Exposed to Dubai: education and belonging among young Indian residents in the Gulf

ABSTRACT

This paper explores the life experiences, identities and trajectories of young Dubai-born Indians living in the Arab Gulf. It seeks to contribute to an emergent body of research on the formation of diasporic identities and forms of belonging among South Asians in the Gulf, which underscores the ways in which migrants articulate forms of cultural belonging in a context where they are denied the right to citizenship. Building on the notion of the ‘educated person’, the paper argues that education constitutes an important, yet overlooked, basis for forms of cultural belonging in Dubai.

KEYWORDS:

• South Asian diasporas
• belonging
• Dubai
• Arab Gulf
• education
• youth

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank my mentor Professor Filippo Osella of Sussex University who provided insight and expertise that greatly assisted the research. I thank Professor Rima Sabban of Zayed University for all the support during fieldwork.

I thank Dr. Anneke Newman and Dr. Hannah Hoechner for their tireless determination to produce this special issue, and for their assistance and comments that greatly improved the manuscript.

I would also like to show my deepest gratitude to Ismael and Amelia for supporting the research upon which this paper is based. Finally, I would like to extend my gratitude to all the research respondents who became involved in my work.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Correction Statement

This article has been republished with minor changes. These changes do not impact the academic content of the article.

Notes

1 I use the term resident to highlight the fact that they had not migrated to Dubai over their life course, but had lived their entire lives in the city, where gaining citizenship was not a possibility due to strict laws concerning nationality.

2 A very high proportion of its student population (90%) attends private schools (Knowledge and Human Development Authority 2016).

3 These narratives were always articulated in reference to certain neoliberal enclaves and zones of exception (Ong 2006), such as the Dubai Marina or the Dubai Mall, that effectively symbolised the alleged openness of the New Dubai to the movement and activities of privileged foreigners (Kanna 2011, 27).

4 Global Village claims to be the world's largest tourism, leisure, shopping and entertainment project, including pavilions from 90 countries.

5 This is the term used in India to refer to students who achieve the highest marks.

6 This stands as a counterpoint to recent accounts that highlight the ways in which the experience of ‘youth’ has become problematically extended in time as a result of structural readjustment policies (see, e.g. Jeffrey [2010])

7 See Vora (2011).

8 Unlike young men, young women can remain in the country under the sponsorship/visa of parents after the age of 18.

Additional information

Funding

This research was supported by the British Academy (award number: pf150094).