Biography
Pavan Mano is a cultural theorist working in contemporary literature and cultural studies. He received his PhD in English Literature & Cultural Studies from King’s College London, and his research engages with critical and literary theory as well as affiliated intellectual fields such as postcolonial studies, queer studies, nationalism studies, and political theory.
Pavan's first monograph, Straight Nation (Manchester UP, 2025) examines postcolonial nationalism and its intersections with race, gender, and sexuality. Drawing on a range of texts such as political biographies, legal texts, archival records, oral histories and more, the book shows how states can cultivate, fertilize, and propagate ideas of "good" and "bad" members of society.
His work has been published in journals such as Culture, Theory and Critique, Critical Discourse Studies, and the Journal of Language and Sexuality and he has also written for LSE Southeast Asia, Back Page Football, and Atticus Review.
Teaching
- Race and racialisation
- Queer studies & sexual politics
- Cultural studies
- Postcolonial studies
- Nationalism
- Literary & critical theory
Research Interests and PhD Supervision
- Topics in cultural studies (inc. popular culture)
- 20th & 21st century literature
- Postcolonialism & (postcolonial) South Asian literature
- Nations & nationalism
- 'Race' and racialization
Expertise and Public Engagement
Selected Publications