Archana Venkatesan

Archana Venkatesan is Associate Professor of Comparative Literature and Religious Studies at the University of California, Davis. Her research interests are in the translation of premodern Tamil poetry into English; and Tamil temples, with a focus on the relationships between text, visuality, and ritual performance within temple spaces. Her works include: The Secret Garland: Āṇṭāḷ’s Tiruppāvai and Nācciyār Tirumoḻi; A Hundred Measures of Time; the co-authored Andal’s Garden: Art, Ornament and Devotion in Srivilliputtur.

Archana founded the Religions of India Initiative at UC Davis, which advocates for the academic study of India’s diverse religious traditions. Archana has received fellowships from the National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, The American Institute of Indian Studies, The American Academy of Religion and Fulbright. She received her Ph.D. from University of California, Berkeley.