I am a political scientist specialising in China's defence, foreign policies, and nuclear strategy. My research focuses on Chinese military affairs, security and foreign policy issues, nuclear strategy, India-China relations, and strategic and security developments in East Asia and the Indo-Pacific region.

Currently, I am a Non-Resident Fellow at the Foreign Policy Research Institute, Philadelphia.  Previously, I served as an Associate Research Fellow in the China Studies Programme at the Takshashila Institution in Bangalore, India. My peer-reviewed research has been featured in India Quarterly, Indian Public Policy Review, Takshashila Discussion Documents and Issue Papers, and ORF Occasional Paper. I was a part of the CSIS ChinaPower team that built a first-of-its-kind database on Chinese military purges under Xi Jinping. My popular writing has appeared in The Jamestown China Brief, The National Interest, The Indian Express, The Times of India, Hindustan Times, South China Morning Post, Taipei Times, South Asian Voices, and more. Additionally, I have published 117 issues of The PLA Insight, a widely subscribed weekly newsletter on the Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA), reaching policymakers, academicians, and journalists in over 100 countries. Currently, I publish The PLA Bulletin, a newsletter providing news and analysis on the PLA, with subscribers from academic and policymaking circles across 150 countries.

I hold degrees from Jawaharlal Nehru University (MPhil in International Organisations), Mumbai University (Master’s in Political Science), the Indian Society of International Law (Diploma in International Law and Diplomacy), Mumbai University (Bachelor’s in Mass Media), and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) (MicroMasters in Data Science - Social Science track). Furthermore, for 40 months,  I studied advanced Chinese language (traditional script) at National Taiwan Normal University, Taipei, and beginner and intermediate levels at National Sun Yat-sen University, Kaohsiung. ​

 

Before joining the Takshashila Institution, I briefly worked with Outlook Magazine and The Free Press Journal. I also undertook internships at the Indian Council of World Affairs (Ministry of External Affairs), The Quint, The Indian Express, Times Now, and Daily News and Analysis (DNA). At the age of 19, I was among 30 candidates from across India—and the only underage applicant—shortlisted for the final interview round for an internship at Rashtrapati Bhavan (The President’s House). Additionally, during my undergraduate studies, I served as Editor-in-Chief of my college newspaper.

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Photo (right): This image captures me summiting Hehuanshan East Peak in Taiwan, standing at 3,421 meters (11,224 feet) above sea level, for the first sunrise on January 1, 2025.