AIIS Oral History Podcasts
As a part of the 60th Anniversary celebration of the American Institute of Indian Studies, colleagues past and present join us in conversation to explore the unique history and reach of AIIS over the years.
Listen on our website or through your favorite podcast provider.
Sumathi Ramaswamy and Ralph W. Nicholas on History, Founding, and Reach of AIIS
In this inaugural episode of our 60th anniversary series, current AIIS President and James B. Duke Professor of History at Duke University, Dr. Sumathi Ramaswamy, interviews former AIIS president and William Rainey Harper Professor Emeritus of Anthropology and of Social Sciences at the University of Chicago, Ralph W. Nicholas.
60th Anniversary Series – Philip Lutgendorf and Sara Simons on AIIS and Family, Memories, and Support
In this episode of our 60th anniversary series, former AIIS President and Professor Emeritus in the Department of Asian and Slavic Languages and Literature at the University of Iowa, Dr. Philip Lutgendorf, interviews Sara Simons of Philadelphia, former Career Advisor in the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, as well as former AIIS fellow and current benefactor.
60th Anniversary Series – Sandria Freitag and Thomas Metcalf on fellowships, friendships, and AIIS
In this episode of our 60th anniversary series, Sandria Freitag, Associate Teaching Professor in the Department of History at NC State University and leader of the CAORC-AIIS faculty development seminars, interviews Thomas Metcalf, Emeritus Professor of History and Sarah Kailath Professor of Indian Studies at the University of California, Berkeley and former AIIS Senior fellow and Chair of the Board of Trustees.
A. N. Singh and Rakesh Ranjan on the history of the AIIS Hindi program and Hindi pedagogy
In this episode of our 60th anniversary series, Dr. A. N. Singh, AIIS Hindi program head, interviews Dr. Rakesh Ranjan, Senior Lecturer and Language Coordinator at Columbia University and former AIIS Hindi Language Program Director and current AIIS Language Committee member. In their interview, they discuss the early days of the Hindi language program at AIIS and its growth, the unique format and characteristics of the AIIS language programs, and current challenges and future directions of Hindi language learning. English transcript (pdf).
60th Anniversary Series – Robert P. Goldman on AIIS, Sanskrit Pedagogy, and Emerging Trends in Sanskrit Research
In this episode of our 60th anniversary series, we have the unique honor of speaking to a scholar who has been part of the foundational landscape of Sanskrit scholarship and education in the United States, Robert Goldman, Professor of the Graduate School and Catherine and William L. Magistretti Distinguished Professor of Sanskrit Emeritus at the University of California Berkeley. Besides helping to shape Sanskrit pedagogy in the US and publishing influential translations of a wide variety of Sanskrit literary works, Dr. Goldman has also been very active with AIIS – first as a junior and senior fellow, then a trustee and vice president of the institute.
Histories of the AIIS Center for Arts & Archeology
Memoirs of Days at the American Academy of Banaras (1966-1967)
By Pratapaditya Pal
The Memoir of the renowned art historian Dr. Pratapaditya Pal is a recollection of the times he joined his first job at the newly founded American Academy of Banaras (AAB) in Varanasi as a Senior Research Associate. Pal gives a lively account of his brief stay in Varanasi (Banaras) in 1965, his exchange with the city, its people and the culture, interaction with the colleagues at the new center and the efforts this founding team of researchers, photographers, archivists, and administrators made to build the visual archives and library resources from scratch.
The place of M.A. Dhaky within the Historiography of Indian Temple Architecture
By Shivaji Panikkar