1st Edition
Nepali Diaspora in a Globalised Era
This is one of the first books to explore Nepali diaspora in a global context, across India and other parts of South Asia, Southeast Asia, Europe, and Australia. It discusses the social, political and economic status and aspirations of the Nepali community worldwide. The essays in the volume cover a range of themes including belonging and identity politics among Nepalese migrants, representation of Indian Nepalis in literature, diasporic consciousness, forceful eviction and displacement, social movements, and ritual practices among migrant communities. Drawing attention to the lives of Nepali emigrants, the volume presents a sensitive and balanced understanding of their options and constraints, and their ambivalences about who they are.
This work will be invaluable to scholars and students of Nepal studies, area studies, diaspora and migration studies, social anthropology, cultural studies and literature.
Introduction 1. Diasporic Junctions: An Eternal Journey of Mankind 2. Changing Paradigms of Nepalese Migration and Emerging Diaspora 3. Hami Nepali? Belonging in Nepal and Nepali Diaspora Ulrike Müller-Böker 4. Competing Perspectives on the Gurkhas and Identity Politics in Nepal 5. Mythical Entrapment of the Self and the Notion of Nepali Diaspora 6. The Indian Gorkhas: Changing Orientations of a Diasporic Society 7. Diasporic Imaginations of Darjeeling: Gorkhaland as an Imaginative Geography 8. Writing from the Edges to the Centre: Theorizing the Fragmented Identity of Indian Nepalis 9. The Inheritance of Loss and the Portrayal of Indian Nepalis 10. The Making of Gurung Cultural Identifications in Sikkim 11. Ties to Nepal and Diasporic Consciousness of Indians of Nepali Origin: Examples from Assam 12. Between Two Worlds: A Re-reading of Brahmaputraka Cheuchao 13. Gurkha Displacement from Burma in 1942: A Historical Perspective 14. The Nepalis of Manipur in the Perspective of ‘Cultural Collective’ 15. Evicted from Home, Nowhere to Go: The Case of Lhotshampas from Bhutan 16. Lhotshampa Refugees and Nepali Diaspora 17. Riots, ‘Residence’ and Repatriation: The Singapore Gurkhas 18. Dreams of Sacrifice: Changing Ritual Practices among the Ex-Gurkha Immigrants in the UK
Biography
Tanka B. Subba is Vice Chancellor, Sikkim University, Gangtok, India.
A.C. Sinha is National Fellow at the Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR), Nehru Memorial Museum and Library, Teen Murti House, New Delhi, India.
This book is a pioneering exploration of the global Nepali diaspora and an outstanding addition to the comparative study of contemporary trans-continental migrations from South Asia. The volume brings out in a subtle and masterly way the global scenario of identity and livelihood predicaments of overseas Nepali communities. The distinguished editors and contributors deserve our thanks and congratulations for having admirably filled an existing gap in diaspora studies from the sub-continent.
Ravindra K. Jain, Former Professor and Dean, School of Social Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India
