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Irawati Karve: India’s groundbreaking anthropologist

India's first female anthropologist, Irawati Karve studied tribes that nobody had investigated. In 1927, she defied the racist theory of Eugen Fischer, during her PhD in Berlin.

Irawati Karve became India’s first female anthropologist studying tribes that nobody had investigated, and taking her children on expeditions deep in the rainforest.

In 1927, she dared to defy the racist theory of Eugen Fischer, a famous German professor during her PhD in Berlin. Irawati scientifically rejected human differences to justify discrimination, and was the first to do so.

Her granddaughter, Urmilla Deshpande speaks to Reena Stanton-Sharma about her life and career.

Eye-witness accounts brought to life by archive. Witness History is for those fascinated by the past. We take you to the events that have shaped our world through the eyes of the people who were there. For nine minutes every day, we take you back in time and all over the world, to examine wars, coups, scientific discoveries, cultural moments and much more.

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(Photo: Irawati Karve. Credit: Urmilla Deshpande)

Release date:

11 minutes

On radio

Mon 21 Jul 2025 07:50GMT

Broadcasts

  • Mon 21 Jul 2025 07:50GMT
  • Mon 21 Jul 2025 11:50GMT
  • Mon 21 Jul 2025 17:50GMT
  • Mon 21 Jul 2025 21:50GMT
  • Tue 22 Jul 2025 02:50GMT

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