Navigating Between Worlds: Nostalgia and Cultural Hybridity in the Indian Diaspora Literature of Jhumpa Lahiri and Bharati Mukherjee

Abstract

This paper examines the intricate relationship between nostalgia and cultural hybridity in the works of prominent Indian diaspora authors Jhumpa Lahiri and Bharati Mukherjee. Through close textual analysis of selected works including Lahiri's Interpreter of Maladies and The Namesake, and Mukherjee's Jasmine and The Middleman and Other Stories, this study argues that nostalgia functions not merely as a backward-looking sentiment but as a dynamic force that shapes hybrid cultural identities. The analysis reveals how both authors employ nostalgia as a literary device to explore the complexities of belonging, displacement, and cultural negotiation within diaspora communities. The paper demonstrates that cultural hybridity emerges from the productive tension between nostalgic memory and present adaptation, creating new forms of identity that transcend simple binaries of East versus West. This research contributes to postcolonial literary criticism and diaspora studies by illustrating how contemporary Indian-American literature captures the nuanced experiences of cultural in-betweenness and the ongoing process of identity formation in transnational contexts.