Barbara D. Metcalf teaches at the Department of History at the University of California, Davis. She hasworked extensively on Islam in India, focusing particularly on the reformist Deobandi madrasa and the relatedTablighi Jama'at movement. She is best known for her path-breaking study of the history of the Dar-ul 'Ulummadrasa, Deoband. She talked to Yoginder Sikand about the role of madrasas and the Tablighi Jama'at incontemporary South Asia.