ABSTRACT
Oxford hosts considerable numbers of migrants. As reported in Labour Market Statistics 2011, 2,184 Indian migrants are living in Oxford and quite visible in various spaces of the city. The most obvious groups are the students and staff associated with the university. Besides, migrants are also employed in different sectors like tourism, construction and hospitality.
Meanwhile, India is known for its vast diversity, religious intolerance, regional bifurcation, gender insensitivity, and communal hatred that widen the gaps between diverse Indian societies. But it’s assumed that, cross boarder migration may reduce the differences existing between different ethnic groups in India and move towards a holistic identity as “Indian”. With this conceptual idea, this study tried to explore whether and how “Indians” become “Indian” living in Oxford. It examined how axes of difference change when they are in abroad, and whether they find commonality on account of being identified as “Indian”. To do this the study has used interview and observation methods at two sites: a beauty salon and in a restaurant in central Oxford. The study examined how migrants of Indian citizenship understand their Indianness in the context of being a migrant worker in Oxford.
