Department of

English and Cultural Studies

About

The Department of English and Cultural Studies is committed to fostering academic excellence and empowerment through dynamic teaching and research. It nurtures literary sensibilities, linguistic proficiency, critical thinking, and creative reasoning, while promoting socio-cultural awareness in the evolving digital landscape.
With a focus on interdisciplinarity, the department offers an MA in English with Digital Humanities, integrating advanced digital methodologies into literary studies, research, and cultural analysis. The program emphasizes Computational Literary Studies, exploring how digital tools and quantitative methods enhance textual interpretation, literary history, and cultural analytics.
By intersecting literary studies with broader disciplines such as science and technology, management, media studies, and social sciences, the department recontextualizes literature within multimodal frameworks, preparing students to engage with contemporary global challenges in academia, industry, and beyond.

Department

Overview

The Department of English and Cultural Studies at Christ University, Lavasa stands at the cutting edge of Digital Humanities, offering an MA programme in English with Digital Humanities, specializing in Computational Literary Studies—a unique blend of literature, technology, and cultural analytics. As Lavasa is a hub of analytics, our program leverages its data-driven ecosystem to equip students with advanced text analysis, sentiment analysis, and Natural Language Processing (NLP) techniques. Positioned at the intersection of literary studies and AI-driven methodologies, the programme explores how big data, machine learning, and computational tools reshape literary interpretation, storytelling, and cultural discourse. Rooted in India’s New Education Policy (NEP) 2020, our interdisciplinary approach fosters multidisciplinary learning, digital skill-building, and research-driven education, aligning with Sustainable Development Goals (SDG 4) by promoting inclusive, high-quality education for the digital era. Students gain hands-on experience with Voyant Tools, ATLAS.ti, Python-based text analysis, and data visualization platforms, preparing them for careers as data journalists, computational linguists, AI-driven content strategists, and digital curators. As the first of its kind in India, this programme is a USP of our department, offering a future-ready curriculum that positions students at the forefront of Digital Humanities, analytics, and literary-tech innovations. 

Message

from the HOD

"The digital approach to literature and language opens up a plethora of possibilities for students.”
Literature and language shape society in various ways by exploring what it is to be human. It is also the most effective way to understand the culture. Most of the biggest questions could be answered by drawing on literature, language, culture and technology. The Department of English and Cultural Studies provides an interdisciplinary platform to its students where they can learn, share, and apply cutting-edge methods to integrate and interrogate traditional literature and contemporary society. The department offers a Master of Arts in English with Digital Humanities. The programme focuses on developing an advanced understanding of digital methodologies relevant to research, culture and information sectors. Its unique curriculum helps the students deepen their understanding of cultural practices in the digital age. 
With its progressive and innovative approach towards the literary field, students will be well-equipped to navigate the digital literary landscape. The digital approach to literature and language opens up a plethora of possibilities for students. In addition, projects, internships, and dissertations provide them with experiential learning opportunities. Our faculty are involved in interdisciplinary research and open to collaborations at national and international levels. Besides having expertise in gender studies, masculinity studies, popular culture, English Language Teaching, Natural Language Processing, communication studies, subaltern studies, city studies etc., they are also published poets, novelists, translators, and writers. The department strives towards utilising knowledge to not just reflect but re-shape and re-frame society. 
 

Dr Richa Srishti

PROGRAMMES

Department

Facilities

A bird's eye-view of all the events and activities of the department

Campus

Events

Show all Events

No active events to list.

No active events to list.

No active events to list.

No active events to list.

No active events to list.

Testimonials

Show all

Dr Ashok Thorat

Director, Institute of Advanced Studies in English, Pune

I visited CHRIST University, Lavasa Campus in order to interact with the faculty and students, mainly from the humanities, on the emerging discipline of Digital Humanities. I found both the students and teachers quite inquisitive and probing. I faced a lot of quality questions and enjoyed replying to all. The administration and the host department were quite cordial and

Read More

Sharanya Ghosh

Doctoral Researcher, IIT Jodhpur, Rajasthan

I conducted two sessions with the faculty members and newly admitted students of the MA in English with Digital Humanities (MA EDH) programme at Christ University Lavasa. The first, on digital tools for creative writing, engaged faculty members, emphasizing open, AI-driven resources for improved classroom interaction. The second session was jointly conducted with my colleague at IIT Jodhpur where

Read More

Dr Shanmugapriya T

Postdoctoral Scholar, Digital Humanities University of Toronto

I thoroughly enjoyed delivering a lecture on 'An Introduction to Text Mining' at Christ University. The MA in English in Digital Humanities at Christ is a promising program that reflects the needs of contemporary digital society and culture. The integration of DH in academic programs not only prepares students for the evolving landscape of the digital era but also

Read More

Digangana Chanda

MA ENGLISH

I find that the course extends beyond the conventional boundaries of Humanities studies, making it highly relevant to modern societal and professional contexts. The inventive curriculum design has pushed me beyond mere theoretical learning, involving me through diverse methods like storymapping and daily blog assignments, ensuring my continuous participation. I have been fortunate enough to be able to

Read More

Kareena Mathew

MA ENGLISH

The course seamlessly blends English literature with digital tools, providing a deep understanding of both traditional literary concepts and modern digital methodologies. I have understood complex subjects through the  incorporation of CIAs, which was simplified by infusing them with creative elements. Through tasks like multimedia presentations and digital storytelling, the program ensures that I, not only grasp

Read More

Faculty

Members

Name
Specialization
Department

AARON GEORGE

MA ENGLISH AND CULTURAL STUDIES (Lavasa) View

Dr ALPANA AKOLKAR

MA, PhD ENGLISH AND CULTURAL STUDIES (Lavasa) View

CHRISTINE ELIZABETH SAMUEL

MA ENGLISH AND CULTURAL STUDIES (Lavasa) View

ELIZABETH VARKEY

MA, M.Phil ENGLISH AND CULTURAL STUDIES (Lavasa) View

JOHN STEWARD RAJ J

MA ENGLISH AND CULTURAL STUDIES (Lavasa) View

LOVELYN MARY ANDREWS

MA ENGLISH AND CULTURAL STUDIES (Lavasa) View

Dr RICHA

MA,MPhil,PhD ENGLISH AND CULTURAL STUDIES (Lavasa) View

Dr RIMI NANDY

PhD, MA ENGLISH AND CULTURAL STUDIES (Lavasa) View

Vision

To critically reflect and re-frame society through a contemporary digital lens.

Mission

To promote academic excellence and empowerment through teaching and research that fosters literary sensibilities, language competence, critical thinking, imaginative reasoning, and socio-political awareness in the contemporary digital world.

Department

Photos


View All

CHRIST

(Deemed to be University)

Christ University Road, 30 Valor Court
At Post: Dasve Lavasa,Taluka: Mulshi
Pune 412112, Maharashtra.

Tel: 1800-123-2009

Email: mail.lavasa@christuniversity.in

Web: http://www.lavasa.christuniversity.in

Vision

EXCELLENCE AND SERVICE

Mission

CHRIST (Deemed to be University) is a nurturing ground for an individual's holistic development to make effective contribution to the society in a dynamic environment.

Copyright © CHRIST (Deemed to be University) 2020
Website Developed by Cloud Business Pages from INI Technologies Pvt Ltd., Kochi, India