HYDERABAD: Many of us aspire to go abroad and meet people from different communities and get global exposure and experience.
Some of us return to India, bringing back our new-found experience and knowledge with us. But what about those who have stayed away from their native country for a long time? According to Alan Johnson, who teaches post-colonial studies – specialising on Indian literature, people don’t have a sense of belongness while living abroad.
“There is always a sense of nostalgia. People tend to romanticise about their homes, and that becomes a part of who we are. However, with the increase of globalisation, the question of what is home, has become complicated,” Johnson explains, in a panel discussion titled Indians Abroad, on the inaugural day of the HLF2017.
Shanta Acharya, who herself is an Indian writer settled in the UK, agrees with Johnson.
“I don’t see myself as a diaspora writer. For me homelessness is the bigger issue.
However, when we go abroad, we create different Indias wherever we go,” observes Shanta, who hails from Orissa but did her DPhil from Oxford University and subsequently settled in London.
The panelists, also felt that there has been a drastic shift in the way the current generation of Indian writers living abroad perceive things.