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| Anita Nahal |
Diaspora Dual Identities—lived and imagined
It was
a delight to read the variety of poetic impressions and expressions on “dual
identities” by the poets who contributed to this special issue sponsored by Setu
and Matwaala. Our poets in this expressly curated issue are both
diaspora and non-diaspora, thereby presenting an insider-outside perspective on
“dual identities.”
This year, 2025, marks the tenth anniversary of the founding of Matwaala
by Usha Akella and Pramila Venkateswaran. Their primary aim has been to promote
poetry by South Asian diaspora writers. They have indeed come a long way in
fulfilling that mission by holding regular readings in different cities or
online, by participating in literary events, and by encouraging youth poets,
thereby creating a solid legacy of diasporic South Asian literary arts in the
US. As Pramila says in an interview with me, “Our efforts in Matwaala have been toward building a
strong community of South Asian poets in the diaspora and their visibility in
American literature.” Besides this, Matwaala
has expanded its outreach by including poets of color who are not South Asian. Usha
points out that this provides Matwaala and its poets “…the
opportunity to understand our own empathy with other ethnicities and
communities… it has been a profound learning process. In some sense, there is a
commonality to the immigrant experiential spectrum.”
To be the guest editor, therefore, of this distinct
issue directed at showcasing an array of South Asian voices—diasporic and
non-diasporic--- on the lived and imagined experiences of diaspora individuals
has been a gratifying experience. And in the process bringing together Matwaala
and Setu together, the latter a journal based in Pittsburgh devoted to
writing--- has been an honor for me.
In 1995 Alisha Chinai released the song Made in India. It became
hugely popular, selling almost 5 million copies. The singular line in the song that
has remained in my memory is, “I want a heart made in India.” In the
song the word “heart” is associated with “romance.” Besides that, for me it also
symbolizes my own heart and feelings and the cultural attributes, including
language, that I have carried with me wherever I have gone. I have sought peace
and safety in another land and culture, adopting and blending in some of their
aspects into a balanced, palatable drink for myself. Some would label me as
having “dual identities.” Personally, I think I have multiple layers that lap
and overlap as in a Venn diagram---human, woman, single mother, professional,
writer, and so forth. And therefore, the notion of a dual hyphenated identity,
such as Indian-American doesn’t garner my interest. What is the need of a
hyphen between those words? And neither does nostalgia bother me nor find its
way in any distinct fashion into my writings. I didn’t realize that till
readers pointed that out to me.
Some diaspora people might be lonely, lost, confused, and missing their
land of birth immensely, however, not everyone who emigrates is caught up in
such a quagmire. Some relish and celebrate their dual or multiple
identities/layers, developing a hybrid uniqueness that is enriched with myriad
experiences. Says, Nikesh Shukla in The Good Immigrant, “…we are the
people with an ‘other’ understanding, with an invested interest in everyone
being treated equally as we have a foot and a loyalty in many camps, with all
shades.”[1]
It doesn’t mean they don’t miss their homeland—it’s natural to do so.
But it also doesn’t imply that nostalgia may drag them down.
Another angle to the diaspora “dual identity” notion is the views of
people back in the native lands. Friends and family draw their own conclusions
depending upon the nature of one’s relationship with the emigrant. They will not
experience the challenges—or beauties of immigrating. Some may have a very rosy
picture of their relatives floating in huge amounts of money, properties, the
best of jobs etc. Or they might believe they have become heartless and don’t
wish to visit them. They cannot fathom that creating new lives in a new country
is not an easy or simple process. And once created, folks have no choice but to
live those new/altered lives as best as they can, which can sometimes hamper
their desires to go back “home.” It’s just the nature of spatial movement.
At the same time, those who emigrate will not know how it feels to be
the ones remaining in the native lands. How it is to miss those who emigrated.
How it is to wait endlessly for their calls and their visits. It’s a catch 22
situation.
Also. the notion of “home”
isn’t monolithic. It can be a place, a person, a memory, a food item…anything
that makes us feel at rest and at comfort.” As Jhumpa Lahiri says, “Home is
not just a place where we reside in; it is a comfortable space where we belong.” [2] History speaks of push and pull factors of why people
emigrate. These can be referred to as triggers. Depending on which was more
pertinent or critical for a given individual at the time of their departure,
their experience as such would be different. And one person’s trigger may not
be that of another’s, thereby leading to misunderstandings between those who
went away and those who were stayed/left behind.
Generalizations are not possible. It is, however, quite probable for
people to be nostalgic for native lands and also revel in their new
surroundings and cultures. It’s also possible that the reasons for their
departure from their original homeland were traumatic, and that while they
maintain their cultural identity in their new land through language, clothing, festivals,
etc., they have no desire to return to their place of birth except for short
visits.
There is simply no one experience that can be categorically said is the
true diasporic one, and an assortment of situations can leave folks both exhausted
and elated at trying to figure out the notion of “dual identity.” I hope you
all will enjoy reading the wide selection of poems devoted to this topic. Please
begin with two of mine.
A huge thank you to the contributing poets and to Setu! Best wishes,
Anita
diaspora marigolds
from a
fancy nursery near here in the west
Diaspora Kintsugi
i urge my body water to act as my Kintsugi. smooth rivers running alongside my blood, a few paces behind, letting the red do its magic unhindered. and where deficiencies appear, my body water wriggles and fills the gaps, tiny and large. i’m getting on in age you see, and soreness of the body is escalating. some say aging naturally amplifies diaspora dualities. neon and freedom muddle the youth, but after sixty, they say, things begin to slow down like a hyper dog maybe after nine. naturally born reminiscences and painstakingly created distant lives begin a focused tug of war. childhood visions hover like dense clouds waiting to pour heavily through dry tear glands while newly fangled portraits stand guard at freshly painted fortresses bringing smiles and peace. I step back, blending the blues of my past with the greens of my present, and let my frame and emotions shine with Kintsugi lines cast from molten glass in dispassionate waters.
*Kintsugi: Japanese art of pouring gold—or
another element-- to repair broken pottery.
Anita Nahal is an Indian American professor, poet, children's books writer, recent novelist and very recent short film maker. Finalist, Tagore Literary Prize, 2023, for her poetry book, Kisses at the espresso bar, nominated twice for the Pushcart Prize (22, 23), Anita won the Nissim Prize in Literature her poetry-prose novel, drenched thoughts in 2024. Her third poetry collection, What’s wrong with us Kali women?, is mandatory reading at Utrecht University. Her first under 3 minute very short film, “Clubs my sinful dance muse,” won the best super short film at the Five Continents International Film Festival, Venezuela, 2024. A Fulbright and NEH scholar, Anita teaches at a university in Washington DC.
[1] A
quote from the good immigrant (no date) Goodreads. Available at:
https://www.goodreads.com/quotes/8033962-there-is-a-dream-a-grand-idealism-that-mixed-race-people
(Accessed: 11 April 2025).
[2] (No date) Jhumpa Lahiri quotes - brainyquote. Available at: https://www.brainyquote.com/authors/jhumpa-lahiri-quotes (Accessed: 11 April 2025).
Special Edition Poets: April 2025
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