PhD candidate Devi Nayar awarded Wenner-Gren dissertation research grant

Tuesday, April 15, 2025

Congratulations to Devi Nayar, a third-year student in the combined PhD in Architecture and Anthropology, who has been awarded a dissertation research grant by the Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research for her project titled “Anthropology of Transnational Dwelling in the Indian Ocean Network.” This study examines Kerala’s transnational architecture that emerged in the 1970s, driven by the circular migration of its workers and professionals to the Gulf countries and back. By analyzing the built environment ––– specifically, houses and public spaces constructed with remittances from migrant workers, this study explores how circular migration enabled new architectural aesthetics, materiality, spatial practices, and social mobility in the home state and subsequently produced a new cosmopolitan way of living from below.