There is a great deal of online advice for those planning to apply to PhD programmes. Most of it is for students looking abroad, to the U.S.A., Europe or Australia, for fully-funded, prestigious doctoral fellowships. These posts are full of optimism on how to secure a visa, write a statement of purpose, or network with potential advisors. There’s very little writing on what it means to apply for a PhD in India. When it does exist, it’s either promotional material or aspirational in a vague, credentialist way.