Introduction

The book explores the politics of gendered belonging in the South Asian (SA) diaspora through the lens of migration. It focuses on the lives of contemporary postcolonial SA migrants, particularly women, through a critical analysis of select South Asian diaspora literature. It brings together authors who have not previously been discussed collectively, examining their works to uncover the nuanced interplay between homeland, hostland, and diaspora.

Focus on Postcolonial South Asian Women

Focusing on postcolonial South Asian women, it critically analyzes works by Sorayya Khan, Meena Alexander, Sara Suleri, Anita Desai, and Kiran Desai to explore the interplay of homeland, hostland, and diaspora. Unpacking the grammar of dislocation, displacement, border crossing, and relocation, Migration Matters uses a postcolonial theoretical lens to assess the impact of colonialism and modernity on the production of diasporic subjectivities and the construction of diasporic communities.

Concept of Diaspora Space

Engaging with the concept of a diaspora space that both separates and merges boundaries of inclusion and exclusion, this book delves into the triad of homeland, hostland, and diaspora, highlighting the processes of exchange, negotiation, and contestation. Being attentive to how material conditions of globalization produce culturally specific diasporic subjects, Migration Matters engages with the idea of transnationality as a diasporic condition but without ignoring the national, racial, class, and gender differences.

Globalization and Identity

Addressing the contemporary condition of transnationality, the book considers how globalization shapes culturally specific diasporic subjects. It examines the persistent connections transnational migrants maintain with their homelands and how identities are configured across multiple nation-states. Spanning texts from 1989 to 2006, Migration Matters maps the shifts in nation and diaspora, particularly post-9/11 world.

Audience and Significance

It is an essential read for scholars and students in South Asian diaspora studies, postcolonial literature, gender and cultural studies, migration, and transnationalism.