A prominent UK-based academic, Professor Francesca Orsini, was recently denied entry into India upon her arrival at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport. Orsini, a Professor Emerita at the prestigious School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, was reportedly deported back to Hong Kong, where her journey originated, on Monday.
(Photo: Social Media)
Officials, who requested anonymity, indicated that Professor Orsini was traveling on a tourist visa and was found to have allegedly violated its terms. However, media reports quote Orsini asserting that she possessed a valid visa but was still barred from entering the country.
A Literary Historian Deeply Rooted in South Asia’s Multilingualism
Francesca Orsini is an acclaimed Italian scholar renowned for her expertise in South Asian literature, with a particular focus on Hindi and Urdu. Her academic journey culminated in a PhD from SOAS, University of London, where she later retired as a Professor Emerita of Hindi and South Asian Literature. Prior to her tenure at SOAS, which began in 2006, she served as a lecturer at the University of Cambridge.
On the SOAS website, Professor Orsini articulates her academic passion: “I am a literary historian working primarily with Hindi and Urdu materials and interested in exploring how multilingualism worked and continues to work within the literary cultures of South Asia.”
An Extensive Educational Background Spanning Three Countries
Professor Orsini’s academic foundations were laid with a BA in Hindi from Venice University in Italy. Her pursuit of knowledge brought her to India, where she furthered her studies at the Central Institute of Hindi and the esteemed Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in Delhi. She completed her doctoral research at SOAS, University of London, concentrating on the Hindi literary public sphere during the pivotal decades of the 1920s and 1930s.
Her doctoral thesis was subsequently published as The Hindi Public Sphere, 1920–1940: Language and Literature in the Age of Nationalism (Oxford University Press, 2002). This seminal work delves into the intricate balance between literary innovation and the development of a moral-patriotic canon within India’s educational landscape of that era.
Acclaimed Publications and Groundbreaking Academic Projects
Throughout her career, Orsini has authored several influential academic publications. Her 2009 book, Print and Pleasure: Popular Literature and Entertaining Fictions in Colonial North India (Permanent Black), explored Hindi and Urdu commercial publishing practices in the 19th century. More recently, in 2023, she released East of Delhi: Multilingual Literary Culture and World Literature through Oxford University Press.
Beyond her individual publications, she spearheaded the AHRC-funded project titled “North Indian Literary Culture and History” from 2006 to 2009. Following this, she led the European Research Council project, “Multilingual Locals and Significant Geographies: For a New Approach to World Literature” (MULOSIGE), from 2016 to 2021. This ambitious project aimed to re-evaluate world literature by examining it through diverse regional perspectives across North India, the Maghreb, and the Horn of Africa.
Recognized Academic with Prestigious International Affiliations
Professor Francesca Orsini’s significant contributions to academia have earned her widespread recognition. She was elected as a Fellow of the British Academy (FBA) in July 2017. Her impressive resume also includes a tenure as a Mary I. Bunting Institute Fellow at the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, Harvard University, during the 2013–2014 academic year. Additionally, she has held visiting academic positions at both Columbia University and the University of Pennsylvania.
According to public records, Orsini married English Japanologist Peter Kornicki in 1998. As an Italian citizen, she has not pursued UK citizenship or permanent residency.