who we are
Team at Itihas
Founder
Dr. Shamara Wettimuny
Shamara Wettimuny is a historian who specialises in ethno-religious conflict and discrimination, and identity formation across majority and minority communities in Sri Lanka. She is currently a Junior Research Fellow in History at The Queen’s College, University of Oxford. Shamara has a M.Sc and B.Sc in International Relations and History from the London School of Economics, and a D.Phil from the University of Oxford, where she was a Beit Scholar. She is also an advisor to Sri Lankan and international organisations on promoting alternative discourses to counter hate speech and disinformation targeting minority communities in Sri Lanka. As a public historian, she has lectured at universities including University of Oxford, Imperial College London, University of Colombo, and University of Jaffna and has been invited to present her research at Princeton University, Durham University, and Harvard University. Shamara frequently tweets at @shamara4w, where she also shares her own articles, podcasts, and interviews on history.
Research Associate
Anisha Dias Bandaranaike
Anisha is a researcher and editor. She holds an MA in Museum Anthropology from Columbia University and a BA in Linguistics from Brown University. Anisha worked at Verite Research as a media researcher and analyst, focusing on ethno-religious violence, disinformation and factchecking. She is also the founder and is currently the executive chairperson of the Lakmahal Community Library.
Advisor
Dr. Vindhya Buthpitiya
Vindhya Buthpitiya is an anthropologist working at the intersection of politics and visual culture. Her research is focused on war, photography, death and resistance in northern Sri Lanka, and examines the local and global aftermaths of civil conflict through the making and moving of images. Vindhya is a Lecturer in Social Anthropology at the University of St Andrews.
Advisor
Ralston Joseph
Ralston Joseph is a communications professional with experience in brand building and advertising. He teaches branding, and is frequently invited by universities and organisations to share his insights on how ideas work, and strategic storytelling.
Advisor
Prof. Sharya Scharenguivel
Professor Sharya Scharenguivel is an Emeritus Professor of Law at the University of Colombo. She holds post graduate degrees from both Harvard and Oxford, and in addition to the many senior positions she has held at the University of Colombo including that of Dean of the Faculty of Law, and Director of the Centre for the Study of Human Rights, has also been the Benian Fellow of St John’s College, Cambridge, Inns of Court Fellow and Visiting Fellow of Balliol College Oxford and Clare Hall Cambridge. She is a Life Member of Clare Hall. Professor Scharenguivel has published widely on family law, women’s rights and child rights, and on labour laws. Her expertise has been recognised by policy makers and she has contributed to many ministerial law reform committees as well as shared her expertise on the Boards of several NGOs.