Welcoming 2024-25 Global Visiting Professor - Professor Fouzia Farooq
TORCH is delighted to host Professor Fouzia Farooq, Associate Professor of History at Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, as the newest All Souls/TORCH Global Visiting Professor. Professor Farooq's research interests span Islamic history, the socio-economic and religious history of medieval South Asia, Muslim intellectual thought, Muslim education, the history of religions, and the history of cinema. She is currently working on a historical novel about Amir Khusro as well as a book chronicling the history of Quaid-i-Azam University from 1965 to 2019.
As part of her Global Visiting Professorship, Professor Farooq is spending eight weeks at Oxford, where she is conducting research for her book and delivering a series of lectures around the city. Recently, she gave an engaging talk at All Souls College titled "Between Chastity and Passion: The Gendered Worlds of Amir Khusro," which explored themes of chastity, passion, and sexuality in the work of the Delhi Sultanate poet, writer, and stateman, Amir Khusro.
TORCH is hosting two additional events featuring Professor Farooq in Weeks 6 and 7 of Michaelmas. Be sure to register via the Eventbrite links below to attend these exciting talks and learn more about her fascinating research.
1. Panel Discussion: The Politics of Memory: The Reimagination of Medieval India
Date: 21 November 2024, Thursday, Week 6
Time: 5-6:30 PM
Location: St Luke's Chapel, Woodstock Road
Brief: TORCH welcomes Professor Fouzia Farooq, Professor Sarah Ansari, Professor Nandini Chatterjee, and Dr Moin Nizami for a panel discussion on the reinterpretations of medieval histories of India. The discussion will explore how these narratives have evolved and been reshaped over time, and the implications of these shifts for our understanding of identity, power, and collective memory.
Panellists:
- Professor Fouzia Farooq: Associate Professor of History at Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, and the 2024-25 All Souls/TORCH Global Visiting Professor.
- Professor Sarah Ansari: Professor of History (South Asia) at Royal Holloway. Her research focuses on the province of Sindh and explores issues of religion, migration, identity, citizenship, and gender.
- Professor Nandini Chatterjee: Professor of Indian History and Culture at the Faculty of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, University of Oxford. She is a historian of South Asia with expertise in the early modern (Mughal) and colonial (British-dominated) periods.
- Dr Moin Nizami: Tun Abdul Razak Fellow at the Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies, where he also serves as the Fellow Librarian. He specializes in the study of the social and intellectual history of Muslims in South Asia.
There will be a drinks reception with snacks held after the talk.
Eventbrite link: The Politics of Memory: The Reimagination of Medieval India Tickets, Thu, Nov 21, 2024 at 5:00 PM | Eventbrite
2. Seminar: Locating Silences: The Status and Agency of Women in the Delhi Sultanate
Date: 28 November 2024, Thursday, Week 6
Timing: 4-5:30 PM
Location: St Luke's Chapel, Woodstock Road
Brief: Professor Farooq explores how women within societal frameworks like the harem and royal court, exercised influence and navigated complex social roles - as concubines, artisans, servants, and political actors. By examining their experiences, this discussion will excavate how these women negotiated and occasionally subverted the constraints of gender and class, showcasing what can be termed "constrained agency".
There will be a showcase of selected manuscripts for audience members to peruse after the talk.
Tea and light snacks will be provided
Eventbrite link: Locating Silences: The Status and Agency of Women in the Delhi Sultanate Tickets, Thu, Nov 28, 2024 at 4:00 PM | Eventbrite
Professor Fouzia will also be delivering another talk at All Souls College, titled "Gender Ventriloquism in Medieval India: The Writings of Amir Khusro," as part of the Medieval History Seminar on 25 November. Be sure to keep an eye on her OxTalks page for updates on this and other upcoming talks.
