Department Activity 2022 - 2023
Seminars:

It is necessary for students to regularly listen to experts with vast research and teaching experience. This serves to enhance their knowledge and to inculcate in students an interest in research. Every year, such seminars are held for the MA students by the department with resource persons who can augment the students’ knowledge.

• “My Story: Lecture Series on Innovation & Entrepreneurship” by Mr Subodh Shankar (Co-founder, Atta Galatta Bengaluru), Ms. Aparna Jaishankar (Corporate Trainer, Theatre Enthusiast & Storyteller), Ms. Maitreyee Chowdhury (Author), Ms. Bhumika Anand (Founder & Director, Bangalore Writers’ Workshop) and MS. Ayesha Shaikh ( Alumni & Head of Business Development, ThinkB Creative Agency)
• “Post Colonial Issues And Contemporary Contexts” by Dr. Swaralipi Nandi (Faculty, Loyola Academy, Hyderabad) - 11 th Nov 2022
• “Women’s Writing in India” by Dr. V Shantha (Faculty (Retired), Department of English, Jyoti Nivas College Autonomous) -9 th Dec 2022 & 20 th Jan 2023
• “Practicing Ethnography And Anthropological Methods” by Michael Kaplan Michael Kaplan (President at Cannon Research Group, Fordham University, Washington, USA) – 15 th Feb 2023
• “Reworking Myth in Dharamvir Bharati’s Andha Yug” by Ms. Aparna Jaishankar (Corporate Trainer, Theatre Enthusiast & Storyteller) – 16 th Feb 2023.
• “The Craft of Translation” by Ms. Parisa Saranj (Iranian-American Writer, Translator & Editor) - 17 Jul 2023

The students also attended seminars organized by the Department of Studies in English, Bengaluru City University:

• Lumiere O’Lit 2022: Exploring Cultures and Society in 21st Century Literature (12- 13 th Sept 2022
• Lumiere O’Lit 2023: Master Class by Dr. Divya Nadkarni (4-6 th Jul 2023)

Conferences:

• Jyoti summit 2022: International Conference on Literature and Ethics: Readings & Representations (18-19 th Nov 2022)
  • Keynote Speaker: Ms. Hollay Ghadery (Writer, Ontaria, Canada)
  • Paper Presentations by 13 students/research scholars on the topic.
• International Conference: Narrativising Contemporary Conflicts and Refugee Experiences (30 th Jan – 1 st Feb 2023)
  • Keynote speakers:
    Dr. Anushiya Ramaswamy (Associate Professor, Southern Illinois University)
    Dr. Merin Simi Raj (Associate Professor, IIT Madras)
    Dr. Mukoma wa Ngugi (Associate Professor, Cornell University)
    Ms. Mahtab Mahboub (Translator & Co-founder of Migrant Mom’s Mic)
  In 1992, with the culmination of the long-drawn Cold War, the American political scientist, Francis Fukuyama, announced that we were witnessing the “end of history”. Contrary to this over-zealous prediction, the world broke into civilizational conflicts fought along fault lines not exactly new but hitherto overwhelmed by bloc ideologies. These identity wars further colluded with and compounded ethnic, religious, and communal strife leading to conflicts whose dynamics turned increasingly complex and, in some cases, almost unsolvable. Sites of violence and fallouts of these conflicts continue. Official narratives, with their focus on statistics and figures, and privileging state polities, rarely document stories of loss, trauma, and the fear of an uncertain future. However, art, literature, and media have attempted to represent contemporary conflicts, focusing on the 'human' cost. The conference explored the nature, structure and politics of such representations. There were 55 paper presentations by faculty, research scholars and students over the course of the three days. 479 persons registered for the conference as paper presenters/attendees.

Workshops:

• A Writing Workshop (10 th & 17 th Jun 2023)
• Insights into Subtitling (4-5 th Aug 2023)

Practice Teaching:

As a part of the 3 rd semester MA English course, “Teaching of English Language and Literature” the students have to teach a PU or Degree English class at Jyoti Nivas College. They are given intensive training and practice in methodology, lesson plans and classroom etiquette before this activity. This is a graded activity and marks are given based on feedback from the students in the class, the faculty who regularly teaches the PU or degree class and the faculty teaching the MA course.

Theatre Production:

Innovative CIA was devised by the department as a means to foster creativity in the students. The first semester students, wrote and produced two plays as a part of their British Literature courses. These were staged in the auditorium with props and costumes of the students’ own devising. They were graded based on creativity, acting and production quality.

Department Activity 2019 - 2020
Date: 22nd January 2020
Event: Spoofs and more:

The cultural Forum is a unique feature of our college that provides a platform for the students to develop and nurture their inner talents. It also helps them enrich their personality by creating in them a sense of team spirit, co-operative group work and leadership qualities. The first Litsapp event of 2020, the spoof competition on the topic “Super Heroes” was conducted on 22-01-2020. Students selected some aspects of Batman, Macbeth, to satirize, exaggerate, disparage, or mock. They parodied a popular advertisement which ridiculed the conventions of rhetoric of advertisement, that it does not tell the truth. It helped every student to think out of the box and be more creative and confident. Prizes were announced and was won by the team from second year for their spoof titled "When Batman comes to Kerala…" Along with Batman, they successfully brought Joker into the limelight too. It was a hilarious performance that evoked exuberant laughter among the audience.

Date: 11th January 2020
Event: Workshop on technical Writing
A workshop on Technical Writing was organized on 11 January 2020 with Dr. Anila Varghese, Senior Technical Editor at Juniper Networks as the resource person. The workshop was attended by 26 students from the departments of MA English and MBA, MCA and M. Com (FA). Dr. Varghese began by talking about the opportunities and advantages of a career in technical writing and proceeded to take the students through the demands and essentials of technical writing. The students as a part of the writing exercise were asked undertake writing exercises and given feedback on what they had written. The workshop concluded with an overview of the technology interface that technical writers are required to use and a demonstration on how to use it.

Date: 3rd and 4th February 2020
Event: Theatre Workshop on the play Final Solutions
Ashish Sen, the well-known theatre artist, director and community radio specialist, was invited to JyotiNivas PG Centre by the English department for a Theatre Workshop on the play Final Solutions on 3rd and 4th February 2020 for the MA students. The workshop saw maximum participation from both the first and second-year students. He was asked to initiate a discussion on the prominent play Final Solutions by Mahesh Dattani. The sessions were interactive as he joined the students, altering the very notion of workshop where merely the guest speaks. Mr. AshishSen made all the students to act as well as speak their heart. Students actively participated in the workshop, genuinely clarifying all their doubts and sharing their different perceptual readings of the text. Interesting perspectives came from the audience which led to a discussion and exchange of ideas.

Date: 12th February 2020
Event: Movie Mania
Movie mania: As a part of their Litsapp Activity, students of MA English conducted the screening of the Oscar winning film, Parasite which was recognised world-wide for its subversion of prevalent economic structure. Held on 12th February, the students and teachers received the movie so well that the interactive session after the screening of the movie proved to be insightful. The responses from both students and teachers stirred a discussion with regard to the very execution of the film and the issues and conflicts it dealt with. The discussion brought in several nuances to the film which evoked better understanding among the audience. Though the film is more peculiar to the Korean culture and its social conditions, the audience could relate with the movie which ultimately enriched them.

Date: 15th February 2020
Event: National Seminar on ‘Art, Protest and Politics’
National Seminar on ‘Art, Protest and Politics’: Often when all else fails, art speaks. The theme for this year’s National seminar held by the MA department on 15th of February 2020 was ‘Art, Protest and Politics’. The seminar highlighted the powerful and lasting effects of art during turbulent times and how art becomes the medium of politics and protest. The keynote speaker for the morning session was the recipient of the Magsaysay award, Mr. T M Krishna a well-known Carnatic musician, and social activist, who through his music has questioned and resisted the various systems of power that govern the art form. Mr. Krishna focused on art’s ideological foundations and how engagement with art makes the artist ‘vulnerable’ to the hegemonic order providing the opportunity of criticism and resistance from within. In his talk, Mr. Krishna connected his own experience with Carnatic music and his journey as a musician to illustrate this point. He also highlighted the various politics that determine one’s identity. Post lunch, the keynote address was delivered by Dr. Bitasta Das (faculty, IISc,Bangalore). She spoke on how folklore comes from a tradition of resistance to hegemonic structures of oppression and how in contemporary times, folklore continues to be used and re-used as a medium to challenge oppressive meta-narratives. Over the course of the day, a total of 36 papers were presented by academics, scholars and students from across the country. The seminar was attended by 120 participants.

Date: 19th February 2020
Event: For the sake of Art
Creativity is that aspect which enables to transform one’s ideas, imagination and dreams into reality. Getting an opportunity to showcase one’s creativity should never be missed. As a part of Litsapp event, students were given a chance to exhibit their creative abilities on 19th February 2020. There are particular themes that are contemporary in nature, on which students had to work on, such as love, peace, horror, climate change, and ‘my city’. The students were free to choose their topic as well as to paint or write as per their choice. Both the first years and second years actively participated.

Date: 14th October 2019
Event: Guest Lecture on Breast Cancer Awareness by Dr. Nalini Rao

Date: 13th September 2019
Event: Teachers’ Day Celebration
TEACHERS DAY CELEBRATION by students on 13th September, it was celebrated to commend our teachers for their ceaseless efforts to motivate and enlighten us in all walks of life. Cultural events followed by games made the day memorable.
Students also celebrated Onam a regional festival on the same day; the importance of this festival the ethnic and regional significance with which the festival is celebrated was the main focus of the activity, accordingly events such as dance, song, were performed.

Date: 2nd August 2019
Event: Fresher's Day - Litzapp Activity I
Immediately after the start of the new academic year, Fresher’s start dreaming about Fresher’s Day. The purpose of the event is to welcome newcomers in a friendly atmosphere and to encourage their creative impulses to boost their confidence. Hence MA English students of Jyoti Nivas Post Graduate Center held the fresher’s day program for first years on the 2nd August 2019 in the college auditorium as a part of their litzapp activities.

Date: 24th July 2019
Event: Orientation Day
The orientation programme for the fresher’s of Jyoti Nivas Post Graduate Centre was held on 24th July 2019 in the Jyoti Nivas PG Auditorium. It was inaugurated with the lighting of lamp by the Director, Dr. Sr. Lalitha, teachers and students from the new batch. Students presented the history of the founding sisters of Tarbes, the M.A. Students enacted a parody of Shakespearean play Macbeth. Cultural programs by M.Com department.