Expertise

India, Cities, Development, Inequality, Epistemology

Biography

Sanjoy Chakravorty is Professor of Geography and Urban Studies and Global Studies at Temple University and Visiting Fellow at the Center for the Advanced Study of India at the University of Pennsylvania.  He writes on India, inequality, cities, and theory.  He has written or edited seven academic books and one novel. His books have won or been shortlisted for high awards, including The Crossword Prize in India and The CHOICE Award from the American Library Association.

His most recent book is The Truth About Us: The Politics of Information from Manu to Modi. It shows how India’s “truths” have been made up through the control and manipulation of information–simplifications, inventions, denials, and lies–from colonization to the present moment. Plus there is a new co-edited volume called Seeking Middle Ground: Land, Markets, and Public Policy; and coming soon: Colossus: The Anatomy of Delhi.

His shorter pieces include about sixty journal papers, book chapters, and reports. The papers are scattered through journals in geography, economics, and urban studies.  He also writes occasional pieces for newspapers in India in English and Bangla. His research has been funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation, the U.S. National Institute of Justice, the American Institute of Indian Studies, and the World Bank.

Professor Chakravorty chaired his department in 2005-10 and during that time was instrumental in creating its doctoral program and undergraduate major in Environmental Studies.

Curriculum Vitae

Website

Selected Publications

Books

• The Truth About Us: The Politics of Information from Manu to Modi. 2019. Hachette.
• Seeking Middle Ground: Land, Markets, and Public Policy. 2019. Co-edited with Amitendu Palit. Oxford University Press.
• The Other One Percent: Indians in America. 2016. With Devesh Kapur and Nirvikar Singh. Oxford University Press.
• The Promoter. 2015. Om.
• The Price of Land: Acquisition, Conflict, Consequence. 2013. Oxford University Press. 
• Made in India : The Economic Geography and Political Economy of Industrialization. 2007. With Somik Lall.  Oxford University Press.  
• Fragments of Inequality: Social, Spatial, and Evolutionary Analyses of Income Distribution. 2006. Routledge.  
• Policing Illegal Drug Markets: Geographic Approaches to Crime Reduction. 2005. With J. Radcliffe and G. Rengert. Lynne Reiner.  

Papers

• About 60.  For access to a sample go to https://sanjoychakravorty.com/academic-publications/

Courses Taught

• Critical Issues
• Urban Structure
• Senior Seminar
• Global Studies Capstone
• Cities and Globalization