I moved to Paris from Amsterdam, where I was a PhD candidate in Philosophy, Politics and Economics (or PPE) at the Vrije Universiteit (VU) Amsterdam. My thesis—supervised by Martin van Hees and Roland Luttens—is presently under examination. In Amsterdam I was also a Junior Lecturer in the PPE programme at the VU’s John Stuart Mill College. Before coming to Amsterdam, I finished my Research Master in Economics and Philosophy in Rotterdam at the Erasmus Institute of Philosophy and Economics. And before moving to The Netherlands, I completed my B.Sc. in Economics at the Symbiosis School of Economics in Pune, India. By way of stating my academic identity, economists think I'm a philosopher, while philosophers think I'm an economist. Let's just say that I enjoy playing Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde in my academic work which is at the intersection of philosophy and economics. Indeed, I have published in philosophy journals (Journal of Philosophy) as well as economics journals (Journal of Mathematical Economics).
I grew up in Bangalore, India. And in this context it is worth stating that while I do not take the South Asian sub-continent to be my direct object of research in any immediate way, I spend a lot of my free time thinking about South Asian society, its history, its culture, and its various discontents. I hope to publish some of these thoughts as soon as I feel confident enough to do so.
When I am not engaged by my intellectual pursuits, I enjoy cooking, tending to my houseplants, reading poetry, curating playlists on Spotify, and watching Test match cricket. Here it might also be worth mentioning, in the hope that the celebration police may get to read this,I am a fan of Arsenal Football Club.
You can email me at akshath [dot] jitendranath [at] psemail [dot] eu or connect with me on Twitter.
Jai Bhim!
PS: If you are a student from India or anywhere else in the global south and looking for advice on (i) how to apply to a graduate programme in Philosophy, or (ii) have general questions about the academic system in Europe, then do not hesitate to get in touch with me. I shall try to be as helpful as my knowledge and experience allows.
PPS: This is mildly embarrassing to write about, but I think it is worth saying here: if you would like to invite me for a talk at your institution, first, god bless you, and second (but way more importantly) please note that I can only make it on short notice to anywhere in continental Europe or the USA. Anywhere else, like the UK or Australia, will involve some bureaucratic costs as I do not have a visa to visit your beautiful country. Please do bear the latter in mind when thinking about your wonderful research seminar.