Diaspora Poetics and Homing in South Asian Women's Writing: Beyond Trishanku

203 Pages·2018·2.658 MB·English

by  Shilpa Daithota Bhat (editor)

Diaspora Poetics and Homing in South
Asian Women's Writing

Diaspora Poetics and Homing in South
Asian Women's Writing
Beyond Trishanku
Edited by Shilpa Daithota Bhat
LEXINGTONBOOKS
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Contents
Acknowledgments vii
Introduction ix
ShilpaDaithotaBhat
1:REALIZINGTRISHANKU 1
1 RepresentationandMemorializationoftheExperiencesof
WomeninIndenture 3
MarinaCarter
2 UprootedandDispossessed:AnEcocriticalFeministReadingof
FaridaKarodia’sOtherSecrets 17
MaríaJesúsCabarcosTraseira
3 PursuingtheIndo-CaribbeanDiasporathroughRamabai
Espinet’sTheSwingingBridge 31
MaríaAlonsoAlonso
4 “There’sNoPlaceLikeHome”:TravelasErasureinThree
Turn-of-The-CenturyNarratives 43
GurbirSinghJolly
2:CONFIGURINGHOME 73
5 APassagefromIndia:TheDarklyFunnyinMeeraSyal’sAnita
andMe 75
SetaraPracha
6 RelocatingHomeandDiasporizingtheSouthAsianQueer 87
ShuhitaBhattacharjee
v
vi Contents
7 NegotiatingHomeandHomelandthroughWomen’sLife-Writing 107
SamNaidu
3:EXPLORINGHOSTLANDS 119
8 BharatiMukherjee’sJasmineandtheRomanceoftheRefugee
Governess 121
ReshmiJ.Hebbar
9 ExploringRaceinthePoetryofVandanaKhanna,Pireeni
Sundaralingam,andDilrubaAhmed 137
MitaliP.Wong
10 CorporealityandSearchforHomeinBharatiMukherjee’sFiction 145
IzabellaKimak
Epilogue:AbbeyandMe 155
VanitaSeth
Index 165
AbouttheContributors 169
Acknowledgments
No project is single-handedly imaginable. This anthology has been possible
only because of the thought-provoking articles contributed by Gurbir Singh
Jolly, Izabella Kimak, María Alonso Alonso, Marina Carter, María Jesús
Cabarcos Traseira, Mitali P. Wong, Reshmi J. Hebbar, Sam Naidu, Setara
Pracha, Shuhita Bhattacharjee, and Vanita Seth (names in alphabetical or-
der). All the contributors have chosen varied themes and have looked at
intriguing angularities of the subject of women’s diaspora writing—an area
that is intersected by literature, culture, history, politics, sociology, anthro-
pology,economics,anddigitization.Knowledgeproducedbythesemanifold
connectionsenrichunderstandingandinterpretationoftheterrainofinterna-
tional migration. This book focuses on homing and narratives by women
diaspora writers with South Asian roots, and the contributors have brought
their rich experience and analysis to the subject. I am very grateful to all of
them for collaborating with me in bringing out this anthology. This work is
dedicatedtothem.
Lindsey Porambo and Nick Johns from Lexington (Rowman and Little-
field)havesupportedthisprojectatallstagesofitsdevelopment.Thisismy
second project with this brilliant team and their suggestions to refine the
work in terms of content, formatting, and presentation have been priceless!
ThankyousomuchLindseyandNick!Ihopeweworktogetherinfuturetoo.
NurjehanAziz(MawenziHousePublishers,Toronto)kindlygrantedper-
missionforusingGeetaKothari’sstory “Her Mother’sAshes” publishedby
TSAR in 1994 in Gurbir Jolly Singh’s research study in this book. For the
sameessayMeeraSethi(Toronto,Canada)grantedpermissionfortheuseof
her poem “Pictures.” I would like to thank Mr. Mike Bieker (Director, Uni-
versity of Arkansas Press), Vandana Khanna, Pireeni Sundaralingam, and
vii
viii Acknowledgments
Dilruba Ahmed for permitting the use of poems quoted in Mitali P. Wong’s
essayinthisbook.
I am perennially thankful to Prof. Ranjana Harish, late Prof. Chelva Ka-
naganayagam, Prof. Colin Coates, and Prof. Leslie Sanders (York Univer-
sity,Canada),AshwathiMenon,NeetaandShailesh,KarunaGill,andmany
otherwell-wishersofmine,whomIfondlyrememberfortheirkindnesses.
Icannotthankmyhusbandenoughforbeingenormouslypatientwithme,
constantlygiving that moral support that isindispensable formeto carry on
withmyambitions.Thatdoesn’tmean,Iamnotsubjecttocriticism.Strange-
ly, criticism is included in the moral support. My daughters perpetually in-
spiremetogiveupallworkandspendtimeonlywiththemandIamthankful
to them for making my world beautiful. My parents gave me foundational
education which forms the bedrock for my aspirations today. I am thankful
fortheirlove.
I have always believed in a higher power that endows me with spiritual
strength.I considermyself blessedforthisfaithin unseen powersthat moti-
vateme,indicatedirectionsandpurposesinmylife.