Critically Informing the AHRC's Strategic Vision for Research in India

A senior researcher will map the political and policy landscape that shapes arts and humanities research in India, then deliver a concrete strategy for how the AHRC should navigate it over the next five years. This matters because UK-India research partnerships in the arts and humanities are currently navigating a rapidly shifting terrain—changes in Indian government priorities, university structures, and funding mechanisms that are poorly understood by UK funders. Without a clear map of this terrain, the AHRC risks investing in partnerships that are misaligned with local realities or missing emerging opportunities altogether. If this fellowship succeeds, the AHRC will have a practical, evidence-based plan for its 2023–2028 strategy in India. That could mean more effective joint research programmes, stronger institutional links between UK and Indian universities, and funding that reaches the right scholars and projects. The impact here is on the infrastructure of international research collaboration itself—the quiet system of grants, partnerships, and policy decisions that determines which cross-border projects get supported and which do not. For the public, this could eventually mean richer cultural exchange and more diverse perspectives in the arts and humanities research that shapes museums, archives, and public discourse.