Dr Gayatri Balu | Tata Institute of Social Sciences

Dr Gayatri Balu

Assistant Professor
Mumbai Campus,
Assistant Professor, Advanced Centre for Women's Studies, School of Development Studies

Qualification

Ph.D (Gender Studies) - JNU.

MA (Social Work) - TISS, Mumbai.

MA (Women's and Gender Studies) - IGNOU

B.Tech (Computer Science) - CALICUT UNIVERSITY

Contact

gayatri.balu[at]tiss[dot]ac[dot]in

Gayatri is an alumna of both Jawaharlal Nehru University and TISS, Mumbai. She holds a Ph.D. in Gender Studies. Her doctoral dissertation, titled "Mapping Transformations: A Study of Velichappads in Kerala," explores gender, caste, and labour within marginalised religious practices. With a diverse professional background, Gayatri has served as Principal Project Scientist at STEMtheGap, Indian Institute of Technology Delhi; as a Senior Research Associate at the Society for Social and Economic Research, New Delhi; and as a Young Professional at the Odisha Livelihoods Mission in Bhubaneswar. Gayatri is bilingual scholar publishing in Malayalam and English.

My research explores gender, religion, and labor, with a particular focus on marginalized religious practices, care economies, and gendered labor dynamics. I am also interested in gender in public policy and the gendered experiences of STEM education.

Balu, Gayatri. 2024. “Reassessing Responses and Reimagining Needs: Nattukar and Dowry Deaths in Kerala.” Social Scientist 52 (7/8): 47-58

Balu, Gayatri. 2024. “Living on the Margins, Working in the Planned: Domestic Workers Traversing to/Between Squatter Settlements and Planned Colonies in South and South-West Delhi.” Society and Culture in South Asia 10(2): 177-196.

Balu, Gayatri. 2022. "Masculinity and Marriage: Interrogating Possession among Velichappad Men of Northern Kerala." Men and Masculinities 25 (5): 765-781.

Balu, Gayatri. 2021. “In Search of Writing.” Economic and Political Weekly 56 (52): 80–81.

Balu, Gayatri. 2020. “Housing Sector in Kerala and the Relevance of Sustainable Approach” Praxis International Journal of Social Science and Literature 3 (09): 1-13

Other Publications:

Balu, Gayatri. “Periyar: A Study in Political Atheism.” Book Review, Doing Sociology, August 2023

Balu, Gayatri & Asok, Aswathi. “Seeking a Discussion: Unraveling the Gender Politics Shaped by Kudumbashree.” TrueCopy Think [Malayalam], July, 2023.

Balu, Gayatri. “25 years of her Kudumbashree.” Cue[Malayalam], May 2023.

Balu, Gayatri. “Nothing human is alien to me: Not a Book Review.” LeftWord Blog, October 2022

Balu, Gayatri. “Digitalisation, Unpaid Labour and Anganwadi Services.” Doing Sociology, July 2022.

Will be updated soon...

Courses taught:

Women’s Literature in South Asia: Issues and Perspectives

Gender and Public Policy