Dhanya V Sankar, is a Senior Research Fellow in the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT Roorkee. Her thesis investigates the complex intersections of memory, affect, and identity in the works of leading contemporary British Pakistani writers, including Mohsin Hamid, Kamila Shamsie, Nadeem Aslam, Mohammed Hanif, and Zahid Hussain. Her work sheds new light on how their narratives respond to authoritarian regimes, explore the lingering shadows of ultra nationalism, and portray the lived experiences of refugees. She has published research articles in reputed journals like African Identities(Taylor&Francis),Interdisciplinary Literary Studies (Penn University Press) and Journal of Family History(Sage Publishers), Journal of International Women's Studies(Bridgewater University) and Asia-Pacific Social Science Review(De La Salle) along with a book chapter in Violence and Postcolonial Marginalities in South Asian Literature (Bloomsbury Publishing). She is also a teaching assistant in NPTEL course on ‘Partition of India in Print Media and Cinema'.
Research Interests: political literary criticism, cognitive literary studies, spatiality, film studies, and gender.
Professional Background:
Ph.D pursuing ( Feb 2021- Feb 2026 )at Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee, India, in Memory Studies
Graduate Teaching at Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT Roorkee(2021-24)
Invited Lecture on “Introduction to Memory Studies” at Confab IV series for postgraduate students of English at Christ Nagar College, Trivandrum - 8 March 2022 (virtual)
Invited Special lecture on “Humanities, Narratives and Discourses” to final year undergraduate students of English at Gregorian College of Advanced Studies, Trivandrum -5 March 2022.
Previously employed as the Assistant Professor of English at Gregorian College of Advanced Studies, Sreekaryam(2018-2020)
M.A at Pondicherry Central University, First Class with Distinction; Ranked Third in the University; Dissertation Topic: Rebirth of a Classic: A Study of Sittenfield’s ELIGIBLE as a Retelling of Jane Austen’s PRIDE And PREJUDICE
Worked as a Freelance Content Writer at Unacademy for a period of three months(2017)
One-month Internship at Career Launcher, Trivandrum as Management Trainee(2017)
B.A at Govt. Women's College, Trivandrum , First Class with Distinction, College Topper; Dissertation Topic: Turning the Annals of Indian Film Adaptation: LOOTERA And RAINCOAT as Reinterpretations of O.Henry’s Short Stories
Languages: English, Hindi, Malayalam(Native Language),French(Basic)and Tamil(Elementary)
Courses Previously Taught for Undergraduates : Literary Criticism, Journalism and Film Studies, Fiction and Poetry
Courses Taught as Teaching Assistant in IIT Roorkee: Soft Skills(UG level); Technical Communication(PG level)
Grants and Awards:
Awarded Higher Education Scholarship by Kerala Government for top scorers(2012-15)
Publications:
Sankar, Dhanya V. & Banerjee, Sarbani (2025). "Defamiliarizing memory and refugeedom in JJ Bola’s No Place to Call Home". African Identities, Online First. DOI: 10.1080/14725843.2025.2611077.
Sankar, D. V., & Banerjee, S. (2026). "Remembering and dislocation: Memory, materiality and imagination in Mohsin Hamid’s Exit West (2017)". Studies in Ethnicity and Nationalism. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1111/sena.70016
Sankar, Dhanya V. & Banerjee, Sarbani (2025). "Being an Inessential Woman: Sexual Fluidity and Migratory Identities in Mohsin Hamid’s Exit West". Journal of International Women's Studies, 27(4),Article 10, 1-20. https://vc.bridgew.edu/jiws/vol27/iss4/10
Sankar, D. V., & Banerjee, S. (2025). "(Gendered) Transcultural Capital and Memory in Zahid Hussain’s The Curry Mile (2006)". Asia-Pacific Social Science Review , 25(3),61-75. https://doi.org/10.59588/2350-8329.1581
Sankar, D., & Banerjee, S.(2025). "Through Traumatic (Mate)Realism and Strategic Essentialism: A Critical Study of Meena Kandasamy's The Gypsy Goddess". In Z. Hussain, G. Rabani, & R. Samal (Eds.), Violence and postcolonial marginalities in South Asian literature–1 (pp. 63–81).Bloomsbury. URL: https://www.bloomsbury.com/in/violence-and-postcolonial-marginalities-in-south-asian-literature-9798216266082/
Sankar, D. V., & Banerjee, S. (2026). "Writing Trauma and Postmemory in the Affect: An Analysis of The Mountains Sing (2020) by Nguyễn Phan Quế Mai". Journal of Family History, 51(1), 93-114 . https://doi.org/10.1177/03631990251360244
Sankar, D. V., & Banerjee, S. (2025) ."Experientiality of Space in Namita Gokhale’s Things to Leave Behind". Interdisciplinary Literary Studies,27 (2), 134-163. https://doi.org/10.5325/intelitestud.27.2.0134
Conference, Seminars and Workshops:
Participated in the one week online " Critical Spatial Theory in Literature" lecture series organised by Faculty of Arts,Humanities and Social Sciences, Gokul Global University, from 4 to 8 August 2025.
Attended Online Summer School: "Medical Humanities: Discourses, Debates, and Directions" organized by IISER Bhopal in collaboration with the South Asian Medical-Environmental Humanities Network, 17-23 July 2025 and submitted a proposal for prospective study and collaboration.
Moderated the panel "Mapping Other Worlds: Spatial, Cultural and Posthuman Narratives" at the two day International Conference on 'Embracing the Paradigm Shift: Navigating the Interdisciplinary Frontiers in Humanities and Social Science Research' held at IIT Roorkee, 11-12 July 2025
Presented a paper titled Presented a paper titled “(Gendered) Transcultural Capital and Memory: An Analysis of Zahid Hussain’s The Curry Mile (2006)” at an International Graduate Meet on “(Re)imagining ‘Progress’” held at IIT Bhilai, 21st – 24th January 2025
Attended a webinar session on “Is AI the Future of Collective Memory” on 18-25 February 2025 by Uniwersytet Łódzki and Memory Studies Association.
Presented a paper titled “Will ready-at-hand or Material present-at-hand? Analysis of Mohammed Hanif’s A Case of Exploding Mangoes” virtually in the International Memory Studies Conference 'Memory, Security and Sustainability held at IIT Madras, 16-18 September 2024.
Attended online one-week Faculty Development Program on The Dynamism of Memory Studies in Context of Video Games from 24-29 June 2024
Presented a paper titled “Demystifying Multiculturalism and Islamic Feminism in Kamila Shamsie’s Home Fire (2017)” virtually in the International Interdisciplinary Conference “Memory, Transgression, Change” organised by University of Warsaw,Poland and Inmind Support on 18-19 April 2024.
Attended 7th Edition of “Memory, Forgetting and Creating” Conference held online on 18-19 January 2024
Presented a paper titled “Social Imagination/ary in Kashmir through Prosthetic Memory: A Critical Analysis of the Short Film Panpompar(2019)” for the ‘Revamping Indian Tradition and Culture Through NEP 2020:Multilingual, Multicultural & Multidisciplinary Modes of Education’ held at IIT Roorkee,18th - 19th August 2023
Presented a paper titled “Experientiality of Memory in Namita Gokhale’s Things to Leave Behind(2016)” for Second Annual International Memory Studies Conference 'Memory, Ecology and Sustainability’ held at IIT Madras, 20-22 September 2023
Attended a five day GIAN Course on “ The Philosophy of (Auto)Biography-Experience and (Self) Representation: An Interdisciplinary Course(Philosophy,Politics,Literature)” from 18-22 July 2023 by IIT Tirupati
Attended a five days online workshop on ‘Academic Writing & Publishing’ held jointly by DOHSS NIT Trichy and IIST TVM from 24-28 July 2023
Presented a paper titled “Recovering Maafa : Countermemory in Yaa Gyasi’s Homegoing” in the ‘International Interdisciplinary Conference- Memory, Forgetting and Creating’ - Inmind Support and University of Gdańsk, Poland (19-20 January 2023, virtual)
Attended MSA 7th Annual Conference on ‘Communities & Change’ held virtually on 10 March 2023
Participated in 4th "POSTMEMORY AND THE CONTEMPORARY WORLD“ International Interdisciplinary Conference - University of Gdańsk, Poland (23-24 February 2023, virtual).
Attended MSA series of seminar on ‘Migrants in Post-socialist Britain’ held virtually on 5 May 2023
Attended MSA series of seminar on ‘Material Culture and Monuments of Post-Socialism’ held virtually on 19 May 2023
Presented a paper titled “Writing Trauma and Postmemory in the Affect: An Analysis of The Mountains Sing by Ngyuen Phan Que Mai” in International Memory Studies conference ‘Memory in a Digital Age’ - Centre for Memory Studies, IIT Madras (23-25 August 2022, virtual).
Functioned as the Panel Chair of International Memory Studies conference ‘Memory in a Digital Age’ - Centre for Memory Studies, IIT Madras (23-25 August 2022, virtual).
Presented a paper titled “Transgenerational memory and Counternarratives in Yaa Gyasi’s Homegoing” in the ‘International Interdisciplinary Conference-Humanrights, Violence and Dictatorship’ - Inmind Support and University of Poland (17-18 November 2022, virtual).
Attended MSA Nordic Annual Conference 2022 - University of Iceland (14 -16 October 2022, virtual)
Participated in the National Conference on ‘Tryst with Destiny: Literary Portrayal of the Partition of India’ - Vellore Institute of Technology, Chennai (10-11 November 2022, virtual)
Participated in 4th "POSTMEMORY AND THE CONTEMPORARY WORLD“ International Interdisciplinary Conference - University of Gdańsk, Poland (23-24 February 2023, virtual)
Attended the Centenary Special Lecture by Prof. Richard Schechner organized by SB College Kottayam - 24 March 2022 (virtual).
Attended lecture on Academic Writing and Publication by Ms. Anwesha Rana, Commissioning Editor-Social Sciences, Cambridge University Press - 4th April 2022.
Attended the launch of Dr. Avishek Parui’s book Culture and the Literary : Matter, Metaphor and Memory jointly organised by IIT Madras and St. Andrews College London - 6 April 2022 (virtual).
Attended ‘Memory, Affect and Emotions’ International Interdisciplinary Conference under the aegis of University of Warsaw and InMind Support – 7-9 April 2022 (virtual)
Delivered special lecture on “Humanities, Narratives and Discourses” to final year undergraduate students of English at Gregorian College of Advanced Studies, Trivandrum -5 March 2022.
Delivered invited lecture on “Introduction to Memory Studies” for postgraduate students of English at Christ Nagar College, Trivandrum - 8 March 2022 (virtual)
Presented a paper titled “Rememory through Prosthetic Memory: A Critical Analysis of the short film Panpompar” in ‘Memory, Trauma and Recovery’ International Interdisciplinary Conference - University of Warsaw and InMind Support (16-17 September 2021, virtual)
Attended the 2nd International Conference on ‘Contemporary Trends and Developments in Cultural Studies and the Humanities’ - New Literaria: An International Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies in Humanities (22-24 October 2021, virtual).
Presented a paper titled “Memory, Materiality and Imagination in Mohsin Hamid’s Exit West” in the ‘13th HPSCONF International Conference’ on Humanities, Psychology and Social Sciences in Amsterdam, Netherlands – (November 5-7 November 2021, hybrid)
Presented a paper titled “Recognition and Recreation: A Study on Memory and Food in Laura Esquivel’s novel Like Water for Chocolate” in the ‘Food Memory Machines’ Workshop - IIT Madras (17-20 August 2021)
Participated in the ‘Memory, Cognition, Literature’ Interdisciplinary Workshop - IIT Madras under the aegis of Indian Network for Memory Studies(INMS) and Department of English, Jamia Millia Islamia University (9 -12 November 2021).
Attended the Memory Studies Workshop organized virtually by IIT Madras between 26th and 30th April 2021.
Memberships and Affiliations:
Memory Studies Association (MSA)
Indian Network for Memory Studies (INMS)
American Comparative Literature Association(ACLA)