July 15, 2025
Contributor: Supriyono | Editor: Dadi Darmadi | Photo: Sarah Permatasari
Universitas Islam Internasional Indonesia (UIII) welcomes Thahir Jamal Kiliyamannil as the newest COMPOSE Fellow at the Faculty of Social Sciences. With a deep scholarly focus on Muslim subject formation and minority politics in South Asia, Thahir brings a wealth of research and teaching experience to the university’s vibrant intellectual environment.
Thahir recently submitted his PhD dissertation at the University of Hyderabad, India. His doctoral work, titled Islam, State, and Sovereignty: Genealogy of Muslim Subject Formation in Malabar, critically explores Muslim engagements with the state in colonial and postcolonial South India, tracing the evolving dynamics of sovereignty and subjectivity.
His academic journey includes an MPhil focused on media practices among Muslim communities in South India, and a Master’s degree in English with a specialization in Cultural Studies from the English and Foreign Languages University (EFLU), Hyderabad.
Thahir’s research has been widely published in international journals. His recent works include:“Neither Global nor Local: Reorienting the Study of Islam in South Asia,” Asian Journal of Social Science (2023); “Allah’s House to Domes of Secularism: Minoritization of Muslims in India,” ReOrient: The Journal of Critical Muslim Studies (2024); and “Developing an Ethic of Justice: Maududi and the Solidarity Youth Movement,” American Journal of Islam and Society (2022).
Prior to joining UIII, Thahir taught as Guest Faculty at the Centre for Comparative Literature, University of Hyderabad. He has also held prestigious international research fellowships, including as an Erasmus Fellow at the Berlin Graduate School of Muslim Cultures and Societies, Freie Universität Berlin (2021), and as a DAAD Visiting Fellow at the Centre for Modern Indian Studies, University of Göttingen (2022).
At UIII, Thahir is currently working on a paper that examines the intersection of law, governmentality, and religion in the Indian context. He is also developing a postdoctoral project that investigates the afterlives of colonialism and the formation of minorities, particularly through the lens of sovereignty and governance.
Reflecting on his first weeks at UIII, Thahir shares: “UIII offers a calm space to think and work in a truly international environment. I find happiness not only in the warmth of the university community, but also in the kindness and welcoming spirit of people beyond its campus. During my free time, I enjoy wandering by the nearby lake, listening to the beautiful cacophony of Bahasa Indonesia.”
Thahir’s presence further strengthens UIII’s mission to foster global academic exchange and critical scholarship rooted in diverse cultural and intellectual traditions.
Universitas Islam Internasional Indonesia
