She begins her sixth year at the University of Georgia as an associate professor of music and women’s studies in the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences. Rumya Putcha has a lot of reason to be excited.

From new writing and research opportunities to the continued success of her first book, the opportunities for cross-departmental collaboration between her shared roles at the Hugh Hodgson School of Music and the Institute for Women’s Studies continue to illustrate the message of her work.

Most recently, Putcha was appointed associate editor of the Cultural Anthropology Section of American Anthropologist, the flagship journal of the American Anthropological Association.

“I really enjoy learning more about the editing and peer review process,” she said.

Already a prolific writer, Putcha has contributed articles to Feminist Review, The Journal of South Asian Popular Culture, Dance Research Journal and several others. Her first book, The Dancer’s Voice: Performance and Womanhood in Transnational India (Duke University Press, 2023), was longlisted for the 2023 Karwaan Book Award in India and is currently a finalist for the de la Torre Bueno First Book Prize awarded by the Dance Studies Association. Putcha gave a lecture on “The Dancer’s Voice” at the Department of Music, Columbia University in New York City on September 27, 2023 and at King’s College London on June 12, 2024.

“What is unique about Putcha’s book is that it focuses on the desires and agency of the dancers, rather than the cultural gatekeepers or institutions that try to control the art form,” said Tapoja Chaudhuri of the International Examiner.. “Her book also follows the figure of the dancer beyond the formal classical dance arenas to give us a more comprehensive idea of ​​what kind of personality the dancer is for different audiences.”

Putcha’s second book project, Namaste Nation: Yoga, Orientalism, and Imaginations of India, expands her work on transnational performance cultures to include critical analyses of capitalist fitness industries. Putcha, who is the 2023 recipient of the Willson Center for Arts and Humanities Ludwig-Maximillians University Fellowship, spent part of this summer researching her book in Munich. She continued her research in London at the Wellcome Collection and Institute with support from the Sarah Moss Fellowship.

“I use anti-colonial thinking to bring two worlds together – music and gender studies. By applying gender analysis to the study of music and integrating musical analysis into the study of gender studies, my work highlights insights that can only emerge by stepping out of intellectual silos,” said Putcha.

“My research and teaching convey an awareness that music can never be separated from the social and cultural practices it activates, and that gender cannot be separated from the aesthetics, creativity, or performance that drives it. Through my contributions as a dancer, singer, and faculty member with two distinct but overlapping academic disciplines at UGA, I have developed a generative analytical framework to better understand what music and gender are and what they mean in our societies.”

In addition to her teaching work, Putcha’s work bridges the gap between the School of Music and the Institute of Women’s Studies, leading doctoral committees for students exploring these two areas of study through their own research.

“Supporting their research is a wonderful example of the best aspects of my job,” she said.

This November, Putcha will present selected films relevant to “The Dancer’s Voice” along with a discussion moderated by Jared Holton, assistant professor of ethnomusicology, in collaboration with UGA’s dance department and the Willson Center for Arts and Humanities. Details can be found on both departments’ websites at music.uga.edu and iws.uga.edu.