Diasporic Discomfort: Identity and Belonging in Sunetra Gupta’s 'A Sin of Color’

Abstract:
Sunetra Gupta's A Sin of Color delves deeply into diasporic discomfort via issues of identity, belonging, and cultural alienation. This novel explores the lives of people dealing with emotional and cultural crises, contrasting their ties to their home cultures with the alienation they experience in their new environments. The struggles of unrequited love, family expectations, and the difficulties of self-exile faced by main characters like Debendranath Roy and Niharika highlight the profound effects of nostalgia and desire on diasporic life. The story alternates between Oxford and Calcutta, symbolising the characters' conflicting personal and cultural identities. This study explores how diasporic people resolve their fractured selves while addressing the more general issues of hybrid identities, cultural assimilation, and the irresistible pull of home .Ultimately, A Sin of Colour depicts the complex network of diasporic life, highlighting the significant impact of cultural memory and the quest for identity on people who are separated from their own countries .Gupta’s complex story prompts readers to consider the universal difficulties of belonging and the transformational potential of cultural hybridity.