Associate Professor (tenured), Tokyo International University

 Political Economy, International Relations, and South Asian Studies
 Institute for International Strategy
 Tokyo International University

I am a political scientist specializing in the political economy of development with a particular focus on South Asia and East Asia. I hold a PhD degree from South Asian Studies at the National University of Singapore (NUS), an MPhil degree from Political Science at the University of Delhi, an MA from Political Science and International Relations at Ewha Womans University, a BA degree from Political Science/English Language and Literature at Ewha Womans University. 

I joined Tokyo International University (TIU) in April 2019. Since then, I have been teaching several undergraduate and postgraduate courses on development studies, domestic politics and international relations of South Asia such as:
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- Introduction to International Relations (Level 100)
- Political Economy of Development (Level 200)
- International Relations of South Asia (Level 300)
- Critical Approaches to Development Politics (Level 400)
- Asia's Entrepreneurs (Level 400)
- Political Economy of Development (Graduate Level)

My most recent book is The State, Society, and Foreign Capital in India (Cambridge University Press, 2018). The book answered a central research question of how states in India developed economic institutions favoring foreign direct investments in the dissimilar socio-political environment in two select subnational states, Tamil Nadu and Odisha, after the 1991 economic reforms. It examined how the two states in India facilitated or regulated foreign direct investment (FDI) inflows in the relationship with both foreign capital and society. In the book, I paid particular attention to social opposition against FDI inflows and the bargaining process in the manufacturing sector in the two states. My other publications have appeared in various journals and academic magazines. Prior to joining TIU, I worked at the Institute of South Asian Studies at NUS as a Visiting Research Fellow (October 2014 - March 2019) and served as a Visiting Scholar at Seoul National University (April - July 2018).

I am actively participating in the 1.5 track level dialogues in promoting international relations between South Korea and its partner states in South Asia–Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka–in particular. I have also provided academic service to several international peer-reviewed journals as a referee/reviewer since 2016.

My teaching and research interests include development, state-society relations, capital-labor relations, political and economic institutions, foreign investment and aid, governance, and international relations. 
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‌I like playing tennis with my colleagues and husband, and painting with my daughter during the semester break.
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