Roots, Routes, and Self-Reliance: Identity, Caste, and Migration in Indian Literature through IKS and the Ethos of Atmanirbhar Bharat

Abstract

This study examines how cultural identity is negotiated in Indian literature across contexts of migration, social inequality, and cultural conflict, both within India and in the diaspora. Focusing on Aravind Adiga’s The White Tiger (2008), Bapsi Sidhwa’s Water (2006), Kiran Desai’s The Inheritance of Loss (2006), and Bharati Mukherjee’s Jasmine (1989), the research explores how characters experience displacement, alienation, caste hierarchies, class disparities, and transnational mobility while continually seeking belonging and selfhood across shifting social and geographical spaces. These narratives depict diverse cultural settings—from the Bengali diaspora in the United States to identities shaped by caste, community ethics, and power structures within Indian society. Interpreted through the lens of Indian Knowledge Systems (IKS), the study analyses how ideas such as dharma, kinship, cultural memory, and community values shape individuals’ understanding of self and society. It also examines the tensions that arise when indigenous worldviews encounter global modernity, revealing how identity is negotiated between inherited traditions and transnational experiences. In this framework, “home” emerges not merely as a physical location but as a philosophical and civilizational idea that sustains resilience, meaning, and continuity. In alignment with the ethos of Atmanirbhar Bharat, the study further highlights forms of cultural self-reliance that emerge from IKS-based values. The characters’ journeys illustrate how self-making in conditions of mobility draws strength from indigenous ethics and memory, reflecting India’s broader aspiration to balance global engagement with civilizational rootedness.