Indian nurses in the Gulf: mobility capital, constraints and aspirations

This article explores the migratory trajectories of Indian nurses from Kerala, tracing their route to the Gulf and onward to the UK or other desired destinations. Through in-depth interviews, we explore the motivations driving Indian women to pursue nursing. Employing an analytical framework centred on female migration, agency, and constraints, we delve into the nurses' aspirations and coping strategies along their migratory paths. Our analysis differentiates between socio-economic background, caste, religion, family relations, obligations, and accumulated mobility capital, which shaped the nurses' capabilities and contributed to the contradictory tensions they grappled with. Through these interconnected lenses, we scrutinise how these women navigated between tradition and aspirations, managing expectations, responsibilities, and evolving roles. The study illuminates how the nurses accumulated experiences and mobility capital, leveraging multiple migrations within India and the Gulf to enhance their life circumstances. Despite patriarchal coercive forces, becoming a nurse emerges as a transformative pathway to independence, heightened international mobility, and improved prospects.