the conference?
<\/strong>
Karishma<\/em><\/strong><\/strong> Planning a keynote address and a workshop that will resonate with our community of researchers was also stressful, but we had plenty of help and eventually hosted two excellent researchers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Surangama<\/em><\/strong><\/strong> The operational side of things such as finding a venue and booking transportation for our keynote speaker proved somewhat challenging. However, they were dealt with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>
\n

The day featured a keynote address from <\/em>Dr Arun Kumar<\/em><\/a> (Nottingham) and a \u2018PhD journeys\u2019 workshop with <\/em>Dr Zehra Kazmi<\/em><\/a> (St Andrews).<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dr Arun Kumar, Assistant Professor in History at the University of Nottingham, delivers the keynote address based on his upcoming monograph,\u00a0The Silent Rebellion: Working-Class Dreams, Education and Welfare Capitalism<\/em>.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

What will you remember as your proudest moment of the day?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Surangama<\/em><\/strong><\/strong> I was one of the presenters. This was my first paper as a research scholar at an interdisciplinary conference within the UK HE environment. The presentation went well, and I received a lot of positive feedback, both about my presentation style and my research. This was deeply validating and certainly made me feel proud.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Karishma<\/em><\/strong> It was my first presentation as well and I had so much fun talking about my research to a room full of interesting thinkers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Would you recommend involvement in conferences to other PGRs?<\/strong>
Karishma<\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/strong> Yes, absolutely. For great ideas and conversations, for building communities of support and shared interests, and for talking passionately about your research and reminding yourself of why you are pursuing a PhD in the first place!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Surangama<\/em><\/strong><\/em><\/strong> Absolutely! Involvement in conferences enables an engagement with high quality research happening across subjects and disciplines. It also increases visibility at the ground level and can boost one\u2019s confidence as a presenter. It\u2019s certainly a learning experience for researchers looking for a foothold in academia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The conference was organised by Krishnan Padinjassery, a third-year PhD researcher in Film Studies at Exeter, along with Surangama and Karishma. For more advice about how to make the most of a conference, check out this interview<\/a> with PGR Aileen Kimuhu and Professor Stacey Hynd.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"\"<\/figure>
\n

Surangama Guha is a doctoral scholar in Film at the University of Exeter. She is a double masters in Sociology and Media and Communications. She has been an Assistant Professor of Sociology in one of the most prestigious women’s colleges in India and has been published in peer-reviewed journals that publish researchers who work at the intersection of Sociology, Visual and Cultural Studies and South Asian Studies. Her work attempts to bring together Indian and Western paradigms of thought while studying the dialogue between different media texts in constructing the myth of the star.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>
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Karishma Koshal<\/a> is a first-year PhD researcher in English and Creative Writing. Her research, which is funded by the AHRC, investigates the multinational publishing industry in South Asia.\u00a0<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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