India the focus of community engagement seminar

UOW’s Centre for Asia Pacific Social Transformation Studies (CAPSTRANS) held a very successful community engagement seminar on India yesterday (Sunday 15 August).

The aim of the forum was to bring together members of the public and the University. Emeritus Professor Stephen Hill inaugurated the event, which was co-sponsored by the local radio program, Geetmala, Vox 106.9 FM .

More than 50 people attended the event and there were lively debates following the screening of films made by UOW academics Dr David Blackall (Faculty of Creative Arts) and CAPSTRANS convener Associate Professor Ruchira Ganguly-Scrase.

The occasion was marked by Indian Independence Day with singer Mrs Anindita Mukerjee and sitar player Dr Ajit Godbole entertaining participants.

The first short film, Home is a Distant Land, produced by Professor Ganguly-Scrase focused on the partition of India which led to one of the greatest exoduses of the 20^th century.

Professor Ganguly-Scrase’s film examined the deeply felt impacts of the division of the subcontinent on the state of West Bengal and especially the city of Calcutta.

The second short film, Paradise in Trouble, by Dr Blackall focused on Kashmir which is regarded as something of a barometer for the region.

Among those participating in the community event was PhD student, Jennifer Stewart, who is researching the work-life balance experiences of recently arrived skilled Indian migrants.

She is exploring how they manage their parenting and caring responsibilities in their new circumstances. Jennifer is looking at the practices of a community here in the Illawarra.

“Highly educated, English-speaking Indian professionals are cosmopolitans. They are not unfamiliar with so-called Western ways. At the same time, I am finding there are many subtle differences which would not appear on the surface,” Jennifer said.

“Finding out these different perspectives helps to challenge many of the taken-for-granted assumptions of family life in Australia. From what I have learnt so far, it certainly challenges the biases in the mainstream writings on work life balance not only in Australia, but also in Euro-American societies.”