Jürgen Schaflechner

Dr. Jürgen Schaflechner is a Research Fellow and research group leader at the Department for Social and Cultural Anthropology, Freie Universität Berlin. He leads the research project "The Populism of the Precarious: Marginalization, Mobilization, and Mediatization of South Asia's Religious Minorities", funded by the Freigeist Fellowship. He has held visiting appointments at Harvard University, Princeton University, and Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

His research focuses on:

• Cultural and post-colonial theory
• Religious/ethnic minorities in Pakistan
• Socio-anthropology of martial arts
• Documentary film in ethnographic research
• Political movements of South Asian minorities in digital contexts

Schaflechner's publications consistently explore themes of religious identity, mediatization of minority issues, and political mobilization. His documentary films complement his written work through visual ethnography on forced conversions, refugee experiences, and political resentment.

Awards and fellowships:

• Freigeist Fellowship (research funding)

He leads a research team studying religious minorities in South Asia and co-founded/co-edits Dastavezi—The Audio-Visual South Asia journal, promoting film as academic methodology.