Introduction

The first chapter provides an overview of this edited volume and situates the contributing chapters in the historical contexts of Disability Studies in India. The experience of disability in India is diverse and multifaceted, not only due to the diversity in types of disabilities, but also historically and culturally shaped understandings of disability and intersectionality with other factors, such as socioeconomic status, cast, gender inequality, religion, and sexual orientation, which contribute to the stigmatization of individuals with disabilities. We approach the diversity in experiences of disability and stigmatization through personal narratives. Part 1 describes the theoretical frameworks of disability necessary to understand personal narratives of disability and stigmatization in India. Part 2 focuses on practitioners’ and scholars’ understandings of disability narratives in their interactions with individuals with disabilities, including research projects. Finally, Part 3 provides autobiographic, first-person narratives of disability. We then introduce each contributing chapter as a road map of this edited volume.