Prem Chowdhry is an Indian

social scientist Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of soc ...

, historian, and Senior Academic Fellow at the

Indian Council of Historical Research The Indian Council of Historical Research (ICHR) is a captive body of the Ministry of Education, Government of India established by an Administrative Order. The body has provided financial assistance to historians and scholars through fellowshi ...

, New Delhi. She is a feminist and critic of violence against couples refusing

arranged marriages Arranged marriage is a type of marital union where the bride and groom are primarily selected by individuals other than the couple themselves, particularly by family members such as the parents. In some cultures a professional matchmaker may be us ...

. She is a well-known scholar of gender studies, authority on the political economy and social history of

Haryana Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land ...

state in

India India, officially the Republic of India ( Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the ...

Career

Chowdhry is a Life Member of the Center for Women Studies. She has also worked at the

Indian Council of Social Science Research The Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR) is the national body overseeing research in the social sciences in India. It was established in New Delhi in 1969. Council The Council is currently chaired by Bhushan Patwardhan. Current ...

supported Centre for Contemporary Studies, New Delhi; an advanced studies unit of

Nehru Memorial Museum & Library The Nehru Memorial Museum & Library (NMML) is a museum and library in New Delhi, India, which aims to preserve and reconstruct the history of the Indian independence movement. Housed within the Teen Murti House complex, it is an autonomous ins ...

. Chowdhry is an alumna of

Jawaharlal Nehru University Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) is a public major research university located in New Delhi, India. It was established in 1969 and named after Jawaharlal Nehru, India's first Prime Minister. The university is known for leading faculties and r ...

, and professorial fellow of the University Grants Commission. She has provided expert commentary to news media, including to ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper A newspaper is a periodical publication containing written information about current events and is often typed in black ink with a white or gray background. Newspapers can cover a wide ...

'' about the impact of prejudice against having a daughter in India; to ''The Guardian'', ''

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. n ...

'', ''

TIME Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, t ...

'', and ''

Reuters Reuters ( ) is a news agency owned by Thomson Reuters Corporation. It employs around 2,500 journalists and 600 photojournalists in about 200 locations worldwide. Reuters is one of the largest news agencies in the world. The agency was est ...

'' about "honour killings"; to '' The Statesman'' about the

social structure; to ''

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

'' about the Haryana social structure and how it relates to the rape of

Dalit Dalit (from sa, दलित, dalita meaning "broken/scattered"), also previously known as untouchable, is the lowest stratum of the castes in India. Dalits were excluded from the four-fold varna system of Hinduism and were seen as forming a ...

women; to ''

The Indian Express ''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932. It is published in Mumbai by the Indian Express Limited, Indian Express Group. In 1999, eight years after the group's founder Ramnath Goenka's death in 1991, ...

'' about the political history of Indian cinema; and to ''Reuters'' about inheritance rights for women in India. Her 2004 ''

Modern Asian Studies ''Modern Asian Studies'' is a bimonthly peer-reviewed academic journal in the field of Asian studies, published by Cambridge University Press. The journal was established in 1967 by the Syndics of the University of Cambridge and the Committee of D ...

'' article "Private Lives, State Intervention: Cases of Runaway Marriage in Rural North India" was cited by the

Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, and ...

in 2006. She has also written commentary in ''

The Tribune ''The Tribune'' or ''Tribune'' is the name of various newspapers: United States Daily California *''Oakland Tribune'' * ''The Tribune'' (San Luis Obispo) *'' San Gabriel Valley Tribune'' Indiana *'' Kokomo Tribune'' *''Peru Tribune'' * ''The Trib ...

'', including about violence related to inter-caste marriages, and advocacy for an investment in the education of girls to reduce poverty.

Art career

Chowdhry is a self-taught artist whose painting are held by the National Gallery, India and the

Lalit Kala Akademi The Lalit Kala Akademi or National Academy of Art (LKA) is India's national academy of fine arts. It is an autonomous organisation, established in New Delhi in 1954 by Government of India to promote and propagate understanding of Indian art, in ...

, India's National Academy of Fine Arts. She started exhibiting in 1970 and her paintings often reflect on the status of women in India.

Works

Books

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Papers

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Personal life

She is the daughter of Hardwari Lal, the educationist and

Indian National Congress The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British ...

member of parliament for Haryana.
Social Scientist. v 21, no. 244-46 (Sept–Nov 1993) p. 112

References

External links

Prem Chowdhry – Economic and Political Weekly

ICHR Website

Centre for Women’s Development Studies Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chowdhry, Prem 1944 births Living people Indian feminists Indian women activists English-language writers from India 20th-century Indian women writers 20th-century Indian writers 20th-century Indian historians 21st-century Indian women writers 21st-century Indian writers 21st-century Indian historians Members of the Haryana Legislative Assembly Indian women painters Indian National Congress politicians from Haryana Indian political writers Indian feminist writers 21st-century Indian women scientists 21st-century Indian scientists 20th-century Indian women scientists 20th-century Indian social scientists Indian women social scientists 20th-century Indian educational theorists Indian women political writers Activists from Haryana Women writers from Haryana Scholars from Haryana Women scientists from Haryana Women educators from Haryana Educators from Haryana 21st-century Indian women artists Women historians 20th-century women educators Women members of the Haryana Legislative Assembly