Christophe Jaffrelot - Princeton University

2013-14 Princeton Global Scholar
Christophe Jaffrelot
Christophe Jaffrelot is a prominent international scholar
specializing on South Asian politics, particularly in India and
Pakistan. His research focuses on theories of nationalism and
democracy, mobilization of lower castes and untouchables in India,
the Hindu nationalist movement, and ethnic conflicts in Pakistan.
An energetic and original researcher, he serves as Research Director at the CNRS (Centre
National de la Recherche Scientifique), chairs the Asia Group at the French Ministry of Foreign
Affairs, and is frequently called upon to provide policy-level advice on developments in South
Asia. From 2000-8 he was Director of CERI (Centre d’Etudes et de Recherches Internationales)
at Sciences Po. The author of eight books, he has also co-edited nineteen books, and written over
120 book chapters. Presently, he is collaborating with European and Indian scholars on three
projects- the first compares politics in Indian cities and villages by studying state and local
elections, the second seeks to reconstruct the history of the relations between Hindu nationalists
and violence, and the third analyzes democracy as a “visual field” to include acts and events that
happen visually in political public life: spectacle, television, cell phone and the Internet.
Professor of India's Politics and Society at King's College (London), Jaffrelot also teaches South
Asian politics and history at Sciences Po (Paris). His teaching experience spans several countries
across the Atlantic community. He has been a supervisor of Ph.D. students, and a mentor of
young scholars from institutions ranging from Columbia University, New York and King’s
College, London to various Indian universities.
As a Global Scholar at Princeton, Professor Jaffrelot will not only bring his global expertise on
the study of South Asia to the classroom, but also his gift of inspiring and nurturing young
scholars. During visits to Princeton, he will co-teach courses with Princeton faculty members,
organize a conference that brings scholars from Europe and India to Princeton, and conduct
graduate interdisciplinary workshops focusing on relations between politics, public policy, and
contemporary social issues, as well as historical, ethnographic, politics and religion in India.
His strong links to European and Indian academic institutions will benefit the Program in South
Asian Studies, (an affiliate of the Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies,
PIIRS), in establishing and strengthening research programs and intellectual exchanges between
Princeton, the CERI, and institutions in Europe and India.