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Indian Writing in English

By Prof. Binod Mishra   |   Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee
Learners enrolled: 413
This course carrying 5 credits will cater to the CBCS based curricula of B.A. English Honours and will provide learners with a detailed overview of the socio-political condition of Indian Writing in English both during pre and post-independence India.

Course Objectives
  • Comprehensive knowledge of Indian Writing in English
  • Indian sensibility
  • Detailed familiarity with all the major genres
  • Trends and movements in Indian Writing in English
  • Indian myths and beliefs
  • Indian Literary Tradition

Summary
Course Status : Upcoming
Course Type : Core
Language for course content : English
Duration : 15 weeks
Category :
  • English
Credit Points : 5
Level : Undergraduate
Start Date : 12 Jan 2026
End Date : 30 Apr 2026
Enrollment Ends : 28 Feb 2026
Exam Date :
Translation Languages : English
NCrF Level   : 5.0

Page Visits



Course layout

Week 1: Introduction
Module 01: Introduction to Indian Writing in English
Module 02: Different Phases of Indian Writing in English
Module 03: Different Genres of Indian Writing in English, Part I
Module 04: Different Genres of Indian Writing in English, Part II
Module 05: Different Genres of Indian Writing in English, Part III

Week 2: R. K. Narayan as a Novelist
Module 06: R. K. Narayan - Life and Works
Module 07: Swami and Friends - Theme, Plot, and Characters
Module 08: Relevance of R. K. Narayan

Week 3: Anita Desai as a Novelist
Module 09: Anita Desai - Life and Works
Module 10: In Custody – Theme, Plot, and Characters 
Module 11: Stylistic Features in Anita Desai’s Novels

Week 4: Indian English Poetry Part I
Module 12: Socio-political Impacts on Indian English Poets
Module 13: H. L. V. Derozio – The First Indian English Poet
Module 14: “Freedom to the Slave”
Module 15: “The Orphan Girl”

Week 5: Indian English Poetry Part II
Module 16: Indian Women Poets
Module 17: Sarojini Naidu - “The Nightingale of India”
Module 18: “An Indian Love Song”
Module 19: “The Palanquin Bearers” and “To a Buddha Seated on a Lotus”

Week 6: Indian English Poetry Part III
Module 20: Modernity in Indian English Poetry
Module 21: Nissim Ezekiel – Life and Works
Module 22: “Enterprise” – Thematic Analysis
Module 23: “Night of the Scorpion”

Week 7: Indian English Poetry Part IV
Module 24: Kamala Das: Life and Works
Module 25: “An Introduction” – Thematic Analysis
Module 26: “My Grandmother’s House”

Week 8: Mahesh Dattani as a Dramatist
Module 27: Mahesh Dattani
Module 28: Mahesh Dattani’s Tara
Module 29: Relevance of Mahesh Dattani

Week 9: Indian Short Stories in English Part I
Module 30: Indian Short Stories in English: An Overview
Module 31: Mulk Raj Anand as a Short Story Writer
Module 32: Mulk Raj Anand’s “Two Lady Rams”

Week 10: Indian Short Stories in English Part II
Module 33: Indian Women Short Story Writers in English: An Overview
Module 34: Shashi Deshpande’s “The Intrusion”
Module 35: Salman Rushdie’s “Free Radio”
 
Week 11: Indian Short Stories in English Part III
Module 36: Rohinton Mistry: Life and Works
Module 37: Rohinton Mistry “Swimming Lessons”
Module 38: Manjula Padmanabhan’s “Stains”

Week 12: Poetry from the North-East
Module 39: “A Poem for Mother” - Thematic Analysis 
Module 40: “The Strange Affair of Robin S. Ngangom” – Thematic Analysis

Week 13: Dalit and Non-fiction Writings
Module 41: Dalit Writings- Part I
Module 42: Dalit Writings- Part II
Module 43: Non-Fiction Writings in IWE
Module 44: Autobiographies in Indian Writing in English

Week 14: Writings from North-East 
Module 45: North-East Indian Voices in English Literature Part I
Module 46: North-East Indian Voices in English Literature Part II

Week 15: Indian Diaspora and Conclusion
Module 47: Indian Diaspora Part I
Module 48: Indian Diaspora Part II
Module 49: Indian Diaspora Part III
Module 50: Summary of Indian Writing in English

Books and references

  • A Concise History of Indian Literature in English- Arvind Krishna Mehrotra 
  • A History of Indian Writing in English- M.K. Naik 
  • A Contemporary Encyclopedia of Indian Literature in English, Volume I- ed. Kalyani Vallath
  • A Glossary of Literary Terms- M.H. Abrams and Geoffrey Galt Harpham
  • An Illustrated History of Indian Literature in English- A.K. Mehrotra
  • Colonial and Postcolonial Literature: Migrant Metaphors- Elleke Boehmer
  • Critical Responses to Feminism- Binod Mishra  
  • Indian Writing in English- K. R. Srinivasa Iyengar
  • In Theory: Classes, Nations, Literatures- Aijaz Ahmad  
  • Indian English Literature: A Critical Survey- Makarand Paranjape

Instructor bio

Prof. Binod Mishra

Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Roorkee
A well-known name in English literary fraternity, Dr. Binod Mishra, Professor of English, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, IIT Roorkee, has done his Ph.D. on the works of Mulk Raj Anand. He has served as a faculty in various reputed institutions and contributed academically to many national and international journals and conferences. He has published 25 books (18 edited and 07 authored) on various aspects of English language and literature.  One of his books entitled Communication Skills for Engineers and Scientists, (2009, 2nd edition 2023 published from Prentice Hall, India) is used as a text book and reference book in many reputed colleges and universities. He is also credited with two poetry collections, namely Silent Steps and Other Poems (2011) and Multiple Waves (2017). He has supervised 20 PhDs and many more are presently working under him. 

Prof. Mishra has also significantly published his research articles in Scopus-indexed journals. He has also conducted more than a dozen QIP and three TEQIP Workshops at IIT Roorkee and presented papers in at least 90 conferences of national and international repute, besides delivering more than 100 talks in various conferences, workshops, and FDPs. He has visited several countries namely, Japan, Malaysia, Thailand, France, Poland, Czech Republic, U.S.A and U.K. His four very famous NPTEL courses namely, Soft Skills, Effective Writing, Indian Poetry in English and Public Speaking have brought him immense popularity in Indian academia.
  
Associated with several literary bodies, Prof. Mishra is also on the editorial advisory board of many reputed journals, and BoS member of several universities. Elected twice as Editor-in-Chief of Indian Journal of English Studies(IJES) for six years, he had also been Vice Chairman, Association for English Studies of India (earlier IAES) for five years.

Prof. Mishra is also credited with several prestigious awards, namely AIMS International Distinguished Service Award, 2008 (in Indian Business Academy, 29 December, New Delhi), AIMS International Outstanding Editor Award, 2009 (in IIM Bangalore, 21 December, 2009) and “Excellence in World Poetry Award” on 5th January, 2010 by International Poets Academy, Chennai, India.  In addition, International Sufi Centre, Bangalore conferred upon him a Citation of the Brightest Honour on 1st September,2020, recognizing him among 25 Indian English Poets for their contribution to communal harmony and cosmic humanism. 

Prof. Mishra can be reached at https://iitr.ac.in/~HS/binodfhs

Course certificate

Internal Assessment
Weekly assessments released in the course shall be considered for Internal Marks and will carry 30 percent for the Overall Result. Out of all weekly assignments, the top 50% of assignments shall be considered for the calculation of the final Internal Assessment marks.

End-term Assessment
The final exam shall be conducted by NTA, and will carry 70 percent for the overall Result.

All students who obtain 40% marks in the internal assessment and 40% marks in the end-term proctored exam separately will be eligible for the SWAYAM Credit Certificate.
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