HISPANISTS
A bridge between two worlds
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Ansari, Nabiel
Assistant Professor in the Centre of Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and Latin American Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.
Dr. Nabiel Ansari is an Assistant Professor in the Centre of Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and Latin American Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, with over a decade of experience in teaching Spanish as a foreign language. His doctoral thesis is on the “Teaching of intercultural dimension in the Spanish language classroom in India”. He received the Erasmus Mundus MULTIELE scholarship, awarded by the European Commission for the course “Learning and teaching Spanish in multilingual and international contexts” in 2010. His teaching and research interests lie at the intersection of Spanish language education, intercultural competence, language and culture, and pedagogical approaches to foreign language teaching in the Indian context. His recent research also engages with the role of artificial intelligence and digital technologies in language learning. He has edited the Journal “Hispanic Horizon” and is co-author of the book “Teach Yourself Spanish” and has published various articles in national and international journals such as ForLingua and SN Social Sciences.
Aroul, Sonia
Hispanist and educator based in New Delhi
J. Sonia Aroul is a Hispanist and educator based in New Delhi, passionate about the Spanish language and cultural exchange between India and the Hispanic world. She holds a Master's degree in Hispanic Philology from the University of Delhi and a bilingual MBA from the Torcuato di Tella University in Argentina. With more than 15 years of teaching experience (6 years in schools and 9 years in universities), she currently teaches at Jesus and Mary College, University of Delhi. In constant pursuit of professional development, she has participated in multiple teacher training workshops in Spain and India organized by the Instituto Cervantes, where she has also collaborated as a speaker in New Delhi. She also has 6+ years of corporate experience working with the Spanish-speaking world, which has enriched her intercultural knowledge. As a researcher, she analyzes the works of Octavio Paz written in and about India, exploring intercultural dialogues and the philosophical synthesis between regions. Additionally, she creates artwork inspired by Hispanic literature and themes, featuring art work dedicated to Como Agua para Chocolate (Like Water for Chocolate), Don Quixote de la Mancha, the Camino de Santiago (Way of St. James), and Barcelona, among others. As both a creator and researcher, Sonia fuses academia and art to consolidate and promote Hispanism in India.
Bharti, Priy
Assistant Professor of Spanish and Coordinator of the M.A. in Spanish at The English and Foreign Languages University (EFLU)
Dr. Priy Bharti is an Indian Hispanist and Assistant Professor of Spanish and Coordinator of the M.A. in Spanish at The English and Foreign Languages University (EFLU), Hyderabad, India. He has also developed his teaching and professional career at the Instituto Cervantes in New Delhi, the University of Delhi, Doon University (Dehradun), and Universitaria Agustiniana (Bogotá, Colombia).
He holds a Ph.D. in Spanish from Jamia Millia Islamia Central University (New Delhi), an M.A. in Spanish from Jawaharlal Nehru University (New Delhi), an M.A. in Hispanic Philology from the University of Valladolid, and an M.A. in Translation from Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Spain. He also holds a Bachelor’s degree in Spanish from Jawaharlal Nehru University. In addition, he has obtained DELE C2 and C1 certifications.
His academic and professional work focuses on Spanish as a Foreign Language (ELE), applied linguistics, plurilingualism and multiculturalism, as well as linguistic and intercultural mediation, translation, and interpreting. He has over a decade of experience as a teacher, researcher, translator, interpreter, and linguistic mediator. He has published academic work in his areas of specialisation and has translated literary works from English into Spanish and from Spanish into English.
Bhattacharya, Malabika
Spanish and Hispanic literature professor at the Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Languages
Prof. Malabika Bhattacharya earned her Master’s degree in Spanish Literature from Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi. She subsequently studied at the Faculty of Philosophy and Literature at UNAM (National Autonomous University of Mexico), where she conducted research on the poetry of Octavio Paz under the guidance of Ramón Xirau.
For three decades, she taught Spanish at the Institute of Foreign Languages (Government of India) in New Delhi. She recently relocated to Kolkata, where she teaches Spanish and Hispanic literature at the Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Languages. She also taught for five years in the Department of Spanish at the University of Calcutta.
Malabika has participated in numerous international conferences and has authored a large number of books and articles—primarily in the field of Spanish and Hispanic literature—which have been published in various books and journals. She has translated many of Rabindranath Tagore’s poems into Spanish. Since the past five years, she has released a significant number of books on Spanish poets such as Federico García Lorca and Juan Ramón Jiménez at the Kolkata Book Fair.
Chandrashekhar, Siddharth
Spanish teacher, translator, and interpreter
Siddharth Chandrashekhar is a Spanish teacher, translator, and interpreter. He holds both a Master's degree and an MPhil in Spanish from the University of Delhi, specializing in the literature and history of Spain and Latin America. He has published two literary translations: An Anthology of Short Stories by Ecuadorian author Abdón Ubidia (Spanish to Hindi) and a poetry collection by Indian poet and actress Deepti Naval (English to Spanish). He also runs the YouTube channel Español Por Dentro, specializing in Spanish language, literature, and the culture of the Hispanic world.
Dhingra, Anil
Former Professor & Chairperson, Centre of Spanish Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Former Professor & Chairperson, Centre of Spanish Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, Dr. Anil K. Dhingra studied Spanish at Universidad Complutense de Madrid and Universidad de Salamanca. He holds Ph.D in Interpretation studies and is a first generation Indian Hispanist who played a key role in the establishment of Spanish language centers in different universities of India such as IGNOU, Doon University, Aligarh Muslim University, Pune University, SRTM University, Amity University, etc. As Program Coordinator of MULTIELE (Erasmus Mundus) in Jawaharlal Nehru University, he trained four batches of European teachers. He has published 13 books (jointly edited and translated) about Hispanic themes in India and guided research scholars in the field of Spanish Pedagogy. He played a key role in establishing academic links of JNU with various universities in Europe and Spain, such as Universitat de les Illes Balears, Universidad de Salamanca and Complutense University de Madrid. He was conferred the Decoration of the Cross of the Order of Civil Merit by His Majesty the King of Spain in 2019. Prof. Dhingra has established a study grant for the promotion of Spanish Studies in India which has benefitted more than 14 students from four universities in India so far.
Ganguly, Shyama Prasad
Professor Emeritus of Hispanic Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi
Professor Emeritus of Hispanic Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi (1978–2012), having previously taught Economics at the University of Delhi (1967–77). He was educated in India, Spain, and Mexico. Made pioneering contribution in comparative studies on the reception of Tagore in the Spanish speaking world as well as in studies on Don Quixote in India. He has authored, edited and translated 26 books (including bilingual editions of Indian, Spanish, and Latin American poetry) and written numerous articles on Spanish and Latin American topics for both Indian and international journals. He has traveled to various countries to deliver lectures and talks, supervised doctoral thesis, and founded and directed Hispanic Studies journals in India. He served on the Board of Directors of the International Association of Hispanists (AIH) and was a member of AAH, and serves on the editorial boards of several international journals. In recognition of his work, he has received honors from countries such as Spain, Peru, Chile (Gabriela Mistral Medal), Argentina, Colombia (Honorary Doctorate from Simón Bolívar University), and Mexico (Order of the Aztec Eagle). He has actively participated in numerous online programs and talks since the past three years and has been active in theater— both as a Director and an Actor—for the last six decades.
Gupta, Sonya Surabhi
Retired Professor of Hispanic Studies
Sonya Surabhi Gupta is a retired Professor of Hispanic Studies. She was among the first scholars in India to obtain a doctorate in Hispanic Studies, with a thesis on Spanish poetry of the post-war exile. She has played a decisive role in the institutional development of Hispanism in India. In 1987, she founded the Centre for Hispanic Studies in Hyderabad and, in 2006, the Centre for Spanish and Latin American Studies at Jamia Millia Islamia University, New Delhi. Her principal areas of research lie within the field of transnational literary studies—including reception studies, comparative literature, the history of ideas, and world literature—with particular emphasis on the interconnected histories of India and the Hispanic world.
Jilani, Mohammad
Associate Professor of Spanish Language and Culture at the Centre for Foreign Languages, O.P. Jindal Global University
Dr. Mohammad Jilani is an Associate Professor of Spanish Language and Culture at the Centre for Foreign Languages, O.P. Jindal Global University. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Delhi and a Master’s degree in Teaching/Learning Spanish Language and its Culture from the University of Granada, Spain. He has also completed specialised courses in Teaching Spanish for Business Purposes from the Instituto Cervantes and the University of Granada. With over 15 years of experience in teaching, research, and academic engagement, Dr. Jilani’s areas of expertise include Spanish language and culture, intercultural competence, Spanish for Business Purposes, and the integration of technology and audio-visual resources in language teaching. His research interests also include innovative approaches to foreign-language pedagogy and the role of emerging technologies in language education. He has presented papers at national and international conferences and published research in his areas of specialisation.
Kartik, Veer
Guest Faculty of Spanish in the Department of Germanic and Romance Studies, University of Delhi
Veer Kartik is a Guest Faculty of Spanish in the Department of Germanic and Romance Studies, University of Delhi. He is also currently a Senior Research Fellow in Teaching Spanish as a Foreign Language (ELE) at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. His research focuses on telecollaboration, virtual exchange, and the fostering of intercultural competence among Indian University students studying Spanish. His main research areas include ELE, gamification, intercultural education, and translation. He has presented his research at national and international conferences, such as the International Conference of the Asociación para la Enseñanza del Español como Lengua Extranjera (ASELE) in Spain, and has published works on intercultural competence, videoconferencing in Spanish language learning, gamification, and Spanish for specific purposes. He holds a Master's degree in Español como Lengua Extranjera: Enseñanza e Investigación from the Universidad de Valladolid as a beneficiary of the Iberoamérica +Asia scholarship. He is also an accredited examiner of the Diploma de Español como Lengua Extranjera (DELE) exam for levels A1, A2, B1, B2.
Mukherjee, Indrani
Indian Hispanist whose career began in the early 1980s as a Teaching Assistant at Indiana State University, USA
Prof. Indrani Mukherjee is an Indian Hispanist whose career began in the early 1980s as a Teaching Assistant at Indiana State University, USA, where she trained in teaching Spanish as a foreign language. She later became a part of the founding members of Spanish departments at the English and Foreign Language University, Hyderabad, Doon University, Dehradun, and at GITAM University, Visakhapatnam. She taught at EFL University, Hyderabad (1987–1999) and at JNU's Centre for Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and Latin American Studies, New Delhi (1999–2023). Her research interests include democratization of Spanish language learning-teaching, literatures, cinemas, arts, and translation. She designed and taught innovative graduate courses at JNU, including Hispanic Painting, Hispanic Cultural Studies, and Translation Studies. As a professor and researcher in Hispanic studies, she stands out for her role in establishing and spreading Spanish Studies in India and in international forums in Europe and the Americas. Becoming an Indian Hispanist has been an empowering experience for her, fostered by comparative perspectives and a nomadic sensibility that overcomes narrow power politics, prejudice, and predatory dynamics of today’s global world.
Rawal, Sameer
Writer and translator with more than three decades of experience in translation and intercultural mediation between English, Hindi, Spanish, and Catalan
Sameer Rawal is a writer and translator with more than three decades of experience in translation and intercultural mediation between English, Hindi, Spanish, and Catalan.
He pursued Hispanic Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University (New Delhi), completed a postgraduate degree in Literary Semiotics at the Benemérita Universidad Autónoma de Puebla (Mexico), and earned the Pre-Doctoral Diploma in Advanced Studies from the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona. He has combined translation work with teaching and writing, giving Hindi and translation courses at the Instituto Cervantes (New Delhi), Casa Asia (Barcelona), and Universitat de Barcelona, and Catalan courses at Jamia Millia Islamia University in New Delhi. He has collaborated with government institutions in India and Spain, and takes part in intercultural projects for organizations such as La Liga and Geo Planeta, among others. His work spans poetry, fiction, short stories, articles, and essays. He has translated works by authors such as Teji Grover, Jeet Thayil, Shahnaz Bashir, Jacinta Kerketta, Mercè Rodoreda, Teresa Solana, and Gabriel García Márquez, among others, and is currently working on works by Nika Vázquez Seguí and Geetanjali Shree. He has received the Dwivageesh Puraskar award (India) and has been a fellow of the Charles Wallace Trust.
Sawhney, Minni
Ex-Professor, Department of Germanic and Romance Studies, University of Delhi
Minni Sawhney is ex Professor, Department of Germanic and Romance Studies, University of Delhi where she has been head of department from 2024-17, 2021-24 and Dean Arts Faculty 2014-16. She began teaching in 1990 after her studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University where she did her Ph.D on Mexican nationalism in the works of Carlos Fuentes, a comparative study of Indian nationalism in the works of Rabindranath Tagore and Bankim Chandra Chatterjee. Her publications include articles on Spanish Golden Age drama in journals such as Hesperia, Theatralia and Anuario de Estudios Cervantinos, on Octavio Paz, narco novels, Latin American travelers in India and the Buddhism of Severo Sarduy. She has been elected Vocal of the International Association of Hispanists (2010-13) and (2023-25) and Vice President (2025-28)