All ye olde NRIs!

Ucla historian Vinay Lal provides an unique look at the history of the Indian diaspora in the United States in The Other Indians.

Ucla historian Vinay Lal provides an unique look at the history of the Indian diaspora in the United States in The Other Indians (Rs 295, HarperCollins). This slim volume is politically engaging as much as it provides a sharp picture of not only the travails of early ‘Indian settlers' in the ‘land of milk and honey', but also the parallel evolution of diasporic cultural markers and the way they saw ‘Motherland' India. In a time when everybody and their uncle is writing about India's growing spotlight on the world stage, looking back and following the trajectory makes not only great reading but also good sense. To know the history of our ‘foreign cousins' is a real start to knowing how India and Indians are perceived ‘out there'. All ye olde NRIs!

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