Annapurna Pandey

I am a cultural anthropologist and professor at the University of California, where I have been teaching since the mid-1990s. My academic journey began in India in 1981, and I came to the United States in 1989, joining the profession here in 1995. I have been in this field for almost 40 years. My work focuses on cultural anthropology, specifically studying the Indian diaspora and indigenous tribal peoples in India. What makes this field amazing is that it makes us hopefully better human beings, because there is nothing better than studying another human being and appreciating that. By studying cultures and groups of people who are different from you, who may be differently placed with different life experiences, it gives us a broader perspective. It takes one out of their own footprint and allows you to step into others to gauge and make sense of different kinds of lives, the plurality of lives, and the richness. It's a life-transforming experience. I have traveled a great deal all over the world through my research. My greatest challenge and passion is bringing the voices of people who are marginalized, underrepresented, and generally not represented to the limelight. I do both academic writing and public writing, publishing in web journals like AmericanKahani.com and India Currents. This gives me a tremendous sense of gratification, to bring voices that are buried and voices which are never heard. I have worked on issues like Indian adoptees by white parents in the diaspora in America, domestic violence, and issues of the most recent immigrants known as H1B and H4 visa holders. The challenge is how do we bring the voices of the people, how do we represent them and bring their right voice, or bring their actual voice, rather than making up their voice. Besides my professional work, I am a wife, mother, and grandmother, which keeps me completely engaged and very fulfilled.