American Karma

Front matter

American Karma: Race, Culture, and Identity in the Indian Diaspora

SUNIL BHATIA

NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS

Contents

Acknowledgments ix

Introduction 1

American Karma: Race, Place, and Identity in the Indian Diaspora 12

Scene 1

Anjali and I enter the room. We are greeted by two teenaged girls dressed in colorful chanya cholis (traditional blouse and skirt). They wish us “Happy Diwali” and serve us jilebis (type of sweet) on a banana leaf. This large rectangular room, located behind the main church, was decorated with lights. There were about thirty round tables covered with blue tablecloths, around which many Indian families were sitting. Some families were engaged in animated conversation, and others were sitting silently around the table. A couple of young men and women had pulled their chairs away from the round table and were observing the general flow of activity. About ten older men and women were sitting at the round tables with their families. Many of these elderly guests were the parents and grandparents of the migrant families and were visiting from India. The women were busy setting up the dinner and getting ready to participate in several dance events. Three men from the catering service, dressed in white shirts and black trousers, were setting up five tables on one side of the room and pouring food from large cauldrons into stainless steel serving containers. In the center of the room was a large makeshift shamiana (podium) with a carpeted floor. A tabla (percussion instrument), harmonuim, and a microphone were on the floor. Next to the shamiana was an altar for the various Hindu gods and goddesses. Young boys dressed in kurta pajamas (traditional clothing worn by males) were chasing one another. A group of girls dressed in chunya choli and salwar khameez (traditional clothing worn by Indian women) were practicing their dance steps. The guests seated at the table were conversing in Gujarati, Marathi, Hindi, and English.

When we entered the room, Anjali and I were not sure about the seating arrangements and were looking around for a table. Kanchan and Kiran, the hosts of the dinner, approached us. I told them, “We are Vishal’s guests.” Kiran replied, “Yes, we got the fax from him.” Kanchan asked, “Are you new to the area?” I replied, “I joined Connecticut College about a year ago.” Kanchan told me that her daughter, Gita, was ready to go to college, and we had a brief conversation about liberal arts colleges. Kanchan remarked, “Gita wants to study engineering like her dad and is interested in going to a big university.” As we mingled with other families, Rohan and his wife, Asha, came up to us. Rohan remarked, “Almost all the Indians here work for the local computer company. It’s nice to know some non-ABC people.” Rohan was curious about the courses I taught at the college. He said, “My daughter, Sheetal, is getting ready to go to college next year. She is interested in psychology and wants to go to a liberal arts college.” I replied, “If you need any help with her application, let me know,” and Rohan and I talked about the benefits of studying at a liberal arts college. As though we were his guests, Rohan introduced Anjali and me to several other Indian families. Within a couple of hours after my arrival at the church, I had met about ten families. I met Ashok, Arun, Shailesh, Kishore, Abhishek, Poonam, Arun, Hema, Naina, Rekha, Raju, Ashok, Rani, and Prashant. In short, I had met the “core group” of the Indian diaspora. Raju said that he played squash with a professor at Connecticut College, and Abhishek knew some of my colleagues in the chemistry department and noted that the president of the college “lives down the road from our house.”