पंकज जैन
Pankaj Jain, PhD
Professor & Head, Humanities & Languages · Director, The India Centre · FLAME University, Pune
8
Books Published
100+
Publications
30+
Years of Experience
571+
Citations
About
Scholar, Author, Academic Leader
Pankaj Jain is an internationally recognised scholar-leader with over 30 years of experience spanning Indian Knowledge Systems, Sustainability, Jain Studies, Film Studies, and Diaspora Studies. A Fulbright-Nehru Fellow and prolific author of eight books published with Oxford University Press, Routledge, Springer, Bloomsbury, and Manohar, he combines deep scholarly achievement with a distinguished record of academic administration across India and the United States.
His work has been featured in The New York Times, BBC, National Geographic, Forbes India, and The Washington Post. Morgan Freeman interviewed him for the National Geographic series The Story of God.
Bridging rigorous academic scholarship and broad public discourse across continents.
He holds a PhD in Religious Studies from the University of Iowa, an MA from Columbia University, and a BE in Computer Science from Karnatak University — a combination that reflects his rare interdisciplinary range.
Areas of Specialisation
Indian Knowledge Systems
Religion & Ecology
Jain Studies
Dharma Traditions
Film Studies
Diaspora Studies
South Asian Philosophy
Sustainability
Publications
Books
Eight books with leading academic publishers — Oxford University Press, Routledge, Springer, Bloomsbury, and Manohar.
Manohar / IIAS · 2025
Jainism: From Bhagwan Mahavira to Mahatma Gandhi
Routledge · 2024
Visual Anthropology of Indian Films
★ Featured on New Books Network
Springer · 2023
Modern Jainism: A Historical Approach
★ Featured on New Books Network
Bloomsbury · 2023
Indian and Western Philosophical Concepts in Religion
Springer · 2022
Encyclopedia of Indian Religions
Routledge · 2019
Dharma in America: A Short History of Hindu-Jain Diaspora
Routledge · 2018
Science and Socio-Religious Revolution in India
Routledge · 2011 / 2016
Dharma and Ecology of Hindu Communities
★ DANAM Award & Uberoi Foundation Award
Forthcoming: Reframing Indic Studies: Beyond the Imperialism of Categories (Manohar, 2026)
Research
Selected Articles & Chapters
Over 100 peer-reviewed publications in leading journals including Worldviews, Journal of Visual Anthropology, Zygon, and more.
- "The Matrix, Advaita Cosmology, and Ecological Consciousness," Worldviews, Vol. 29, Issue 4 (with Shikha Sharma)
- "Kantara (2022) through the Lens of Indian Religious and Environmental Philosophy," Worldviews, Vol. 29, Issue 3 (with Chirag Hegde)
- "Flora and Farming in Jainism," Worldviews, 2025, Vol. 29, Issue 2, pp. 170–179
- "Exploring the Religious and Environmental Allusions in Ram Teri Gaṅgā Maili," Worldviews, 28.3, 2024 (with Khushi Kapoor)
- "Ship of Theseus: A Jain Monk's Nonviolent Struggle for Animal Rights," Worldviews, 28.2, 2024
- "Interpreting and Responses to Pandemics in Indian Philosophical Traditions and Films," Worldviews, 27.2, 2023
- "'Children of the Earth' to 'Dark Wind': Nature, Environment, and Climate in Indian Films," Journal of Visual Anthropology, 36.1, 2023
- "Ecocritical Analysis of Classics by Three Indian Film Maestros," Worldviews, 26.3, 2022
- "Climate Engineering from Hindu-Jain Perspectives," Zygon, Vol. 54, Issue 4, 2019
- "From Padosi to My Name is Khan: Portrayal of Hindu Muslim Relations in South Asian Films," Journal of Visual Anthropology, 24.1, 2011
- "Dharmic Ecology: Perspectives from the Svādhyāya Practitioners," Worldviews, 13.3, 2009
- "Jainism, Dharma, and Environmental Ethics," Union Seminary Quarterly Review, 61.1, 2011
- "Bishnoi: An Eco-Theological 'New Religious Movement' in the Indian Desert," Journal of Vaishnava Studies, 18.2, 2010
- "Renunciation and Non-renunciation in Indian Films," Religion Compass, 4(3), 2010
- "Reinterpreting Yajña as Vedic Sacrifice," Brahmavidya: Adyar Library Bulletin, vol. 74–75, 2011
- "The Mahabharata for Ecodharmic Activism: Examples from the Bishnoi and Svādhyāya Communities," in Dialoguing with Timeless Text, Motilal Banarsidass, 2026
- "India's Diasporic Diplomacy: A Millennial Survey," in The Future of Indian Diplomacy, KW Publishers, 2025
- "The Jain Islands in the Hindu Heartland," in Sacred Heritage and Pilgrimages in Cities, Springer, 2025
- "Jain Dharma as Virtue Ethics for Sustainability," in The Virtues of Sustainability, Oxford University Press, 2021
- "Modern Hindu Dharma and Environmentalism," in The Oxford History of Hinduism, Oxford University Press, 2019
- "Dharma for the Earth, Water, and Agriculture," in Religion and Sustainable Agriculture, University Press of Kentucky, 2016
- "Bovine Dharma: Nonhuman Animals and the Svādhyāya Parivar," in Rethinking the Nonhuman, Routledge, 2014
- "From Zoroaster to Dharma: Ancient Persian and Indian Ethics in an Age of War," The Times of India, Mar 2026
- "When Textbooks Change, Who Decides What Matters?" The Times of India, Jan 2026
- "Beyond Silence: The Diaspora's Cultural Accountability," The Times of India, Oct 2025
- "From Gaṇeśa to the Gītā: Ten Dharmas for Modern Leaders," The Times of India, Aug 2025
- "Jainism and Death," The New York Times, Jul 2020 (with George Yancy)
- "Conservative Ideas for Conservation of Mother Earth," The Daily Caller, Oct 2018
- "For the Love of Music," Times of India's Speaking Tree, Nov 2013
- "The Cosmic Questions behind the Cosmic Dance," Washington Post – On Faith, Nov 2010
- "Dharmic Method to Save the Planet," HuffingtonPost.com, May 2011
- "Indic Climate Ethics Can Address Energy Poverty," Times of India, Mar 2022
- "Five Indic Theories that Can Influence Climate Engineering Measures," The CSR Journal, Nov 2021
Recognition
Awards & Fellowships
🏛
Fulbright-Nehru Fellowship
Fellowship for Environmental Leadership, supporting research on dharmic ecology and sustainability practices.
2012
📚
DANAM Book Prize
Awarded for Dharma and Ecology of Hindu Communities by the Dharma Academy of North America.
2012
🏆
Uberoi Foundation Book Award
Recognised for outstanding contribution to the study of Indian communities and ecological practices.
2011
🔬
Wenner-Gren Foundation Grant
Workshop grant of $19,779 for anthropological research on rural sustainability in India.
Research Grant
🏔
IIAS Fellowship, Shimla
Fellowship at the Indian Institute of Advanced Study for research on Jain dharma and modern sustainability.
2023
🇺🇸
White House Conference
Honoured at the White House Faith-Based Initiative Conference as invited speaker on Indic traditions and ecology.
2011
Career
Academic Leadership
2021 – Present
Professor & HoD, Humanities & Languages · Director, The India Centre
FLAME University, Pune. Developed Philosophy Minor, pursued international MoUs, organised international conferences, mentored junior faculty and doctoral scholars.
2020
Dean, Arts and Humanities
Vijay Bhoomi University, Mumbai. Built the School of Arts and Humanities from inception — defined vision, hired faculty, designed curriculum.
2016 – 2020
Founding Director, American Academy of Indic Studies
Established an international body of 300+ scholars worldwide. Launched a peer-reviewed academic journal and led marketing efforts.
2010 – 2020
Co-Chair, India Initiatives Group & Associate Professor
University of North Texas (Tier 1). Raised over $600,000 in external funding, led delegations to 12+ Indian universities, coordinated international MoUs.
2012
Fulbright-Nehru Fellow
Environmental Leadership program at the University of North Texas.
2008 – 2010
Lecturer, North Carolina State University
Dept. of Philosophy & Religion / Dept. of Foreign Languages. Taught Hinduism, Jainism, Bollywood Films and Religions, Hindi/Urdu, Sanskrit.
2008
PhD in Religious Studies
University of Iowa. Dissertation: Dharmic Ecology — Perspectives from the Hindu and Jain Communities.
2003
MA in Religious Studies
Columbia University, New York.
In the Press
Media Appearances
Featured in leading global publications and interviewed by Morgan Freeman for National Geographic.
National Geographic
Interviewed by Morgan Freeman for "The Story of God" series
The New York Times
"Jainism and Death" — opinion essay with George Yancy (Jul 2020)
BBC
BBC Hindi — interviewed on Vedic City, Iowa and Indian cultural themes
Forbes India
Featured for contributions to Indian Knowledge Systems and sustainability scholarship
The Washington Post
"The Cosmic Questions behind the Cosmic Dance" and "Irony and the Yoga Wars"
The Times of India
Regular contributor — articles on dharmic ecology, Indian ethics, film, and public philosophy
Huffington Post
Multiple essays on dharma, ecology, Indian culture, and Bollywood aesthetics
ABC News · NBC News
Expert commentary on South Asian culture, Diwali celebrations, and Indian diaspora topics
Listen
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Exploring Indian culture, religion, music, and sustainability in conversation with scholars and practitioners. Available across all major platforms.
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Teaching
Courses Taught
Undergraduate
- Bollywood: Films and Cultures of India
- Religion and Ecology
- Indian Philosophy
- World Religions
- South Asian Philosophy and Religion
- Applied Ethics
- From Mahavir to Mahatma Gandhi: Jainism and Nonviolence
Graduate & Online
- Environmental Anthropology
- Religion and Ecology
- Sanskrit Religious Texts
- Asian Religions and Philosophies in Practice
- Jainism on UGC's Swayam
- Bollywood and Indian Culture
- Introduction to Asian Religions on UGC's Swayam