Cultural Assimilation and Shifting Identities: The Anglo-Indian Community in Post- Independence Darjeeling

Abstract

The Anglo-Indian community in Darjeeling reflects a distinctive process of assimilation, in which patterns of belonging and social participation have evolved through interaction with local communities within the historical context of colonial rule and postcolonial nationhood. Anglo-Indians in Darjeeling have been found to integrate elements of Nepali and Hindu traditions to conform to the local culture while they also maintain their faith in Christianity as well as other distinctively Anglo-Indian traits. With this as the backdrop, this research article traces changing identity and cultural assimilation of the Anglo-Indian community in Darjeeling. Based on ethnographic interviews and participant observation conducted between November 2022 and December 2024, this research analyses how Anglo-Indians have navigated their identity in the context of interfaith relationships, regional influences, and evolving sociopolitical dynamics. The study identifies decline among non-mainstream identities within Darjeeling. The paper recognizes the Anglo-Indian community in Darjeeling as unique, situating it in the wider context of the post-colonial shift towards the stronger assertion of regional and linguistic cultural dominance in India, as against both ethnic distinctiveness on the one hand or national uniformity on the other. Despite their decreasing number, Anglo-Indians still contribute to India's multicultural landscape.