Deputy Head & Senior Lecturer, NUS SASP
I currently serve as Deputy Head & Senior Lecturer in the South Asian Studies Programme at the National University of Singapore.
Research – Spaces of Power
Research areas: colonialism; decolonisation; caste; gender; postcolonialism; public policy; political economy; transnationalism
Thinking with time, much of my work engages with the question: how do histories of power – and, relatedly – of resistance interact to shape the world we live in?
Social movements are at the heart of this dynamic. Whether in protests, petitions, or everyday acts of resistance, people navigate authority and demand change, often in ways that are deeply influenced by caste, gender, and histories of marginalisation.
My research examines how these intersections unfold. I look at the legacies of colonialism and processes of decolonisation—not just as political events, but as lived experiences that throw light on contemporary politics and society.
My publications explain how negotiated spaces emerge within what appear to be sites of resistance, and the impact they have on subsequent policy.
Languages
“Folklore pervades childhoods, families and communities … Even in large, modern cities, folklore – proverbs, lullabies, folk medicine, folktales – is only a suburb away, a cousin or a grandmother away.” — A.K. Ramanujan
I engage with தமிழ் l Tamil as my primary research language. I am also fluent in Hindi and Telugu, bringing a multilingual perspective to my work. Each of these languages has shaped the way I listen, think, and write.
Education – Cambridge (MPhil, PhD); NTU (PGDE); NUS (BA Hons)
My academic journey took me to Cambridge University for my MPhil in Modern South Asian Studies, enabled by a Gates Cambridge Scholarship.
I was honoured to receive the CA Bayly Prize for Best Dissertation during the MPhil—an award named after one of the most influential historians of South Asia.
I went on to take a PhD in History, which won the Holland Rose Studentship and Prince Consort Prize.
My journey began at the National University of Singapore, where I completed my BA (Hons) in History as a fully funded government teaching scholar.
I later earned my Postgraduate Diploma in Education at the National Institute of Education, part of Nanyang Technological University.
Through it all, I’ve remained deeply curious about how history shapes our present—and how we, in turn, shape the narratives that define our societies.
An Experienced Educator
I’m lectured and tutored students in diverse educational contexts in Singapore and Hong Kong.
I taught courses in Indian history and the history of drugs as an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Hong Kong University from 2018 to 2019.
Before commencing my postgraduate research, I spent three years teaching International History and Modern Southeast Asian History at the GCE ‘A’ Levels.
The classroom reminds me why I love history—and reaffirms my passion for both teaching and research.
Bringing the Archives into the Classroom
My research and teaching are deeply interconnected. The questions I explore in the classroom often spark new lines of inquiry in my writing, and my scholarship constantly enriches what I bring to my students.
Darinee Alagirisamy 