What resources for comparative understanding and critique may be gleaned from our work in particular regions? This exploratory talk will seek to draw out potential sources of insight into contemporary moral and political crises in the United States from three anthropological projects pursued in south India over the last fifteen years.

Anand Pandian teaches anthropology at Johns Hopkins University. His books include Crooked Stalks: Cultivating Virtue in South India (2009), Ayya’s Accounts: A Ledger of Hope in Modern India (2014), and Reel World: An Anthropology of Creation (2015).