An Endless Search for Home By Bhasker Malu

An Endless Search for Home

By:- Bhasker Malu

Nine year old Birdhi's life is upended as a consequence of his father's death. The year is 1940 and against his wishes, his elder sister, Shakuntala, forces him to immigrate and live with her in-laws in the Kingdom of Sikkim. Over the next fifty years, as an Indian (im)migrant living in Sikkim, Birdhi builds an unlikely friendship with the Sikkimese Maharaja (Chogyal), meets an Indian Prime Minister, and is unwittingly dragged into playing a role in the Sikkimese democratic revolution. The advent of democracy changes the lives of the Indian community members in Sikkim. Their identity transforms overnight, from foreigners protected by the Indian Government to a racial minority in India's newest state-Sikkim. Against this backdrop, Birdhi is forced to negotiate questions about his identity, his place in this new society, and to answer the central question - What would it take for him to be considered a Sikkimese?

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Over the next fifty years, as an Indian (im)migrant living in Sikkim, Birdhi builds an unlikely friendship with the Sikkimese Maharaja (Chogyal), meets an Indian Prime Minister, and is unwittingly dragged into playing a role in the Sikkimese democratic revolution.

The advent of democracy changes the lives of the Indian community members in Sikkim. Their identity transforms overnight, from foreigners protected by the Indian Government to a racial minority in India's newest state-Sikkim. Against this backdrop, Birdhi is forced to negotiate questions about his identity, his place in this new society, and to answer the central question - What would it take for him to be considered a Sikkimese?