349. How (Not) to Write the History of Indian Literature

The annual U.R. Ananthamurthy Memorial Lecture, 2024, hosted by Bahuvachana, Rujuvathu, and BIC, features Prof. Harish Trivedi delivering a talk titled How (Not) to Write the History of Indian Literature.

The talk will explore the challenges that complicate any effort to write a history of Indian literature. It will self-reflexively examine several such histories, including a recent volume, Indian Literary Historiography (published by the Sahitya Akademi, 2024). Prof. Trivedi will propose some radical ideas for writing a popular history of Indian literature in about 250 pages. The lecture will also discuss a short history authored by the speaker, which deliberately sets aside pedantic conventions.

In this episode of BIC Talks, Harish Trivedi delivers a talk. This is an excerpt from a conversation that took place in the BIC premises in December 2024.

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