Heena Mistry is currently pursuing her PhD in history under the supervision of Dr. Amitava Chowdhury. Her research examines the interactions between Indian nationalists and Indians settled across the British Empire, immediately following the abolition of indenture in 1917 until the outbreak of the Second World War. Specifically, she looks at how the Government of India intervened on behalf of Indians overseas and how these interactions reflected an idealist understanding of empire. Her work challenges national histories by looking at alternatives to the nation that different colonial subjects imagined.

Her Master’s work looked at the history of South Asians in Kenya. She has also worked on the history of aquariums and their relationship to twentieth century French colonialism.