‘Tibetans in Dharamshala’ or ‘Dharamshala in Tibetans’: Tibetan place-making and belonging in exile

Abstract

ABSTRACT This article explores place–identity relationship by employing the concept of place-making in a prolonged exile context. It undertakes a study of the association of exiled Tibetan community with Dharamshala, the de-facto Tibetan capital-in-exile. I conceptualize this association through Tibetan place-making in two mutually inclusive processes. The first is the creation and recreation of an ‘essentially Tibetan space’ through visual and demographic landscape of the town. The second process constitutes the daily acts/practices that facilitate place-making. Consequently, I demonstrate the manner in which Tibetan place-making practices inculcate a sense of belonging with the place of residence thus depicting the association of place and identity among refugees. The article postulates the agency of Tibetan community in enabling visibility of Dharamshala as a marker of Tibetan exilic identity despite their marginal status as de facto refugees in India.