FACULTY
Dr. Saloni Kapur is an Assistant Professor of International Studies at FLAME University. Her expertise lies in critical security studies and South Asian politics.
She earned her PhD in International Relations from Lancaster University. Her thesis focused on security and insecurity in contemporary Pakistan. She holds an MA in International Relations from the University of Warwick, with a dissertation that analysed sovereignty in the Kashmir conflict through a poststructuralist lens. Her current research interests include:
- South Asian Politics, particularly India, Pakistan, and Kashmir
- Coloniality and Decoloniality
- Borders, Nation-States, and Modernity
- Emotions and Aesthetics in International Relations
Before joining FLAME University, Dr. Kapur taught at Symbiosis International University and Lancaster University, offering courses on research methods, Asian studies, global common goods, international relations, international security, and sustainability and global security. She has also held positions at Control Risks and International SOS in London and New Delhi from 2007 to 2011 and worked at the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime in Vienna in 2006. As a News Editor and Senior Analyst at International SOS-Control Risks, she evaluated security risks for business travellers and expatriates.
Dr. Kapur is working on a book chapter titled “The Dangers of Decoloniality and the Question of Decolonising Human Rights in India,” which examines the intersections of decoloniality and Hindutva in India. The project, part of an upcoming Routledge book, explores cow vigilante violence in contemporary India, questioning the normative assumption that indigenous cultures are inherently non-hierarchical and unoppressive. The project is expected to be completed by the end of June. She recently concluded research on security dynamics between South and West Asia using regional security complex theory, funded by FLAME University and the British International Studies Association.
Dr. Kapur has received annual Research Grants from FLAME University since 2021, supporting her research on regional security and decoloniality. She was a Fellow of the Richardson Institute at Lancaster University between 2018 and 2023. She received an Early Career Researcher Global South Bursary from the British International Studies Association in 2021. She was awarded a Certificate of Commendation for Outstanding Teaching Performance by FLAME University for the 2020-21 academic year. During her PhD at Lancaster University, Dr. Kapur received the Peel Trust Studentship, the Post Graduate Research Conference Travel Grant, and the Graduate College Travel Grant. International SOS awarded her a Performance Excellence Award in 2008. During her semester abroad at the University of Minnesota in Fall 2001, she was a Caleb Dorr Scholar, a High Ability Non-Resident Scholar and an honours student. She also appeared on the Dean’s List.
Publications:
Dr. Kapur has co-edited several significant books, including Regional Security in South Asia and the Gulf (Routledge, 2023) and Securitisation in the Non-West (Routledge, 2019). Cambridge Scholars Publishing published her monograph, Pakistan after Trump: Great Power Responsibility in a Multi-Polar World, in 2021. She has published articles in Contemporary South Asia, Global Discourse, Lancaster Journal of Philosophy and Peace Prints. Her article, “From Copenhagen to Uri and Across the Line of Control: India’s ‘Surgical Strikes’ as a Case of Securitisation in Two Acts,” has been widely cited. Dr. Kapur frequently presents at international conferences, including those of the British International Studies Association, the European International Studies Association and the International Studies Association.
Contact:
- Email: saloni.kapur@flame.edu.in
- LinkedIn: Saloni Kapur
- ORCiD: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9395-1347
Books
- Karim, Umer, and Saloni Kapur, eds. 2023. Regional Security in South Asia and the Gulf. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. DOI: 10.4324/9781003283058.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2021. Pakistan after Trump: Great Power Responsibility in a Multi-Polar World. Newcastle upon Tyne: Cambridge Scholars Publishing.
- Mabon, Simon, and Saloni Kapur, eds. 2019. Securitisation in the Non-West. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.
Book Chapters
- Kapur, Saloni. Forthcoming. “The Dangers of Decoloniality and the Question of Decolonising Human Rights in India.” In Transformations in South Asian Political Space, edited by Muhammad Shoaib Pervez and Asad Rehman. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2023. “India, the Persian Gulf, and the Emergence of a Supercomplex.” In Regional Security in South Asia and the Gulf, edited by Umer Karim and Saloni Kapur, 16-38. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. DOI: 10.4324/9781003283058-2.
- Karim, Umer, and Saloni Kapur. 2023. “Introduction.” In Regional Security in South Asia and the Gulf, edited by Umer Karim and Saloni Kapur, 1-15. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. DOI: 10.4324/9781003283058-1.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2019. “From Copenhagen to Uri and Across the Line of Control: India’s ‘Surgical Strikes’ as a Case of Securitisation in Two Acts.” In Securitisation in the Non-West, edited by Simon Mabon and Saloni Kapur, 62-79. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2019. “Review of ‘Recursion or Rejection? Securitization Theory Faces Islamist Violence and Foreign Religions’, by Mona Kanwal Sheikh.” In Securitisation in the Non-West, edited by Simon Mabon and Saloni Kapur, 39-41. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.
- Kapur, Saloni, and Simon Mabon. 2019. “Introduction – The Copenhagen School Goes Global: Securitisation in the Non-West.” In Securitisation in the Non-West, edited by Simon Mabon and Saloni Kapur, 1-4. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge.
Journal Articles
- Mabon, Simon, and Saloni Kapur. 2023. “The Complexity of (Super)Complexes: Pakistan, India and West Asia.” Global Discourse 13, no. 1 (February): 5-19. DOI: 10.1332/204378921X16588505305495.
- Kapur, Saloni, Simon Mabon, and Umer Karim. 2023. “The Ties that Bind South and West Asia.” Global Discourse 13, no. 1 (February): 2-4. DOI: 10.1332/204378921X16692739679982.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2019. “The Intellectual Roots of Sunni Sectarianism in Pakistan: A Reply to Fuchs.” Global Discourse 9, no. 4 (November): 717-19. DOI: 10.1332/204378919X15718899928703.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2018. “From Copenhagen to Uri and Across the Line of Control: India’s ‘Surgical Strikes’ as a Case of Securitisation in Two Acts.” Global Discourse 8, no. 1 (February): 62-79. DOI: 10.1080/23269995.2017.1406633.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2018. “Review of ‘Recursion or Rejection: Securitization Theory Faces Islamist Violence and Foreign Religions’, by Mona Kanwal Sheikh.” Global Discourse 8, no. 1 (February): 39-41. Full Article.
- Kapur, Saloni, and Simon Mabon. 2018. “The Copenhagen School Goes Global: Securitisation in the Non-West.” Global Discourse 8, no. 1 (February): 1-4. DOI: 10.1080/23269995.2018.1424686.
- Garnett, Mark, Christopher Macleod, Simon Mabon, Matthew Johnson, and Saloni Kapur. 2016. “An Introduction to the Global Discourse Annual Book Review Competition 2015.” Global Discourse 6, no. 1-2 (February): 161-64. DOI: 10.1080/23269995.2015.1104983.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2016. “South Asian Scholarship in Transition: New Perspectives on Politics, Security and Regional Co-operation.” Contemporary South Asia 24, no. 1 (July): 109-14. Full Article.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2014. “The Philosophical Underpinnings of an English School Analysis of Terrorist Deradicalisation Programmes.” Lancaster Journal of Philosophy 2, no. 1 (Spring): 37-45. Full Article.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2012. “Violence, Theory and the Subject of International Politics: A Derridian Analysis of the Partition of India.” Peace Prints 4, no. 2 (Winter): 150-67. Full Article.
Conference Papers
- Kapur, Saloni. 2024. “Decoloniality and Right-Wing Populism in India.” Paper presented at the 48th annual meeting of the British International Studies Association, Birmingham, UK, June 2024.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2023. "The Dangers of Decoloniality." Paper presented at the international interdisciplinary symposium, "From Colonial Modernity to Decolonisation: The British Empire and Beyond," University of Auckland (online), September 2023.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2023. “Decoloniality Theory Encounters Hindutva.” Paper presented at the 16th annual meeting of the European International Studies Association, Potsdam, Germany, September 2023.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2023. "India, the Persian Gulf, and the Emergence of a Supercomplex." Paper presented at the Sectarianism, Proxies & De-sectarianisation Project Workshop on External Powers in the MENA Region, online, January 2023.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2021. "India’s Concerns in Afghanistan and West Asia." Paper presented at the Gateway House-Institute for Political and International Studies of Iran Roundtable on India-Iran Relations, online, September 2021.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2021. “Decentred Globalism and India’s Pivot towards the Arab Gulf.” Paper presented at the 45th annual meeting of the British International Studies Association, online, June 2021.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2020. "The Pakistan-India Relationship." Paper presented at the panel discussion "Pakistan’s Changing Foreign Policy: Challenges and Approaches," King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies, online, December 2020.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2017. "An Introduction to Securitisation in the Non-West." Paper presented at the workshop "Securitisation in the Non-West," Richardson Institute, Lancaster, UK, March 2017.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2015. “Emotions and the English School: A New Research Agenda.” Paper presented at the 56th annual meeting of the International Studies Association, New Orleans, LA, February 2015.
Other Publications
- Karim, Umer, and Saloni Kapur. 2023. “Great Expectations: The India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor.” The Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington, November 15, 2023. Full Article.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2023. “India’s Role in the Persian Gulf.” Sectarianism, Proxies & De-sectarianisation, April 24, 2023. Full Article.
- Kapur, Saloni, Umer Karim, and Simon Mabon, eds. 2023. “South Asia and the Gulf: Transregional Relations, Order, Human Rights and Migration.” Special issue, Global Discourse 13, no. 1 (February).
- Bhandari, Amit, and Saloni Kapur. 2022. Country Report: Iran. Mumbai: Gateway House-FLAME Policy Lab.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2021. “Interview with Prof. Saloni Kapur.” Ignite, no. II. Full Article.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2021. “Why India Should Engage the Taliban.” Opinion. Deccan Herald, August 27, 2021. Full Article.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2021. “Saloni Kapur—Interview.” Interview by Zahoor Ahmad Dar. E-International Relations, June 10, 2021. Full Article.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2021. “Book in Focus: Pakistan after Trump: Great Power Responsibility in a Multi-Polar World.” Cambridge Scholars Publishing, May 5, 2021. Full Article.
- Waziri, Attaullah, and Saloni Kapur. 2020. “Towards Peace.” Opinion. Dawn, March 8, 2020. Full Article.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2020. “Could Donald Trump Solve the Kashmir Issue?” The Buzz (blog). National Interest, February 19, 2020. Full Article.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2020. “Kashmir: Why Trump’s Offer of International Mediation is a Good Idea.” South Asia Journal (blog), February 18, 2020. Full Article.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2020. “Kashmir: Why Trump’s Offer of International Mediation is a Good Idea.” The Conversation (blog), February 15, 2020. Full Article.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2019. “India 2019: The Shifting Sands of Social Control.” South Asia @ LSE (blog), January 22, 2019. Full Article.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2019. Review of A Theory of ISIS: Political Violence and the Transformation of the Global Order, by Mohammad-Mahmoud Ould Mohamedou. Critical Studies on Terrorism 12, no. 1: 180-81. Full Article.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2018. “Counterterrorism and Peacebuilding in Pakistan: Responsibility of Great Powers.” South Asian Voices (blog). Stimson Center, October 18, 2018. Full Article.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2018. “How a Good India-Pakistan Relation Could Bring Stability in South Asia.” Opinion. Business Standard, October 1, 2018. Full Article.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2018. “South Asia: How Regional Cooperation Could Bring Stability to the Region.” Pakistan & Gulf Economist, October 1, 2018.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2018. “South Asia: How Regional Cooperation Could Bring Stability to the Region.” The Conversation (blog), September 28, 2018. Full Article.
- Kapur, Saloni. 2018. “The Electoral Victory of Imran Khan: Diffusing the Dynasties of Control in Pakistan?” South Asia @ LSE (blog), September 3, 2018. Full Article.
- Kapur, Saloni, and Simon Mabon, eds. 2018. “Securitisation in the Non-West.” Special issue, Global Discourse 8, no. 1 (February).
- Kapur, Saloni. 2014. Review of Pakistan: A New History, by Ian Talbot. Contemporary South Asia 22, no. 4: 436-37. Full Article.