Diaspora, Culture and Identity: Asian Indians in America

Book Details

• Publisher: Rawat Publications

• Author: Poonam Bala

• Language: English

• Edition: 2015

• ISBN: 9788131607183

• Pages: 152

• Cover: Hardcover

• Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.7 x 0.7 inches

About the Book

This insightful work by Poonam Bala examines the socio-cultural experiences of the Asian Indian community in Ohio, highlighting issues that have often gone undocumented but have significantly shaped the lives of South Asian immigrants in the United States. The book captures the patterns and reasons behind the cultural “shifts” experienced by the diaspora, exploring how migration leads to the preservation, adaptation, and transformation of social and cultural values.

Unlike previous studies that focused primarily on the changing roles of Indian women or provided a feminist lens on South Asian immigration, this book delves deeper into the generational dynamics of identity, cultural assimilation, and social adjustments. It documents the voices of first-generation immigrants as well as those of the second and third generations, offering a nuanced understanding of how the diaspora perceives and negotiates its ancestral heritage while forging new identities in America.

The narrative also allows for broader comparisons with other immigrant communities who underwent similar trajectories of cultural encounters and integration, illustrating how South Asians have maintained a distinct identity while navigating the complexities of American socio-cultural life.

With chapters reflecting on migration history, nostalgia, memory, cultural institutions, and the formation of new identities, this book serves as an essential resource for scholars and students of diaspora studies, cultural studies, migration studies, and U.S. social history.