Dr. Renu Modi and Prof. Dr. Clarissa Vierke about India-Africa relations

Abstract

Abstract: In this latest episode of the Cluster Conversations, fellow Dr. Renu Modi talks with her host Prof. Dr. Clarissa Vierke about her recent fellowship with the Cluster of Excellence in Bayreuth. Modi also reflects on three decades of India-Africa relations, highlighting how economic cooperation and cultural exchange have reshaped the landscape of South-South collaboration. From her stay in Bayreuth, she contrasts African Studies in India and Germany, uncovering unique differences in focus – from pragmatic development to rich cultural and religious studies. The fellow-host-duo also talk about textile trade and "counter-archives," where oral histories, attic finds, and Indian Ocean connections reveal untold stories between the continents. A must-listen for anyone curious about global interconnections, hidden histories, and the evolving meaning of solidarity.

People & roles

Guest(s): Modi, Renu; Vierke, Clarissa

Origins & context

Title: Dr. Renu Modi and Prof. Dr. Clarissa Vierke about India-Africa relations
Language: English
Podcast series: Cluster Conversations
Date: July 28, 2025

Rights & access

Extent: 27 minutes, 48 seconds

Identifiers & sources

has URL: https://www.africamultiple.uni-bayreuth.de/en/1_4-Public-engagement_-engagement1/Podcasts/ClusterConversations/Episode-31/index.html

Further details

Episode number: 31

Full text

[music] Speaker 1: Cluster Conversations, a podcast by Africa Multiple. Speaker 1: Welcome to our latest episode of Cluster Conversations. My name is Clarissa Fierke. I am professor of African Language Literatures at the University of Bayreuth and presently still the spokesperson of the research section Arts and Aesthetics. And today it's my great pleasure to be here with Professor Reena Modi from Mumbai. And instead of introducing you, Reena, I think I would ask you to introduce yourself and tell us a bit where you're coming from. Speaker 2: Thank you, Clarissa. I'm really delighted to be a part of this conversation. To introduce myself very briefly, I have been a professor and director at the Department of African Studies, University of Mumbai. I've been teaching there for the last twenty-six years. And I have taught in other places like Erasmus programs on various scholarship programs in Canada, et cetera. But most of my research has been based on India-Africa relations and in my own university, in my department. And most of the subjects that we research on at the department are actually—it's a wide range of subjects that we cover. For example, food security, migration, diaspora, India-Africa engagements, trading, bilateral trade between countries of India and Africa, development cooperation, South-South cooperation, et cetera. Speaker 1: Oh, great. I'm always impressed by the whole range of subjects that you've been working on and the impressive kind of engagement with all of these different topics. Now you've been here for how many weeks? Speaker 2: Eleven weeks now. Speaker 1: Eleven weeks now. So how is it being here in Bayreuth? And my sort of say very curious question is also comparing African studies from where you come from, India, and comparing African studies here in Bayreuth. What are the differences from your perspective, of course? Speaker 2: Thank you, Clarissa. I have really enjoyed my stay here. And when I was coming to Bayreuth, people… Read the full text about 4,339 words