About Us

Backbone:

Secretary – General: Dr. Srinarahari Secretary – General

Chairperson: Dr. Purushothaman KS (Founder-President)

Directors:

Dr. Bhimsen D Joshi (Medical Doctor)

Mr. Bhagwan Das Muralidhar

Mrs. Chilangi Krishnamurthy Kamala

Mrs. Suma B J

Mrs.Girija S

Mrs. Sangeetha B Bhavnani

Technical Team:

Honorary Team Members:

Sl No	Name	Designation	Email id	Contact no
1	Mr. Shankar S Bhat Advocate Bangalore, Karnataka	Legal Consultant	shankarbhat@yahoo.com;	+91 9483633046
2	Dr. Sangeetha C G Salem, Tamil Nadu	Convener for 21st conference	sangee.govi@gmail.com;	+91 8300043778
3	Mr. Rahul Malaghan Creative Content Designer for IPL Bangalore, Karnataka	Technical Team Head	manimalaghan113@gmail.com;	+91 7026686620

Objectives:

The association aims at popularizing Science and Science Fiction; promoting Science Fiction Research; to provide a common platform for all sections of the society to partake in its activities like annual conferences, seminars, workshops, interactive sessions with other life members and the experts in the field.

Beginning:

Indian Association for Science Fiction Studies, located in Bengaluru, is a Registered non-profitable organization which promotes research in the field of science fiction. The association was established on January 2, 1998, the birthday of Isaac Asimov (National Science Fiction Day in the USA). This day marks the centenary publication of the Indian science fiction story “Agosh” (Palatki Toofan) by Sir Jagadish Chandra Bose

The Founder – President of IASFS Dr. Purushothaman was perhaps the pioneer Indian Science Fiction scholar in the eighties to take up doctoral studies.. His personal experiences pertaining to the lack of material, guidance, institutions, fellow- research scholars and a passion for the genre Science Fiction have had a powerful impact on him to establish the association to fill the gap. Seamless activities were carried out from the Head Quarters Vellore Tamil Nadu for a decade or more. However, the scholars from various parts of India expressed their desire that it could be relocated in Bangalore (Chennai and Bangalore are almost equidistant from Vellore; Scholars preferred Bangalore climate to a coastal climate). to facilitate them to spend more time at the association rather than spend time in travalling alone.

The association is registered under the Directorate of Cooperative Societies, Governement of Karnataka vide no.DRB/SOR/450/2018-19 dated 16.11.2018.

Brief History:

IASFS has organized 15 National and 5 International Science Fiction conferences at different locations in India. The first conference was attended only by a dozen delegates. But from the second conference there was no turning back. The Association had begun to collaborate with many Colleges, Universities, Local Bodies and Institutions in organizing conferences. Hence, it could bring together hundreds of   academicians, scholars, scientists, writers, publishers, critics, movie makers, journalists, fans, webmasters, industrialists, technologists, farmers and readers.  So far the Annual Conferences were held at Chennai, Coimbatore, Gandhigram, Gudiattam and Vellore in Tamil Nadu, Bangalore, Yelahatti and Mysore in Karnataka, Varanasi in UP, Aurangabad and Pune in Maharashtra States, Pondicherry a Union Territory and Ernakulum in Kerala State in India.

Themes:

During the annual conferences, participants have shown keen interest in discussing the following topics: the forms of science fiction, Artificial Intelligence, Cinema and SF,  “Science Fiction Film : Seventy Years of Synergy, 1926 to 2003”, Aliens, A Tribute to Kalpana Chowla,  Technology and Science Fiction, Fantasy, Genetic Engineering, Hindi SF, Indian Responses to World SF, Indian SF in Vernacular languages, Literary Criticism on Indian SF, Myth, Fantasy, Utopia, Feminism, Colonialism, Popular Science, Genetic Engineering, Robotics, Media and SF, Information Technology, Nanotechnology, Print versus Visual SF, Science and Science Fiction, Space travel, Time, Science Fiction Today, Science Today, SF and Mainstream Fiction, Interdisciplinary and Multidisciplinary prospective, SF Narration, SF the Human Aspect, Women in Science Fiction,  SF & Technology  and others. Each conference had plenary sessions and story reading sessions by respective authors in addition to paper presentation.

Furthermore:

IASFS had also arranged an SF Story Writing Workshop conducted by Eric Miller and story reading session by respective SF writers. The association had a video conference with Professor James E Gunn Director, Center for Science Fiction Studies, Kansas University, Kansas, USA.

Dr.Srinarahari has conducted a number of Science Fiction Short Story Writing Workshops to all ages and levels. Late Professor Rajashekar Bhoosnurmutt (Vice- President of IASFS), Late Bhairnatti HS and Abdul Rahman Pasha had teamed together during the first decade of the present century in conducting the workshops.

Journal:

1. The Association had published quarterly magazine entitled Indian Journal of Science Fiction Studies with its chief editor Dr.Purushothaman. It comprised of papers and stories presented in the previous conferences, review of books, and an interaction by the readers. 
2. As an editor Dr.Reema Sarwal used to bring out bi-monthly News Letters.

The publication of hardcopies of the above categories is closed now as the invasion of the electronic media has made communication easy, inexpensive and instantaneous.

Upcoming Event:

21st Annual/ 6th International Science Fiction Virtual Conference is proposed to be held on July 17, 18 & 19, 2022. Details over the menu 21st Conference.

Pandemic Era:

Indian Association for Science Fiction Studies had organized the 20th Annual National Virtual Science Ficiton Conference in collaboration with Indian Science Fiction Writers’ Association, Ayodhya, UP; Kalpabishwa, Kolkata, West Bengal; Marathi Vidnyan Parishad, Mumbai, Maharashtra; Malayalam Science Fiction Association, Trivendrum, Kerala, and the host Devgiri College, Aurangabad, Maharashtra State on August 30-31, 2021. The details could be had from the menu Confernces section in this website.

The association has held the 19^th Annual/5^th International Science Fiction Virtual Conference in collaboration with Bangalore University, Bangalore on, December 7,8, 9, & 10, 2020. The unique feature of the conference is that all the 58 PG departments of the University, Sci-Fi fans, media and the general public had converged at “All Roads to Science Fiction” as ISFC -2020. There were themes varying from Myth to advanced technology and to the life in other worlds. The conference was inaugurated by Honorable Chief Minister of Karnataka State, The Honorable Deputy Chief Minister & The Minister for Higher Education, Honorable Minister for Primary and Secondary Education, Honorable Vice Chancellor of Bangalore University, Nobel Laureate Professor Didier Patrick Queloz (Keynote- Physics 2019), had made their august presence. Plenary sessions, presentations, special lectures, interviews, panel discussions, narrating stories of tomorrow variety of programs from the PG department of Performing Arts and others were the highlights of this mega event.    

Details of the Past Conferences:

The menu section ‘conferences’ attempts to provide comprehensive information regarding the past conferences from 1 to 20.

Life Membership:

You are cordially invited to be a part of the association by becoming a Life Member. It is open for all provided the aspirant is 18+ in age and has maintained good mental record. There is no restrictions of qualification, experience, gender, class, race, nationality and others for the life member aspirants. The life member will have the option to leave the group at any time but cannot claim a refund of the life membership once paid in the beginning. The association will also have the right to remove such members who are reported to have a criminal background, carrying out criminal activities, authentically reported as a member of a terrorist group, or carrying out anti-social, anti-human activities for the destruction of the society or a section of the society without giving any notice or reason – which would not require any explanation to an individual, member or a group or to a registered body or to the court of law.

Please click the link below to fill the prescribed form for Life Membership of this association. The Life Membership fee is INR 2000/- only. The link provides you the option for payment in multiple ways like Debit card, Credit Card, Wallet, Internet Banking and others:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSeo8ZEYjyNytmMPM7JfcgLtJgjmy0rHGa3TZRsB99uLRvqKDw/viewform?usp=sf_link;

For a quick response from our association, please mail us your name, mobile number, email id and the postal address to enable us to send you the official receipt for the payment made for life membership. You will be provided with a membership id and complimentary gifts along with the receipt.

Complimentary Gifts:

The New Life members will receive the official Receipt and ID number by speed post in a week’s time. Life Member Metallic Badge and vehicle stickers will be sent together in one single envelope.

Use of Badge & Stickers:

It is a pristigious thing to tell others that you are a life member of this association. One way of doing it is to have your visiting cards and letter head may have the items to highlight how privelaged you are. You can use the metallic badge on ceremonial mega events.

If you can display the stickers on your vehicles even then, it is a way to convey others that you are something special.

Hence, the association will send the Two wheeler stickers also along with metallic badge and four wheeler stickers as complimentary gifts to Life Members.

The four wheeler stickers could be displayed on the back wind shield glass from inside. The two wheeler sticker could be on the mudguard or on the back side of the seat cover.

The caution is to be taken by you to see that the stickers do not eclipse the number plate; Please do not stick if your RTO has restricted the use of stickers on vehicles.

We are indebted to…

IASFS remains grateful to the life members, collaborating institutions, resource persons, authors, sponsors, media persons, delegates, participants, executive committee members of our team, technical personalities, publishers, and SF fans for your valuable contribution in making the past events a grand success. Hope you will all join hands in providing necessary inputs to enhance the quality during the upcoming events.

-Dr.Srinarahari, For Team IASFS.

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