The Academic Journey of Witchcraft Studies in India

Abstract

This paper is an attempt to build a knowledge base in India around witchcraft studies. There have been very few, and far in between, serious academic researchers in the domain of witchcraft studies in India. We fill the void by putting together these academic endeavours that have been undertaken. Moving beyond disciplinary compartmentalizations and not claiming to be exhaustive, the paper delineates salient points in ten important academic researches which have been published in the last two decades ranging between 1997 and 2017. These chosen articles represent not just under-represented area of academic study but also the geography and social outreach. Groomed in our attempt for inclusiveness, this paper has been broadly categorized into three sections. The first one expounds the historical aspects of witchcraft studies in India, the second section elucidates the empirical studies conducted in this domain, whereas the third section takes the analytical perspective into consideration. We attempt to comprehend what was, what is, and what ought to be. The undercurrent of this paper is prepared in useful dimensions for deciphering gender relations as well as issues of power and dominance.

Keywords: Witch, Witchcraft, Witch Hunting, Women, Power, Education

JEL Classification: I18, I28, Z13, Z18