CHAPTER 7: CONCLUSION

From time immemorial and especially so in recent years, the West sees ethnicity in terms of immigrants seeking to develop their own community within their new destination, identity formation and at times seek political voices. While in , ethnicity is commonly referred to as sub-nationionalism within the nation state formation (Prema Kurien 2002). In this study, it is argued with evidence to prove that ethnicity is not limited to any boundary in time and space; it is the process of producing and reproducing individual or group that is ever changing. The dynamics is shaped by the everyday life situation of the people which has been proven in this study by tribal migrants of . Lifestyles are shaped or get evolved through the influences of economy, politics, religion and cultures at given ethnoscape (Appadurai 1990).

Individual’s choices, however, are not the only classification of belongingness to a particular group. The state and its constitution also renders this classification e.g. State Reorganization Act, 1956. Furthermore, in India, religious ethnicity may again vary; with one religious group, there can be many differences in terms of doctrines and dogmas, traditional practices, rituals, language, etc. This diverse set of ethnicity within India shapes norms and behavior of individuals and groups alike which further enrich the structural composition of families and communities. The variations among different communities is acknowledge by the state e.g. Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe categories.

The study focuses mainly on the reconstruction processes of indigenous tribal identity among northeast tribal migrants residing in major Indian cities, especially Pune in Maharashtra. For this purpose of discovering the notions of identity reconstruction, the researcher has undertaken multiple levels of investigation, rendering both qualitative and quantitative data collecting methods. Firstly, respondents (both migrants and host respondents) from Pune city were selected for in-depth interviews relating to factors such as attachment with the native and attachment with the host destination. Secondly, the study also looks at how tribal migrants from different regions of ‘mainland India’, Pune in specific - at different levels of occupation - faced multiple layers of challenges and undergo constant negotiations and re-negotiations with their culture in the globalizing era.

Thirdly, on looking at data collected from tribal migrants, the study establishes the importance of distinct identity assertion within a diverse set up of a nation, indicating that identity assertion does not necessarily lead to deformity of a united character of a whole component. This thesis gives emphasis and importance to the dynamics of networks by social and religious organizations in the identity assertion processes of tribal migrants. Therefore, this Chapter delves with answers to research questions while keeping in mind the objectives of the study highlighted already in Chapter 4 of the thesis.

7.1 – Stretched Identities: The Representation and Positioning of Networks and Symbols from the Native to Host Destination

From this study, it has been observed that northeast tribal migrants remain relatively attached to their own people. Kinship networks among these tribes have always been strong and these network characteristics continue to remain an integral part of their culture as it gets transmitted to young tribal migrants when they shift base from their native place to a new destination. Such networks also act as social supports systems and at times as ‘boundary maintenance’ though it may ‘override’ or interfere with economic aspects of the tribal migrants (Kurian 2002).

It has also been examined that the relocation of people in a way liberates many forms of social, cultural and emotional constraints they encounter in their native place. With the onset of globalization, the fluidity of movement from one region to another brings forth the imagining and articulation of individual and group identity (Appadurai 1996; Eikelman 1990; Anderson 1983). As also mentioned earlier in Chapter 5, the Hmars have no political voice of their own. Moreover, the majority of the Hmar migrants come from , a state inflicted with violence, insecurity and corruption. As such, instability at the home state, lack of educational and economic mobility becomes the major push factors for the young migrants to migrate. Meanwhile, the pull factors such as the glitz and glamorous life of metropolitan cities as portrayed by the media, the employment opportunities, social and political freedom, etc. became a driving force for the younger generations to migrate outside Northeast.

Globalization charters to the fluidity of human movements and produce shared cultural imagination beyond geographical and ethnic boundaries. For tribal migrants whose native is outside the Northeast, many of them have been assimilated into the ‘mainstream’ fold of Hindu culture. However, with the case of northeast tribal migrants, their identities and attachment with their own people remains very strong. Reason being that kinship network is very strong in their native surroundings which is further transmitted through Northeast migrants. As such, this network becomes an integral part of the tribal community membership even outside their native place. As Keivom (2002) pointed out, tribal networks act as social support and boundary maintenance, though it may “override” or “interfere” with economic aspects of the tribals.

While undertaking this study, there are four important indicators of identities which have been investigated and discovered namely cultural symbols, the strength of ties, socio-cultural boundaries and Fellowships.

Cultural Symbols: Food, arts and artifacts, language, lifestyles, tribal traditional dress, ornaments and even memories orally narrated have become important indicators in the process of understanding identity construction for tribal migrants. The everyday lifestyles, decision making, interaction with members within the community and outside the community are also shaped by these symbols.

The Strength of Ties: Tribal migrants have strong network and connection especially through their religious and social organizations. For migrant communities, these organizations have become an important platform in transmitting their culture, language, emotional and social identities among its members. Elizah Anderson (1999) has also used group norms as identity indicator in Code of the Street whereby identity of group members are marked depending upon their respect for or transgression of boundaries. Among tribal migrants, both individuals and group play an important role in reproducing identity in their everyday life, though at times, these indicators may not be so transparent.

Socio-Cultural Boundaries: While studying tribal migrant group, there are common empirical manifestation of boundaries that are clearly visible. One such example is the ways in which a tribal group seeks to defend its identity against ‘impurity’ caused by cultural pollution from ‘outsiders’; the assertion of tribal rights and ownership, the self determination against non-tribals (and at times even against other tribal ethnic groups). How a tribal group defines itself in relation to other group (Laura Adams 2009:319) is also an important indicator brought to the forefront in this study.

Fellowships: The Change Maker The relocation of people, in a way, liberates many from social, cultural and emotional constraints they encounter in their native place. As mentioned in the earlier chapter, the coming of Christian missionaries brought forth many changes in the overall traditional social set up of the Hmar tribes in particular and the Northeast tribes in general. Alphabet was given to the tribals whereby the introduction of paved way for their emancipation process. Superstitious beliefs and sacrificial practices too were given up. However, the coming of western missionaries on the other hand breeds in new form of social division amongst the tribals namely church denominational divide.

The Hmars were once one of the most politically, economically and socially advanced tribal groups in Manipur earning respects from their neighboring tribes. However, the moment the church nurtured new denomination, it inflicted social division baring severe consequences to their social status within their inhibited tribal region. This division became deeply embedded even in their everyday lives thereby affecting even the once unshattered kinship units of the region creating many constraints and barriers within the group. Some of the respondents even took the extreme view that this denominational divide has become too severe that, “so long as the church exists, the Hmars will never be able to come together under one banner”.

The late 1970s and early 1980s, however, became a turning point for Hmar unification. It was during this time that few educated and well-to-do members have started migrating to urban cities of mainland India in search of better economic opportunities and higher education. This mobility continued and then from the new millennia onwards, with India’s economy improving with better transport and communication and multi-national companies operating at larger scale in cities like Mumbai, Bangalore, Delhi, Chennai, Pune, the exodus of young tribals from the Northeast is never ending.

With the rise in Hmar population in these cities, the once undersized Hmar population who has joined other communities at their English worship services began to realize that a service in their own language is necessary as many of their members were not comfortable with English language worship. Thus was the genesis of Hmars coming together under one religious banner in Pune namely Hmar Christian Fellowship Pune (HCFP) in the year 2001. Each year, members have grown in numbers and HCFP has become guardian organisation for individuals and social organizations of the Hmars in Pune. This study, though, highlights the cultural and social disunity through denominational division of the Hmars brought forth by western missionaries, it also acknowledges the missionaries contributions in the emancipation process of Hmars by introducing alphabet and education, only through which the Hmars became economically, geographically and socially competent with other communities.

7.1.1 - Reconstruction of Zawlbuk/Buonzawl (Youth Dormitory)

As mentioned in the earlier chapter, for the Hmars, traditional institutions are mainly grouped under different heads such as the family, the Zawlbuk 1/Buonzawl, the Chief and his Councellors, the Priest, the Village Crier, the Blacksmith and the Youth Commander (Dena 2014) 2. Zawlbuk is considered to be one of the most important and effective agency of social and cultural education among Hmar community prior to the introduction of a more formal modern educational system. It is refuge area, educational centre and recreation cum guest house for the Hmars. Zawlbuk has played significant role in strengthening the super-structural social entity of the Hmar tribe. However, upon the arrival of the British colonial rule and Christian missionaries in the late 19 th century, the traditional Zawlbuk was abolished, replacing the informal educational set-up of Zawlbuk to a ‘more formal’ mode of education.

The study has proved that in spite of the abolition of Zawlbuk, the importance and value this traditional institution furnished has not faded in the minds of the Hmars. In almost all the Hmar villages in Manipur, a replica of Zawlbuk is constructed, at times calling it Community Hall. Even for tribal migrants, though the structural construction of Zawlbuk may not be possible, a hybrid form of the essence of Zawlbuk gets constructed in the imaginary world of migrants which ultimately gave rise to the formation of Fellowships and social organisations in major Indian cities. As such, even in this study, 54% of the respondents believe that there is a possibility of recreating Zawlbuk everywhere they go. Just as the traditional Zawlbuk, Fellowships and social organisations act as guardian for migrants and also play important role in

1 Zawlbuk has the same connotation with the word Buonzawl. The Hmars of and its bordering areas also Buonzawl as Zawlbuk .

2 The article Traditional Institutions of the Hmars is extracted from proflaldena.blogspot.in/2014/10/traditional- institutions-of-hmar.html uploaded on Sunday, 5 October 2014 transmitting the cultural identities of the Hmars among its members.

In the course of reconstructing Zawlbuk, it is important to note that not only does the native culture and host community play its part in reconstituting tribal identity for migrants; the intervening spaces i.e. the transit area and its culture, also has significant part to play. In the case of Hmar migrants in Pune, many of the respondents pass through other cities such as Kolkota, New Delhi, Bangalore and Mumbai before they finally settle in Pune. Still, for some, Pune is only a transit area where they eventually move out to other Indian cities or abroad to reach their final destination. Here, the intervening spaces, to a certain degree, moulds their outlook towards other cultures and also reshape their own cultural identity.

7.2 – ‘Settled Strangers’: Challenges and Negotiations of Identity

The study has shown that the notion of India’s diversity is at times felt by citizens only at a superficial level. In reality, there are many citizens, living under this diversity banner, experiencing the fact of being an alien or foreigner in their own country. However, in this competitive global village, it is an inapt stage for a person to remain in his or her own hiding shell to survive. One has to compete with the outside world, away from one’s comfort zone. As such, borrowing form Gijsbert Oonk’s word, these migrants have become ‘settled strangers’ (Oonk 2014) 3. Migrants under investigation have settled in their new destination but they continue to remain strangers to the new host community. Similarly, they are also, most often, being treated and/or regarded as ‘strangers’ by the host community.

Globalization is often understood as a process whereby cultures have become developed, cosmopolitan, advanced and creolized within what is understood as ‘post-modern global interaction of people, even for those residing in the remotest corners of the world. For those living in the peripheral world, such as tribes of Northeast India, integration with the outside world is meted with multiple intersecting forces in the form of distinct ethnicity, race, religion, language and so on. Several respondents interviewed for this study mentioned their own experience of racial profiling by their host community as mentioned in Chapter 5. Some of them were even given names such as ‘Chinki, Kancha, Bahadur, Kancha, Chowmein, etc.

3 This article was personally given to researcher by the author. The study has argued that although many would like to identify India and establish the diversity tag, there are still many minority citizens who have become strangers in their own land. The study further proves that the main reasons for these situations to arise are because of lack of integration and ignorance. It has also been revealed that Indian school curriculum has little information about the Northeast. The study further suggested with evidence to prove that when it comes to the inclusion of Northeast in school curriculum, it is usually that gets included. And for many Northeastern people, Assam is considered to be inhibited by ‘plain’ people unlike the rest of Northeast predominantly occupied by ‘hill’ people. Therefore, the government and citizens alike should come together in order to facilitate a comprehensive understanding of India’s diversity in its true nature.

With this sudden flow of human movement from one geographical area to another, both the receiving and the sending communities experience crisis. It is mainly due to this crisis and disentanglement of people that we have seen increasing situations of racial or ethnic violence all over the world. In the context of India, as discussed in Chapter 5, the mass exodus of Northeast migrants from major Indian cities, racial profiling leading to several deaths, rape cases in cities like Delhi, etc. are examples of crises experienced here in India. In spite of the changing global social disentanglement of elements at a multidimensional level, this situation has also enabled even one of the smallest tribal community i.e. Hmars of Northeast India to conceive and interpret the changing world around them from different social lenses so as to negotiate and adapt holistic approaches to social realities. This study is drawn towards the importance of recognizing problems and contestations encountered within the identity scholarship. India, a land of diversity has had many confrontations with violence broadly due to its heterogeneous nature. However, it should also be noted that such confrontations of violence and contestation inculcate the notions of collective consciousness and reformation for a stronger and better nation state.

The dynamics of social change is inevitable. However, with the forces of change comes the dawn of ‘sacrificial cultures’ where smaller cultures and traditions are consumed by larger ones. This study believes that the end of civilization can be evaded not just by political, economic and policy interventions, but also through the identification of cultural indicators which may be in the form of social and cultural symbols.

7.3 – Symbols, Representation and Positioning of Identity This study gave emphasis to the fact that geographical and political disconnectedness with the ‘native’ community does not necessarily hamper one’s sense of belongingness to one’s culture and tradition. It has been proven that there is a possibility for diasporic communities to reconnect with their ‘native’ through social networks. And these networks are positioned in the form of religious and social organizations which in turn become an important platform in spreading the various symbol of tribal identities to its members.

Based on the analysis given in Chapter 5 and 6, in spite of the influence of western lifestyle upon the Northeast tribes, majority of them still value the existing cultural symbols in the form of food products ( changalhme ), language ( Hmar trawng ), dress ( puon, zakuolaisen ), ornaments ( thri- hna ), artifacts ( khuong ), etc. As such, more than 80% of the respondents believe that when moving away from one's native place, it is mandatory to take along at least one of the traditional tribal items to the new destination. These symbols act as a representation and a reminder about their past history.

It has also been observed and analyzed in Chapter 5 and 6 that the re-enactment of their traditional past. The numerous annual social gatherings and events organized by HSA, Cultural Sundays, worship and Sunday schools in Hmar language, Cell Group meetings and feasts observed by HCFP is not superficial representation of their past. The study has proved that that 98% of the respondents felt the need to attend cultural and religious meetings as it is a way of connecting with their people and culture while only 2% thinks otherwise. Also, the decorative ornaments, dresses, dance, language, songs, handlooms and hand weaving machines are all a part of their lifestyles and habits even today. They are not things being showcased only during special occasions. In fact, some of the older migrants brought their hand weaving machine to Pune and continue to weave ( see picture 5.9 ).

We can firmly say that cultural symbol is not just the representation of tribal past life but also embodies the sustenance and transmission of past cultures to the present tribal world, perhaps in a more hybrid form. Such is the case when Hmars reinterpret the meaning and practice of pu-zu (see glossary of terms) and replacing it with serving tea instead of zu (rice beer) after the whole tribe became converted to Christianity. Also mentioned in Chapter 5, the practice of reciprocating the gift of Manpui by a bride’s paternal uncle is still being practiced by Hmar migrant community. According to Hmar tradition, when a girl is married, the paternal uncle or adopted uncle receives a share of Rs.20 from the bride price of Rs.800. As a return gift, the paternal uncle is suppose to hold a feast, killing either a pig or a cow and sometimes even siel (bishon) and gift the bride the leg portion of the animal killed. Although this practice is no longer possible for migrant Hmar community, and if in the case where both the bride and paternal uncle are migrants, an alternative tradition is adopted whereby the paternal uncle goes to the local meat shop and buys leg portion as gift. Therefore, the incorporation of cultural heritage remains constant even within the context of a geographical shift.

The above observation enables us to determine identity as dependent on how and where one situates or positioned the very essence of what characterizes certain traits as being a ‘practice’ and ‘way of life’ for certain people. It also depends on how members within a group perceive certain human traits and identifies it with individuals or group. Furthermore, the perception of an outsider also influences the conceptualizing process of an identity. For example, language can be an important identifying variable for collective identity formation as it has become an established norm for all its members, no matter the distance one is located from the native origin. An individual verbal code represents social categories.

The study has discovered that use of linguistic codes is understood by the diasporic Hmars as being distinct from the local community, predominately a Hindi or Marathi speaking community. Linguistic codes signify ethnic loyalty and at the same time consider such established norms as valid. Therefore, the study has proved that Bucholtz and Hall (2005) are right in claiming that identity is ‘a product’ and not ‘a process’ of linguistic practice. Even for a small migrant community like the Hmars, native language is still highly valued and has continued to be an important means of communication amongst members of the group.

When dealing with linguistic affiliation, the State Reorganization Act of 1956 acts as an important milestone in consolidating the process of affiliation on the basis of language among Indians. This major state boundary reform along linguistic line, however, has many repercussions when it comes to discourse on nation formation. As mentioned earlier, our main focus is not on issues relating to nation formation. At the same time, this state boundary reform has a direct link with the positioning of identity and its formation for migrant communities.

In states like that of Maharashtra, most colleges and universities are state run institutions. This means that when a Hmar tribal student from the Northeast states comes to cities like Pune, admission becomes very difficult. Reason being that even though the student belongs to an S.T. category, Hmar is not included in the tribal schedule list of Maharashtra state and as such, the student has to apply under ‘open category’ with limited seats available. From the interview with respondents, it has been discovered that many young migrants leave their native place in search of higher education. However, due to the difficulties in securing admission in academic institutions in Pune, many of the respondents opted for unskilled or semi-skilled professions, working in spas as message therapists, shop keepers at textile retail outlets or hosts at hotel industry. - many of whom have secured good grades in their last academic performance. It has also been observed that many of the respondents do not wish to return to their native place because of the relentless violence, political and social instability of their state. As such, respondents remain in Pune or shift to other cities in mainland India to pursue their search for greener pasture.

Form the above discussion, we can see that identity is not only positioned from the networks and interactions between members of a community or the relations between migrant community with the host community. Identity construction and reconstruction is also dependent on multiple social scapes such as the state and its polity and the economic and social intervention effecting migrant community.

7.4 – Bridging Memories

Cultural exchanges through the movement of people from one geographical area to another are no longer considered an ‘exile’ (Aparna Rayaprol (2011:164). Instead, such movement is accompanied by identities and cultures which get delocalized. However, these identities and cultures are being re-enacted by the migrant community in their new destinations which are hardly detached from the memories of their historical past. The improvement in transport and communication also plays an important role in bridging the geographical gap between the native and host community where migrants can easily communicate and travel from one place to another.

Advanced technological interventions also play a major role in constructing a new social space of ‘imagined communities’ (Anderson 1983; Appadurai 1997) where the ‘longing for home’ is compensated via social media. The once considered as one of the most isolated parts of India has actively taken part in the socio-cultural exchange of India with the onset of globalization and technological advancement. This fluidity of virtual transmission of knowledge and information cuts across socio-cultural and geographical boundaries which is seen in Appadurai’s work of mediascape, ethnoscapes and technoscape (Appadurai 1990) mentioned in detail on Chapter 5. These mentioned social scapes provides virtual spaces thereby connecting and re-connecting people in ways that has never been done in the past human history. This is evident from the 82% of the respondents subscribing to social media such as Facebook Hmar Group (FhG)/Virthli/Sinleng/Fox/etc. This enables migrant community to not only connect with other migrants but also enables them to reconnect with their native.

Through the improvement in transport and communication, news about home, traditional food products, etc. can be acquired within no time. Also, with the increasing concentration of tribal population in metropolitan cities, numerous shops run by members of the same community serving tribal delicacies are becoming common occurrence. Local vegetables vendors in Kondhwa, Pune have also started selling be-hna (leaf of beans) , fanghra (type of beans) , ngathu (dry, fermented fish) and other tribal food. Therefore, food becomes an important symbol of identity for both migrants and host community. The significance of these cultural symbols is that it brings nostalgic feelings and memories of their traditional past and thus, in some ways reconnects them to their indigenous past identities.

Though tribal migrant women are believed to be more vulnerable than men when it comes to safety in their host community, women folks play significant role in transmitting their cultures to members of their own community as well as to non-tribals. It has been observed that memories about the historical past are sharper in women than in men. And it is the women folks who desire to take with them at least one cultural symbol, when they move out from their native place.

7.5- Remittance

From this study, it has been examined that the further one migrate, the stronger is the identity and longing for home. The best way to portray this attachment is through remittances sent by migrant respondents to home. There is no doubt, indeed, that there is significant proportion of tribal workforce increasing every year. There is also large in-flow of money to the sending region or native region. Much has been written about the fluidity of migration and the flow of remittances among neo-classical theorists. This study has made an attempt to explore the factors affecting tribal migration from the Northeast to mainland India, their socio-cultural paradigm of change, challenges and survival of their existence within the dynamics of globalization.

To summerize this study, we can come to the conclusion that majority of respondents wish to one day return home to their native place. Unlike other migrants of mainland India, Northeast tribal migrants’ attachment with their native place is so strong that they would rather save their hard-earned money in either buying properties or consolidate their existing properties back home than to invest in their new destination. Moreover, given the fact that many of the migrants come from financially disadvantage backgrounds, the hard-earned money are remitted to their families back home.

In a diverse country like that of India, therefore, politicians, public media and writers alike, have often celebrated and portrayed the diversity character as a way of life of citizens, an ideology surpassing the very true essence of what really makes a unique identification character of a diversified but unique disposition of a nation. In other words, the making of a nation’s ‘unity in diversity’ character does not only imply the co-existence of heterogeneous communities under a common geo-political banner. This study, instead, looks at how the processes within the prolific character of ‘unity in diversity’, coupled with globalization, breeds in new stage(s) of social evolution with identity assertion of small groups of communities like that of the Hmars, which augmented the union of distinct identities rather than destroy the existing character.

7.6 – Recommendations

• As identity scholarship expand to cover new grounds, further research can be used to adopt and create new measures which is of specific identity dimensions

• Findings and data collected from this study can be used for further research in comparing identity formation among different tribal groups

• The study mainly focuses on identity reconstruction of peripheral Northeast tribal migrants and not on issues relating to nation formation. This study can play an important role in collecting in-depth information in the process of understanding the existence of diversity in India from multiple ethnic folds.

• This study can be useful in providing information regarding intervention to end pressure and high expectations of young migrants by their family back home.

• Migrant community from the Northeast should integrate more with the local community in order to build relationship and educate the locals about the migrant’s culture and lifetyles. This may even suppress many preconceived notions about Northeast as well as racial prejudices.

• The study can be used by government and non-government organisations alike in order to facilitate wide-ranging issues relating to indigenous tribal identity within the dynamics of a changing India where adequate provisions relating to policies and actions may be undertaken.