The Changing Character and Survival Strategies of the Chinese Community in India

The Chinese community has been settled in India for more than two centuries. Its relationship to the host society and to the authorities, first British and then Indian, has gone through different stages with different forms. It is important to examine the lives, traditions and attitudes of the Chinese community to understand its development and its changing character. This study argues that it is misleading to present this community as one that has always been marginalised and discriminated against in India. It examines the applicability of concepts such as 'sojourning', 'corridors' and 'middleman minority' to the community and its different sub-groups, both in British India and in post-independence India.