Dr. Aiswarya R. Rao
Assistant Professor, Department of Arts and Humanities
Profile
Dr. Aiswarya R. Rao
Assistant Professor of English
Dr. Aiswarya R. Rao is a Ph.D.-qualified Assistant Professor of English Language and Literature with 12+ years of cumulative teaching experience across higher education institutions in India and abroad. She has taught undergraduate and postgraduate students in English Language and Literature, Literary and Critical Theory, Communication Skills, Technical Writing, Business English and Soft Skills.
She holds a Ph.D. in English Literature from Mahatma Gandhi University, Kerala, awarded in 2021, with her doctoral research focusing on revisionist narratives and the re-visioning of Indian epics in contemporary Indian fiction. Her broader research interests include Revisionist Literatures, Musicology, Gender Studies, Digital Humanities, AI Ethics, Cultural Studies, Posthumanism, Film Studies, Memory Studies and Spatial Humanities. She has published research articles in peer-reviewed journals, including UGC CARE publications, presented papers at national and international academic conferences, and authored the poetry collection Lanterns in the Mist.
Alongside her academic career, she is an independent musician, composer, music educator and a trained Carnatic and Hindustani vocalist, who is a recipient of the Red FM Malayalam Music Award for Best Non-Film Album and other international music awards.
Area
English Language & Literature; Revisionist Literatures; Cultural Studies; Gender Studies
Qualification
B.A. English, M.A. English & Comparative Literature, UGC-NET, Ph.D. English Language & Literature
Experience
12 Years
Publications
Patents
- Published a utility patent on Adaptive Learning Platform for Personalized Study and Interpretation of English Literature on 21st August 2026 – Ref ID: 202641098855.
Books
- Published Lanterns in the Mist, a poetry book featuring poems by M.A. students in 2025, under the label of Writer’s Pocket Publishing. ISBN-13: 978-93-6868-101-4.
Journal Articles
- Published ‘A Comparative Study of the Idea of Feminism in Kamala Das’s An Introduction and Rukmini Bhaya Nair’s Kali’ in The International Journal of Creative and Research Thought, Vol. 12, pages c929-938 (2024).
- Published ‘Personal Values and their Effect on Young Adults Pertaining to OTT Platforms’ in The International Journal of Recent Research in Social Sciences and Humanities (IJRRSSH), Vol. 10, pages 23-26 (2023). DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.7568498.
- Published ‘Re-Visioning the Self in Volga’s The Liberation of Sita’ in the International Journal of English Language, Literature and Humanities (IJELLH), Vol. 6, Issue 7, pages 194-202 on 9th July 2018. ISSN: 2321-7065.
- Published the paper ‘Nature as Saviour: An Ecological Interpretation of Leela’ in The Investigator – An International Refereed Journal of Multi-Disciplinary Explorations, Vol. 3, Issue 1, in March 2017.
- Published a paper titled ‘The Krishna Key: A Key to Unlock the Culture and History of India’ in the Teresian Journal of English Studies (TJES), Vol. 7, No. 1, October 2015.
Poems
- Published ‘Time’, a poem, in The Criterion – An International Journal in English, Vol. 14, pages 289-290, Issue-I, February 2023. ISSN: 0976-8165.
- Published the poem ‘Fireflies’ in The Criterion – An International Journal in English, Vol. 13, pages 267-268 (2023).
Conference Proceedings
- Published an abstract ‘Personal Values and their Effect on Young Adults Pertaining to OTT Platforms’ in the E-book of Abstracts for the International Conference Foretell 2022 conducted by CAIAS, Bengaluru (2022).
- Published an abstract ‘Re-Visionist Narratives as Intertextual Discourses: A Study of Select Works based on The Mahabharata’ in the E-book of Abstracts for the International Conference Foretell 2022 conducted by CAIAS, Bengaluru (2022).
FDPs / Workshops / Seminars
Conference Presentations / Keynote Addresses
- Presented ‘Singing Belonging in a Layered City: Konkani Folk Songs and Memoryscapes in Kochi’ at Sacred Heart College (2026).
- Presented ‘Planetary Spatial Analysis of Dark Tourism at Hiroshima One World Trade Center and Jallianwala Bagh’ at Manipal University Jaipur (2025).
- Presented ‘Digital Patriarchy and the Ethics of Feminized AI’ at Shiksha ‘O’ Anusandhan (2025).
- Presented ‘Malayali Tradwives and the Revival of the Kulasthree: Digital Reinforcement of Patriarchal Norms’ at Christ University, Bangalore (2025).
- Delivered a keynote address on ‘Comparative Analysis of Non-Human Entities in Contemporary Indian and Western Films and Literatures’ at Queen Mary’s College, Chennai (2024).
- Presented ‘Re-Visionist Narratives as Intertextual Discources: A Study of Select Works based on the Mahabharata’ at EFLU, Hyderabad (2023).
- Presented ‘Re-visioning the Self in Volga’s The Liberation of Sita’ at the Two-Day National Seminar on Paradigms of Gender and Sexuality, Paavanatma College, Murickassery, 9th and 10th March 2018.
- Presented ‘Nature as Saviour: An Ecological Interpretation of Leela’ at the UGC-recognised Two-Day International Seminar on Forest and Literature, ACSR, Thrissur, 24th and 25th February 2017.
Faculty Development Programmes (FDPs)
- FDP – Advanced Informative and Emerging Trends in Teaching and Research (Innovative Teaching and Learning Pedagogy), Research Foundation of India, Aug 24-30, 2024.
- Faculty Enrichment Programme on Research Methodology, Kristu Jayanti College, 2024.
- National Level FDP on Research Methodology, Department of Commerce & IQAC, CAIAS, Bengaluru, Oct 3-7, 2023.
- FDP – English Literature of the Romantic Period, 1798-1832, NPTEL-SWAYAM, 2023, 8 weeks.
- Five-Day FDP – Teaching Dynamics: Contemporary Challenges and Solutions, Department of Arts & Humanities, CAIAS, Nov 28 – Dec 2, 2022.
- Certificate Course & FDP – Brief Introduction to Psychology, NPTEL-SWAYAM, Jul-Aug 2022, 4 weeks.
- NPTEL-SWAYAM FDP – Text, Textuality & Digital Media, 2020.
Workshops and Training Programmes
- National Online Workshop – From Ideas to Identity: Protecting and Navigating Innovations through Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) in the Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences, Loyola College, Chennai, Sep 19-20, 2024.
- Three-Day National Level Workshop on Research Methodology, Kristu Jayanti College, Bengaluru, Aug 28-30, 2024.
- NPTEL-SWAYAM Certification – Romantic Period Literature, 2023.
- NPTEL-SWAYAM FDP – Introduction to Psychology, 2022.
- UGC-Sponsored National Workshop on Capacity Building in Academic Writing and Publishing, Golden Jubilee Memorial Library, STC, Mar 15, 2017.
- UGC-Sponsored Workshop on Educational Leadership and Teacher Wellness, Community College & IQAC, St. Teresa’s College, Feb 27, 2017.
- Translation Studies Workshop – Traversing Borders, St. Teresa’s College, Feb 1, 2017.
- UGC-Sponsored Workshop on Fourth Cycle Accreditation in Autonomous Colleges, IQAC & Audit Cell, St. Teresa’s College, Jun 22, 2016.
- Master Trainers Programme – Additional Skill Acquisition Programme (ASAP), Apr 3-4, 2016.
Conferences & Seminars
Conference Presentations / Keynote Addresses
- Presented the paper “The Krishna Key: A Key to Unlock the Culture and History of India” at the UGC-Sponsored National Seminar on Culture and Literature: A Paradigmatic Shift of Ideas, organized by Aquinas College, Edakochi, on 3–4 September 2015.
- Participated and presented at the National Conference on Modern Trends in Research–2016, organized by Teresian Research and Consultancy Cell, on 16 December 2016.
- Presented the paper “Nature as Saviour: An Ecological Interpretation of Leela” at the UGC-Recognised Two-Day International Seminar on Forest and Literature, organized by ACSR, Thrissur, in collaboration with Cochin University of Science and Technology (CUSAT), on 24–25 February 2017.
- Participated and presented at the National Conference on Modern Trends in Research–2017, organized by Teresian Research and Consultancy Cell, on 19 October 2017.
- Presented the paper “Re-visioning the Self in Volga’s The Liberation of Sita” at the Two-Day National Seminar on Paradigms of Gender and Sexuality, organized by Paavanatma College, Murickassery, on 9–10 March 2018.
- Participated and presented a paper titled “Re-Visionist Narratives as Intertextual Discourses: A Study of Select Works based on the Mahabharata” at the International Conference Foretell 2022, conducted by CAIAS, Bengaluru.
- Participated and presented a paper titled “Personal Values and their Effect on Young Adults Pertaining to OTT Platforms” at the International Conference Foretell 2022, conducted by CAIAS, Bengaluru.
- Presented the paper “Re-Visionist Narratives as Intertextual Discourses: A Study of Select Works Based on the Mahabharata” at the International Conference Mahabharata Epic Across Asia, organized by the English and Foreign Languages University (EFLU), Hyderabad, sponsored by ICSSR, from 29–31 May 2023.
- Delivered the keynote address titled “Comparative Analysis of Non-Human Entities in Contemporary Indian and Western Films and Literatures” at the Symposium on Dialoguing with the Non-Human, organized by Queen Mary’s College, Chennai, on 18 October 2024.
- Presented the paper “Malayali Tradwives and the Revival of the Kulasthree: Digital Reinforcement of Patriarchal Norms” at the International Conference on Gender and Media Narratives, organized by Christ University, Bangalore, on 17 March 2025.
- Presented the paper “Digital Patriarchy and the Ethics of Feminized AI: Algorithmic Domesticity in the Age of Artificial Intelligence” at the International Conference on Future of Humanities in an AI-Driven World, organized by Shiksha ‘O’ Anusandhan University, on 11–13 July 2025.
- Presented the paper “From Architectural Control to Algorithmic Capitalism: The Evolution of the Panopticon in the Digital Surveillance Era” at the International Conference Imagining Futures: Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Humanity, Crisis and Change, organized by New Literaria, on 25–26 September 2025.
- Presented the paper “From Trauma Cartographies to Memoryscape: A Planetary Spatial Analysis of Dark Tourism at Hiroshima, One World Trade Center, and Jallianwala Bagh” at the International Conference (Hybrid Mode) on Planetary Habitability and Critical Humanities: Reimagining Ethics, Narratives, and Coexistence (ICPHCH-25), organized by Manipal University Jaipur, on 7–8 October 2025.
- Presented the paper “Singing Belonging in a Layered City: Konkani Folk Songs and Memoryscapes in Kochi” at the conference Kochi: A Palimpsest of Histories and Futures, organized by Sacred Heart College (Autonomous), Thevara, Kochi, on 22–23 January 2026.
Organizing Committee & Event Management
- Organizing Committee Member – 22nd Kochi International Book Festival (KIBF 2018) (Ernakulathappan Grounds, Kochi, Nov 2-11, 2018). Interviewed Anand Neelakantan.
- Organizing Committee Member – 21st Kochi International Book Festival (KIBF 2017) (Ernakulathappan Grounds, Kochi, Dec 1-10, 2017). Interacted with Telugu writer Volga on Dec 6, 2017.
- Organized & Participated – 12th International & 48th ELTAI Annual Conference (St. Teresa’s College, Ernakulam, Jun 29 – Jul 1, 2017).
- Organized & Participated – National Seminar on Transforming Theatre: Non-Conformist Trends in Performing Arts (St. Teresa’s College, Ernakulam, Feb 9, 2016)
Resource Person
- Delivered a keynote address on ‘Comparative Analysis of Non-Human Entities in Contemporary Indian and Western Films and Literatures’ at the symposium on Dialoguing with the non-human on 18 October 2024, conducted by Queen Mary’s College (Autonomous) Chennai
- Served as a resource person on ‘Music-The Timeless Arts of Life’ for the student induction programme held at Government Polytechnic College, Kothamangalam on 1st November 2021.
Awards and Accolades
- The musical ”Nila’, written, composed and sung by Dr. Aiswarya R Rao bagged the Red FM Malayalam Music Awards 2019.
- The Musical ‘Jalam’, composed by her received various international accolades – One Earth Award 2022, Royal Society of Television and Motion Picture Award 2022, Munich Music Video Award 2022; official selections at Art Film and Music Video Awards 2022, Malabar Music Festival 2023, Kerala Short Film Festival 2022 and Prague Music Festival 2022.

