Shanna Jain

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About Me

Hello,

My name is Shanna Jain (she/her) and I am a PhD scholar at the School of Liberal Arts at IIT Jodhpur. My interests lie in and around literary and cultural studies. I graduated from Lady Shri Ram College for Women, University of Delhi in English Literature and finished my Master's in the same discipline from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. I am skilled in academic writing, editing, proofreading and research. I have worked as a writer and editor for three years at the college level and gained tremendous experience interning at two of the most exciting publication houses in India. 


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My Latest Work

ALMA MAGAZINE •

Walking

“ If freedom in society is to be equated with freedom to pee, then women are the least free of all.” –Mustansir Dalvi

I despise men on bikes. I despise the strength they boast of while driving this heavy vehicle, I despise the sound its engine makes–as if it’s the only thing in the entire world. I despise the callousness with which they sideline, or worse, pose a threat to female pedestrians.

Everyone loves the flâneur, Baudelaire’s ultimate symbol of modernity. As long as there have been citi
ALMA MAGAZINE •

‘The Half of It’ and the Language of Love

“In case you haven’t noticed, this is not a love story” declares Ellie Chu within the first thirty seconds of The Half of It. The rest of the film traces her exploring, understanding, deconstructing, and in turn, discovering love alongside the other characters. The Half of It is ‘mainstream’, which is to say that it belongs to the tradition of teen rom-com dramas, and yet its storytelling is beautifully singular. The story follows Ellie Chu (Leah Lewis), a studious and shy Chinese-American immig
ALMA MAGAZINE •

The Little Women of A New Age

Reporting a significant lack of male audience in the early screenings of Greta Gerwig’s Little Women, Vanity Fair warned in its headline two years ago—‘Little Women Has a Little Man Problem.’ The film’s producer, Amy Pascal, called it an “unconscious bias”, where male viewers might find themselves easily dismissing the film. The film viewing experience is suffused with our worldviews and presuppositions, indicating a larger social context. Our biases determine which stories we choose to consume.
Live Wire •

Changing Intimacies

A friend recently explained how Snapchat works, and I remember feeling slightly disconcerted. I learned that streaks are an integral part of Snapchat — you and your online friend have to send each other a Snap at least three days in a row to maintain it. These Snapstreaks come to signal the seriousness of the friendship. As the numbers increase, you feel a sense of accomplishment on having obtained a BFF, while the breaking of the streak indicates the end of the friendship itself.

The snap, mea
THE BASTION •

Abortions, the Woman’s Body, and the Disciplinary Power of the State

Earlier this year, Catholic-majority Poland’s near-total abortion law came into effect where it declared abortion in the case of a foetal anomaly as unconstitutional. Now, abortions in the country are only permitted in the cases of rape, incest, and when the mother’s life or health is in danger. Poland’s court justified its conservative ruling by claiming that “an unborn child is a human being” and thus is protected under the nation’s constitution that ensures the right to life to all.

Anti-abo
ALMA MAGAZINE •

The Woes of Celebrity Activism

Kim Kardashian West wears several hats—she is a television personality, a businesswoman, and, more recently, an activist. Explaining her current involvement with criminal justice reform, Kardashian said, “I’d gotten to the place in my life where I wanted to make a difference. I wanted to do the right thing.” Be it freeing dozens of prisoners serving harsh sentences for petty crimes, her relentless lobbying of former President Trump on prison reform, negotiating with governors and legislators, or
Movierdo •

‘Frances Ha’ and Her Imperfect Dance

Modern life is built so much on the notion of connections and networks. One makes different friends for different aspects of one’s life – quick hangout, talking about boys, going to the club, philosophical chat, etc. The language we use, when we talk about having friends, focuses on how profitable they are to us. We repeatedly speak about what we get out of a relationship or how it can help us. Frances Ha has never been skillful like that. She is endearing, talkative, and smart. However, she doe
Jabberwock Online •

What We Talk About When We Talk About Freedom

Five kids in a garden were huddled together under the shade of the tree, whispering. Nobody else was around. But they talked hesitantly, as if they were forbidden to discuss it. Hence, their voices were hushed; voices that were urgent, amused, and thoughtful. Voices that could not be heard, seen or come to be known. It was two o’clock in the afternoon and the sun was not very gracious, but these voices kept mingling together under the shade of the tree, whispering.

Andy spoke first in her usual

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