The Department of History at SRM University-AP is organising a panel discussion titled “Archives and Historical Knowledge: Methods, Silences, and Marginalised Voices in Indian History”. Scheduled for Friday, November 20, 2026, the academic session will take place in the Tiered Classroom on the 5th Floor of the Homi J Bhabha Block. The panel brings together distinguished historians from the University of Delhi, including Prof. Prabhu P. Mohapatra, Prof. Charu Gupta, and Prof. Aparna Balachandran.
The discussion examines historical archives beyond their traditional view as neutral repositories of factual data, assessing how institutional power, selection practices, preservation policies, and classification systems shape historical records. Participants will address methodological approaches to identifying absences and omissions in archival records, demonstrating critical reading techniques for official documentation, legal filings, labour records, petitions, vernacular print, and visual media. The session connects archival methodology to broader humanities research by encouraging critical source evaluation, contextual reasoning, and archival literacy across liberal arts disciplines.
Session Highlights
- Archival Inquiry and Power: Examination of archives as structured collections shaped by institutional power, selection processes, preservation methods, and classification frameworks.
- Marginalised Voices: Methodological strategies for addressing silences and omissions in historical records through critical reading of official, legal, labour, vernacular, and visual sources.
- Liberal Arts Relevance: Integration of historical research with humanities debates through archival literacy, source evaluation, and contextual reasoning.
Key Details
- Date: Friday, November 20, 2026
- Time: 02:00 PM to 04:30 PM
- Speakers:
- Prof. Prabhu P. Mohapatra (Retired Professor of History, University of Delhi)
- Prof. Charu Gupta (Professor of History, University of Delhi)
- Prof. Aparna Balachandran (Professor of History, University of Delhi)