The Practice of Visual Ethnography: Examining Identity and Lived Experiences of Marginalised Communities

This book presents visual ethnography as a transformative approach to understanding, documenting, and representing the layered realities of marginalized communities and often-overlooked institutional contexts. It demonstrates how visual storytelling tools ranging from photography and video to infographics and spatial mapping can uncover the subtle social, cultural, and economic dynamics that traditional textual research tends to miss. Drawing on diverse case studies, the volume shows how visual narratives not only illuminate lived experiences but also foster collaboration and challenge dominant representations.
By highlighting its multidisciplinary reach, the book situates visual ethnography within the intersecting domains of urban studies, development research, and policy engagement. It also delves into the ethical and methodological dimensions of visual storytelling, underscoring its potential to bridge academic inquiry with public understanding and policymaking. Ultimately, this work advocates for visual ethnography as a vital instrument of inclusive research and transformative communication, one that amplifies marginalized voices, strengthens social connections, and inspires meaningful change in contemporary urban and social landscapes.
Readers will be drawn to its inventive methods, compelling findings, and thought-provoking themes, which together weave strong links between scholarship, advocacy, and on-ground practice.

List of contents

Chapter 1: Introduction: Framing Impact Introduction to Visual Storyboards.- Chapter 2: Expanding Horizons Methodological Innovations and Literature in Contemporary Ethnography.- Chapter 3: Marginal Frames: Visual Ethnography of Excluded Communities in Kashmir.- Chapter 4: Framing Lived Realities: Employing Visual Ethnography to Document Informal Settlements, Case Study of Kapershera.- Chapter 5: Crafting Narratives: A Visual Ethnography of Papier Mâché Artisans in Kashmir.- Chapter 6: Visual Storyboards in Action: A Methodological Journey in Assam s Bodoland.- Chapter 7: Framing Craft: A Visual Ethnography of Ajrakh Artisans in Kutch, Gujarat.- Chapter 8: Reimagining Ethnography: Reflections and Future Directions for Visual Storytelling.

About the author

Deepanshu Mohan
 is Professor of Economics and Dean, IDEAS, Office of Interdisciplinary Studies, O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU), India, where he is also Director, Centre for New Economics Studies (CNES). He is a Visiting Professor at London School of Economics and a Visiting Academic Fellow at the Asian and Middle Eastern Studies (AMES), Oxford University. 
 
He is an Honorary Research Fellow, Birkbeck College, University of London since 2022 and has been a Visiting Professor at the School of International Development, University of Ottawa.  He has published earlier with Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, Taylor and Francis, Brill, NUS Press, and Palgrave MacMillan to name a few.

Najam Us Saqib
is working as Academic Program Manager at IDEAS, Office of Interdisciplinary Studies. He is a Senior Research Analyst at Centre for New Economics Studies (CNES), O P Jindal Global University, Sonipat.

His research interests include: Post Colonial Caste Politics, Development Studies, Muslim Political Thought and Politics of Marginalization.

His research work has been featured in Contemporary Voice of Dalit and
Vulnerable Communities in Neoliberal India: Perspectives from a Feminist Ethnographic Approach
. His upcoming co-authored book titled Identity, Dispossession and Resilience of the Subaltern: A Study of Marginalized Communities in Kashmir, is Published by Routledge (London and New York). 

Namesh Killemsetty
is an Associate Professor of Public Policy and the Associate Dean of Program Strategy and Academic Affairs at the Jindal School of Government and Public Policy, O.P. Jindal Global University (JGU), India. He also holds the position of Associate Director at IDEAS - Office of Interdisciplinary Studies at JGU. As a transdisciplinary researcher focused on urban governance and poverty, Namesh's work centers on housing, tenure security, and the community rights of slum dwellers. He integrates theories and methods from Urban Studies, Policy Analysis, Operations Research, and Decision Sciences in his research. His research emphasizes participatory approaches that elevate the voices of marginalized populations, particularly slum dwellers, to promote effective policymaking.

He has earned his Ph.D. in Public Policy from the University of Massachusetts Boston. Before pursuing his Ph.D., he worked as a Civil Engineer and an Infrastructure Planner with organizations such as Jindal Steel and Power Limited and the Shapoorji Pallonji Group. In recognition of his contributions to urban affairs, he received the 2021 Urban Affairs Association Alma H. Young Emerging Scholar Award in the USA.
Hima Trisha Mohan
is Senior Research Analyst at Centre for New Economics Studies (CNES), O P Jindal Global University, Sonipat. She is currently pursuing LLM from Leiden University, Netherlands.

 

Summary

This book presents visual ethnography as a transformative approach to understanding, documenting, and representing the layered realities of marginalized communities and often-overlooked institutional contexts. It demonstrates how visual storytelling tools ranging from photography and video to infographics and spatial mapping can uncover the subtle social, cultural, and economic dynamics that traditional textual research tends to miss. Drawing on diverse case studies, the volume shows how visual narratives not only illuminate lived experiences but also foster collaboration and challenge dominant representations.
By highlighting its multidisciplinary reach, the book situates visual ethnography within the intersecting domains of urban studies, development research, and policy engagement. It also delves into the ethical and methodological dimensions of visual storytelling, underscoring its potential to bridge academic inquiry with public understanding and policymaking. Ultimately, this work advocates for visual ethnography as a vital instrument of inclusive research and transformative communication, one that amplifies marginalized voices, strengthens social connections, and inspires meaningful change in contemporary urban and social landscapes.
Readers will be drawn to its inventive methods, compelling findings, and thought-provoking themes, which together weave strong links between scholarship, advocacy, and on-ground practice.

Product details

• Assisted by: Namesh Killemsetty (Editor), Namesh Killemsetty et al (Editor), Deepanshu Mohan (Editor), Hima Trisha Mohan (Editor), Najam Us Saqib (Editor), Najam Us Saqib (Editor)
• Publisher: Springer, Berlin
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Release: 22.02.2026
• EAN: 9789819546473
• ISBN: 978-981-9546-47-3
• No. of pages: 121
• Illustrations: X, 121 p. 25 illus. in color.
• Subjects: Social sciences, law, business > Sociology > Miscellaneous; Soziologie, Kulturwissenschaften, Städte, Stadtgemeinden, Sociology of Culture, Wirtschaftspolitik, politische Ökonomie, cultural identity, Ethnography, Visual Culture, Urban Sociology, Marginalization, Sociocultural Anthropology, Socio-Economic Policy, Visual ethnography, Cross-cultural identity expression, Visual storyboards