Educational Background
Ph.D. Transcultural Studies, University of Calgary, Canada
[2017-2023]
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Dissertation title: “Off-Screen Perspectives: India’s Independent Film Production Culture”
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Brief description: This dissertation combines archival, industrial, and cultural analysis, alongside bottom-up methods such as personal interviews and participant observation to gain deeper insights into the film policies, practices, and professionals — making and facilitating Indian independent cinema transnationally since 2007.
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Supervisor: Dr. Charles Tepperman
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Awarded the 2021 Alberta Graduate Excellence Scholarship ($ 15, 000)
Erasmus Mundus M.A. Crossways in Cultural Narratives, Université de
Perpignan, France; University of Sheffield, UK; Universidad de Santiago de Compostela, Spain
[2015-2017]
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Thesis title: Precarious Pleasures
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The thesis explored the theme of adolescence in cinema through comparative
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approaches.
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Received 2015 Erasmus Mundus Scholarship (€ 30,000)
M.Phil. French and Francophone Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, India
[2013-2015]
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Thesis title: The Female Body: Between History, Heritage and Horror
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The thesis focused on francophone African cinema through a postcolonial and feminist lens.
M.A. French and Francophone Studies, Jawaharlal Nehru University, India
[2010-2012]
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Thesis title: “The Orientalist Discourse: A Comparative Study of Mircea Eliade’s The Bengali Night (1988) and Maitreyi Devi’s It Does Not Die (1976)”
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The thesis examined French and Indian literary texts using comparative and postcolonial approaches.
B.A. English Literature University of Delhi, India
[2007-2010]
Teaching Experience
University of Calgary
I designed and sole-taught all French-language courses listed here.
Winter, 2021
Sessional Instructor
Beginners French II
Winter, 2018
Sessional Instructor
Beginners French I
Fall, 2020
Graduate Assistant
The Holocaust on Film
Fall and Winter 2020, Spring, 2021
Graduate Assistant
Japanese Manga and Anime
Fall and Winter 2019
Research Assistant
Québec Cinema
Published Articles
Bhatia, Neha. "Creativity, Passion, and Community: The Rise of India’s Transnational Producers." NECS_European Journal of Media Studies, Jg. 12 (2023), Nr. 2, S. 272-291. http://dx.doi.org/10.25969/mediarep/21715.
Bhatia, Neha. "The Transnational Tales of an Indian Creative Producer." Transnational Screens 13, no. 3 (2022): 234-248.
https://doi.org/10.1080/25785273.2022.2109846.
Peltekov, Peter, Neha Bhatia, Berenice Cancino, Samantha Carron, Marie Daigle, et al. “Practice-relevant research in the Canadian L2 classroom: A summary.” Notos, Vol. 14 (2019), 15-36.
Bhatia, Neha. “Politics and Poetics of Culture in Ousmane Sembene’s Moolaadé (2004)." International Refereed Journal of Literary Explorations, Vol. 2 (2014), 474-478.
Article under peer-review
"Transnational Practices, Precarity and Politics: Case Study of Indian Film Bazaar," New Review of Film and Television Studies, 2023 (Revise and Resubmit)
Articles in Preparation
“Perspectives of a Film Programmer: Case of DCunha at Indian Film Bazaar.” (Follow-up Interview with DCunha in Summer 2023)
“Contours of Hindi-language Cinema: Continuity and Change.” (Work in Progress)
Book Manuscript in Preparation
Inside India’s Alternative Film Distribution World: Transnational Perspectives, MIT Press (Proposal Writing Stage)
Conference Presentations
April 2023
“Transnational Tales of an Indian Creative Producer”, Society for Cinema and Media Studies (SCMS), Denver, United States.
March 2022
Co-chair and Presenter, "Repositioning The National Within Transnational Film Culture", Society for Cinema and Media Studies, Chicago, United States.
March 2022
"The Indian-European Independent Film Co-production Model", Transcultural Production Studies Digital Seminar, Université d'Angers, France.
June 2021
“The Indian Creative Producer”, World Cinema International Conference Cinema of India (Topic of Edition), University Complutense of Madrid, Spain.
April 2021
Co-organizer and Presenter, “Production Stories: A Case Study of The Lunchbox (2013)”, Graduate Forum, Languages, Literatures and Cultures, University of Calgary.
March 2021
Invited Presenter, “Online Teaching Strategies”, Pedagogy Workshop, Languages, Literatures and Cultures, University of Calgary.
February 2021
“New Independent Film Production Culture in India”, Peer Beyond Graduate Research Symposium, University of Calgary.
April 2020
Co-organizer and Presenter, “New Indian Cinema”, Graduate Forum, Languages, Literatures and Cultures, University of Calgary (Postponed due to Covid-19).
January 2018
“Girlhood and Sexuality in Contemporary French and Indian Cinema”, Work in Progress (WiP) Talks, Language Research Centre, Faculty of Arts, University of Calgary.
June 2018
“Pursuit of Lack” in Maja Milo’s film Klip (2013) 34th International Conference on Psychology and Arts, Sicily, Italy.
June 2017
“Plurality and Corporeality in F. Ozon’s Young and Beautiful (2013)”, 33rd. International Conference on Psychology and arts, Reims, France.
June 2013
“Le Discours Orientaliste dans La Nuit Bengali (1933) de Mircea Eliade et It Does Not Die (1976) de Maitreyi Devi”, 7th International Conference of Association of Indian Teachers of French, Chennai, India.
August 2013
“Politics and Poetics of Culture” in Ousmane Sembene’s Moolaadé (2004), UGC Sponsored National Seminar, Kerala, India.
Talks Organized
April 6, 2021
“Making Media (2019)”, Dr. Mark Deuze (Professor, University of Amsterdam), School of Languages, Literatures, Linguistics and Cultures, University of Calgary.
April 22, 2021
“The Affective Paradigm and the Reading of Late Capitalism”, Dr. Mabel Moraña (Professor, Washington University St. Louis), School of Languages, Literatures, Linguistics and Cultures, University of Calgary.
Academic Service
University of Calgary
September 2022
Founder and Co-organizer
Graduate Writing Retreat, Language Research Centre and Calgary Institute of Humanities
September-December 2022
Graduate Student Mentor
International Student Services and Languages, Literatures and Cultures Program
September-November, 2021
Panel Co-Organizer and Co-Chair
"Global Contested Assemblages," Society for Cinema and Media Studies
2021-2022
Graduate Student Representative (Elected Position)
Language Research Centre
Winter, 2020 and 2021
Co-organizer and Moderator
Graduate Forum, Languages, Literatures and Cultures (Graduate Forum 2020 was postponed due to Covid-19)
January 2019 - 2020
Co-editor and Peer-reviewer
Inter-lingua Journal, School of Languages, Literatures, Linguistics & Cultures
Fall, 2019
Organizer
“Transcultural Dialogues in World Cinema Series”
2018-19
Co-President
Vox Condiscipulum, Graduate Student Organization
Community Service
September 2022-March 2023
Co-organizer and Moderator
“Intersectionality Symposium”, Graduate Student Association,
July 2022-Present
Vice Chair Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
Graduate Student Association, University of Calgary
June-August 2021
Project Lead and Creative Producer
Through her eyes: Navigating Healthcare as a woman of colour, Alberta and BC
2020-21
Founder and Co-Organizer
“Narratives of Color”, Language Research Centre and Calgary Institute of Humanities, University of Calgary
January-June 2020
Peer-helper
Women’s Resource Centre, University of Calgary
March 1-3, 2020
Student Assistant
"Women at Work" Conference, Career Services and Women's Resources Centre, University of Calgary
September-December 2019
Volunteer Participant
‘Cultivating Compassion Training’ at Faith and Spirituality Centre, University of Calgary