Ramya Sreenivasan

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Ramya Sreenivasan
Nationality (legal) Indian
Alma mater University of Delhi, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Awards Ananda Kentish Coomaraswamy Prize (2009)
Scientific career
FieldsEnglish, Early modern Indian history
InstitutionsUniversity of Pennsylvania
Thesis Gender, Literature, History: The Transformation of the Padmini Story  (2002)

Ramya Sreenivasan (born 1966) is an Indian scholar of English and early modern Indian history. She is an associate professor in the Department of History at the University of Pennsylvania. She was originally appointed in the Department of South Asian Studies in 2009. [1] Best known for her book The Many Lives of a Rajput Queen, she is a winner of the Ananda Kentish Coomaraswamy Prize.

Contents

Biography

Ramya Sreenivasan obtained her BA in English in 1988, followed by an MA in English two years later, both from the University of Delhi. In 2002, she received a PhD in English from the Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi. [2] Her dissertation was titled Gender, Literature, History: The Transformation of the Padmini Story. [3]

Career

Between 1991 and 1998, Sreenivasan was a lecturer in the Department of English at Miranda House, University of Delhi. [4]

Sreenivasan was a visiting lecturer of history at the University of Washington, Seattle, and Kenyon College, Ohio, between 2003 and 2004. She then joined the State University of New York, Buffalo.

Research

Sreenivasan's doctoral thesis entitled 'Gender, Literature, History: The Transformation of the Padmini Story' was supervised by Prof. G.J.V. Prasad at the Centre of Linguistics and English, School of Languages, at Jawaharlal Nehru University. [5] Rani Padmini, the supposed 14th-century queen of the Rajput kingdom of Chittor – it is not clear if she ever existed [6] – had committed jauhar rather than be captured by the invading Alauddin Khalji, the Sultan of Delhi. Padmini stood for the Rajput ideal of self-sacrificing bravery, mythologised for preferring death to capture by a Muslim. The earliest references to Padmini, however, come from two hundred years after her putative existence, in a poem called Padmavat. Sreenivasan showed that this work, along with other transmissions and translations of other texts, worked to establish a communal or national identity. For Rajputs, in other words, Padmini has achieved a reality to encompass their idea of their own historic valour. [7]

More prosaically, Alauddin reorganised the revenue systems in his sultanate, thereby ruining the fortunes of intermediaries who were previously responsible for the collection of tax. Sreenivasan showed that several of these intermediaries belonged to social groups that would later be called Rajputs. Combining the loss of their finances with their defeats at the hands of invaders, the Rajputs took recourse to epic poetry to establish a sense of pride. [8]

From 2005, Sreenivasan investigated the lives of women and children servants among elite Rajput clans between the sixteenth and the nineteenth centuries, as part of a collaborative research project on South Asian slavery. [2] Sreenivasan showed that slavery among Rajputs comprised not only Indian but also African female slaves. These were exchanged as dowries in a competitive display of wealth, not only to promote interstate alliances but also to elevate the prestige of households. [9] Sreenivasan noted that on the one hand, there was little documentation of slavery, especially of women, in keeping with the Rajputs' notions of female respectability; on the other, for Rajput honour, it was important to play down potentially suspect low-born origins. Thus, unless a slave woman became powerful or committed sati, she was invisible in the records (mainly epic song). Furthermore, contrary to Western distinctions of slavery and family, the boundaries between clan and lineage were fluid, and modified by histories of slavery. Freed slaves could rewrite their pasts to support clan memberships, while illegitimate offspring of Rajputs with lower-caste women would become slaves in turn. [10]

Selected works

Articles

Books

Awards

Sreenivasan's The Many Lives of a Rajput Queen won the Ananda Kentish Coomaraswamy Prize in 2009. [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jauhar</span> Hindu Rajput wartime practice involving self-immolation

Jauhar, sometimes spelled Jowhar or Juhar, was a Hindu Rajput practice of mass self-immolation by females, both adults and children, in the Indian subcontinent to avoid capture, enslavement and rape by Turko-Persian Islamic invaders when facing certain defeat during a war. Some reports of jauhar mention women committing self-immolation along with their children. This practice was historically observed in the northwest regions of India, with most famous jauhars in recorded history occurring during wars between Hindu Rajput kingdoms in Rajasthan and the opposing Turko-Persian Muslim armies. Jauhar was only performed during war, usually when there was no chance of victory. The term jauhar often connotes jauhar-immolation. Jauhar involved Hindu Rajput women committing suicide with their children and valuables in a massive fire, in order to avoid capture and abuse in the face of inescapable military defeat. At the same time or shortly thereafter, the men would ritualistically march to the battlefield expecting certain death, which in the regional tradition is called saka. This practice was intended to show that those committing it valued their honor more highly than their lives.

Rajput, also called Thakur, is a large multi-component cluster of castes, kin bodies, and local groups, sharing social status and ideology of genealogical descent originating from the Indian subcontinent. The term Rajput covers various patrilineal clans historically associated with warriorhood: several clans claim Rajput status, although not all claims are universally accepted. According to modern scholars, almost all Rajput clans originated from peasant or pastoral communities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sisodia dynasty</span> Royal Rajput dynasty of Rajasthan

The Sisodia is an Indian Rajput dynasty belonging to the clan that ruled over the Kingdom of Mewar, in the region of Mewar in Rajasthan. The name of the clan is also transliterated as Sesodia, Shishodia, Sishodia, Shishodya, Sisodya, Sisodiya, Sisodia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Khalji dynasty</span> 1290–1320 Turco-Afghan dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate

The Khalji or Khilji dynasty was the second dynasty which ruled the Delhi sultanate, covering large parts of the Indian subcontinent for nearly three decades between 1290 and 1320. It was founded by Jalal ud din Firuz Khalji.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chittorgarh</span> City in Rajasthan, India

Chittorgarh is a major city in the state of Rajasthan in western India. It lies on the Berach River, a tributary of the Banas, and is the administrative headquarters of Chittorgarh District. It was a major stronghold of the Rajput State of Medapata. The city of Chittorgarh is located on the banks of river Gambhiri and Berach.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rani Padmini</span> Indian queen (13-14th century C.E.)

Padmini, also known as Padmavati, was a 13th–14th century Rani (queen) of the Mewar kingdom of present-day India. Several medieval texts mention her, although these versions are disparate and many modern historians question the extent of their overall authenticity.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ratnasimha</span> Ruler of Mewar from 1302–1303

Ratnasimha was a ruler of the Medapata (Mewar) kingdom in present-day Rajasthan, India. He belonged to the Rawal branch of the Guhila dynasty, which ruled from the Chitrakuta fort. The last ruler of this branch, he was defeated by Alauddin Khalji during the Siege of Chittorgarh in 1303 CE.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chittor Fort</span> Historic fort in Rajasthan, India

The Chittorgarh, also known as Chittod Fort, is one of the largest living forts in India. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The fort was the capital of Mewar and is located in the present-day city of Chittorgarh. It sprawls over a hill 180 m (590.6 ft) in height spread over an area of 280 ha above the plains of the valley drained by the Berach River. The fort covers 65 historic structures, which include four palaces, 19 large temples, 20 large water bodies, 4 memorials and a few victory towers.

Gora and Badal are Rajput warriors, whose story appears in the medieval Indian texts Padmavat, Gora Badal Padmini Chaupai, and their later adaptions. They served the king of Chittor, Ratansen. Alauddin Khalji of Delhi attacked Chittor to obtain Ratansen's wife Padmavati and captured the king. Gora, Badal, and their soldiers entered Delhi disguised as Padmini and her companions, and rescued the king. Gora died fighting in this campaign, while Badal escorted the king to Chittor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Malik Muhammad Jayasi</span> Indian poet

Malik Muhammad Jayasi was an Indian Sufi poet and pir. He wrote in the Awadhi language, and in the Persian Nastaʿlīq script. His best known work is the epic poem Padmavat (1540).

Darogas were police officials in the Mughal Empire and the British Raj. In the Mughal Empire, a daroga was superintendent of the "slaves" of a Mughal monarch.

<i>Padmavat</i> 16th century Awadhi epic

Padmavat is an epic poem written in 1540 by Sufi poet Malik Muhammad Jayasi, who wrote it in the Hindustani language of Awadhi, and originally in the Persian Nastaʿlīq script. It is the oldest extant text among the important works in Awadhi. A famous piece of Sufi literature from the period, it relates an allegorical fictional story about the Delhi Sultan Alauddin Khalji's desire for the titular Padmavati, the Queen of Chittor. Alauddin Khalji and Padmavati's husband Ratan Sen are historical figures, whereas Padmavati may have been a fictional character.

Changoi is a village in district Churu, Rajasthan. It is a panchayat headquarters and the current sarpanch is Vinod kaswan. It is a historical village which was the under control of the Bikaner State of Rajputana.

The Kandera, Kadera, Golandāz, Bāndar, Hawāidar is a Hindu community found mainly in the northern and central regions of India. They belong to the Kshatriya varna. In earlier times, they were archers and arrow-makers. Later, they also became involved in roles such as cannon operators, firework crafters, and the production of gunpowder and iron missiles. The term "Kandera" is derived from the Sanskrit word "Kandir", which means "an archer".

Chundawats are a Rajput clan and were powerful chiefs in the Mewar region during the 1700s. They are the descendants of the 15th century Mewari prince Chunda Sisodia, the eldest son of Rana Lakha. Having surrendered his right to the throne to his younger brother Mokal Singh, Chunda gained for his descendants the right to advise the reigning Rana on matters of State as well as an exalted position on the royal council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alauddin Khalji</span> Turco-Afghan emperor of Khalji dynasty 1296–1316

Alauddin Khalji, born Ali Gurshasp, was a ruler from the Khalji dynasty that ruled the Delhi Sultanate in the Indian subcontinent. Alauddin instituted a number of significant administrative changes in India, related to revenues, price controls, and society. He also successfully fended off several Mongol invasions of India.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siege of Chittorgarh (1303)</span> Alauddin Khaljis conquest of Chittor

The siege of Chittorgarh occurred in 1303, when the Khalji ruler Alauddin Khalji captured and sacked the Chittor Fort, toppling the Guhila king Ratnasimha, after an eight-month-long siege. The conflict has been described in several legendary accounts, including the historical epic poem Padmavat, which claims that Alauddin's motive was to obtain Ratnasimha's beautiful wife Padmini; though this legend is considered historically inaccurate by most historians. Alauddin ordered the fort to be pelted with stones from his siege engines (munjaniqs). When the fort was stormed, Rajput women committed Jauhar while most of the warriors died defending the fort. The city of Chittor was completely sacked by Alauddin's army and several temples were desecrated.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nagmati</span> Maharani of Mewar

Nagmati was, according to legend, the first wife and chief queen of King Ratan Sen, the Rajput ruler of Medapata. Nagmati plays an important role in Malik Muhammad Jayasi's epic poem Padmavat.

The Paramaras of Siwana were one of the many Rajput rulers in Rajasthan who ruled a principality centered on the fort of Siwana. They belonged to the Rajput Agnivanshi clan of Paramaras. The last ruler, Sitala Deva was eventually defeated and his domain annexed by the sultan of Delhi, Alauddin Khilji.

References

  1. ↑ "2021 Mellon Fellows". University of Pennsylvania Almanac. 67 (39). 2021.
  2. 1 2 Irene Liguori (5 May 2005). "Interest in South Asian history grows". UB Reporter. 36 (32). Retrieved 29 October 2017.
  3. ↑ Aditya Behl (2016). Love's Subtle Magic: An Indian Islamic Literary Tradition, 1379-1545. Oxford University. p. 471. ISBN   978-0-19-062882-6.
  4. ↑ "Former Staff". Miranda House. Retrieved 9 November 2017.
  5. ↑ Sreenivasan, Ramya. "Gender, Literature, History". Shodhganga: a reservoir of Indian theses. INFLIBNET. hdl:10603/29126 . Retrieved 9 May 2020.
  6. ↑ Cynthia Talbot (2015). The Last Hindu Emperor: Prithviraj Cauhan and the Indian Past, 1200–2000. Cambridge University. p. 24. ISBN   978-1-107-11856-0.
  7. ↑ Tanuja Kothiyal (29 January 2017). "Persistence of memory: Never mind history, Padmavati is as real for Rajputs as their famed valour". Scroll.in. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  8. ↑ Ruchika Sharma (29 October 2017). "Ala-ud-din Khalji: Why the 'people's king' was made out to be a monster by 16th century chroniclers". Scroll.in. Retrieved 2 December 2017.
  9. ↑ Pedro Machado (6 November 2014). Ocean of Trade. Cambridge University Press. p. 257. ISBN   978-1-107-07026-4.
  10. ↑ Andrea Major (2012). Slavery, Abolitionism and Empire in India, 1772-1843 . Liverpool University. pp.  22–24. ISBN   978-1781388426.
  11. ↑ "The Many Lives of a Rajput Queen". University of Washington Press. Retrieved 9 November 2017.
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