SAPC’s 4th meeting invites interdisciplinary contributions from across subjects in the arts, humanities and social sciences to engage with notions of popular culture.  ’South Asian popular culture’ is defined in a broad and inclusive way to incorporate lived and textual cultures, the mass and new media, different ways of life, and discursive modes of representation.  Central to the formation of popular cultures are articulations of the economic, social and political spheres and the conference especially welcomes papers that will highlight these issues.

Journal of South Asian Popular Culture
4th International Conference – Call for Papers
The University of Manchester, UK, Mon 6 – Tues 7 July 2009

Keynote Speakers
Purnima Mankekar, UCLA (USA)
Rosie Thomas, University of Westminster (UK)

SAPC’s 4th conference is not limited to any particular theme and invites papers from across all areas of South Asian popular culture, both in the subcontinent and from around the world.  Contributions are invited from academics, post-doctoral researchers, postgraduate research students, and from cultural practitioners (film-, radio-, television-, new media-makers, artists, arts personnel, cultural activists, fashion designers, and sexuality campaigners).  Individual papers and panels of 3 x twenty minute papers are welcome.

Some suggested paper and panel topics might include:
Diasporas, Identities and Globalisation War on Terror
Internet South Asia                     Visual Cultures
Gender and Sexuality                    Cinema, Television and New Media
Borders and Border Crossings            Religious Festivals
Music                                   Popular Literature and Theatre
Fashion                                 Rural and Urban Cultures
Senses and Sensation                    Popular Culture Methodologies

All conference papers will be invited to be submitted for consideration to be published as peer reviewed articles in the journal.  Journal website:
www.tandf.co.uk/journals/titles/14746689.asp

For further information and to send your paper or panel abstracts please contact:
Dr Rajinder Dudrah, Drama, Martin Harris Building, University of Manchester, Oxford Road, Manchester, M13-9PL, UK.
Email: rajinder.dudrah@manchester.ac.uk
Abstracts including 2 line bio details on each presenter: up to 300 words each abstract.
Deadline for the submission of abstracts: 23 February 2009

Conference fees (includes refreshments & lunch on both days): £50 postgraduates and unwaged; £100 waged.

SAPC Conference Organising Committee (Postgraduate research students, Dept of Drama):
Ms Monia Acciari, University of Manchester
Mr Shajjad Ahsan, University of Manchester
Ms Sabina Shah, University of Manchester

–
Dr Rajinder Dudrah
Head of Drama

Senior Lecturer in Screen Studies
University of Manchester
Drama
Martin Harris Building
Oxford Road
Manchester
M13 9PL
UK
Tel: +44-161-275-3964
Fax: +44-161-275-4994
www.manchester.ac.uk/research/Rajinder.Dudrah/

Director of Centre for Screen Studies:
wwww.centreforscreenstudies.manchester.ac.uk/