Debdutta Sanyal

Debdutta specializes in ancient history and archaeology of the Indian subcontinent. She has pursued her B.A (Hons.) from St. Stephen’s College, M.A. and M.Phil from Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Delhi, followed by Ph.D. at Ashoka University, Sonipat. Her doctoral dissertation is a detailed study of the life and times of King Harsha of Thanesar and Kannauj, where she has brought together the narratives of poets, travellers, and the king himself along with archaeological remains to analyse the position of the king, as also the nature of sovereignty itself. She has conducted extensive fieldwork in the Gangetic valley. She has also been a part of a special project with the Centre for Interdisciplinary Archaeological Research (CIAR, Ashoka University) to map and record the archaeological remains at the Bandhavgarh National Park core area.

Prior to joining the Ph.D. program, Debdutta has worked as an editor at Ratna Sagar Pvt. Ltd. She has also been a Teaching Fellow at Ashoka University.

Intellectual history, Historical biographies, Sanskrit literature, Historical archaeology, GIS. 

Debdutta is a historian, specializing in ancient history and archaeology of the Indian subcontinent. Her interests lie in tracing ideas across time, especially pertaining to the idea of Kingship and the figure of the king in early medieval Sanskrit literature. To augment this, she is interested in material culture, especially of the early medieval. She is also trained in the application of the primary tools of GIS and remote sensing for archaeology and has used it extensively for her research.

As a history professor, Debdutta’s teaching philosophy centres on fostering critical thinking and encouraging students to engage deeply with the past. She believes that history is not just a collection of facts but a vibrant narrative that shapes our understanding of the present. She tries to promote an interactive classroom environment and open dialogue, allowing students to explore diverse perspectives and develop their analytical skills. She incorporates a variety of teaching methods, including discussions, primary source analysis, and collaborative projects, to accommodate different learning styles. 

History of Ideas, History of Religions, Socio-cultural History of India 600 BCE-600 CE

I.H. Qureshi Memorial Award (St. Stephen’s College, University of Delhi)

Debdutta wishes to make History an accessible discipline, beyond the fetters of a classroom-oriented subject of study, without losing the academic rigor. She also encourages student participation in field visits. She has worked with organisations like Sahapedia, and as a part of the Sahapedia-UNESCO fellowship, she has conducted fieldwork and interviews with regional scholars from West Bengal, and published them on an online platform. She has presented her own research at national and international conferences and published her work in reputed journals. 

debdutta.sanyal@ddn.upes.ac.in