‘Go West Young Man’: The Culture of Migration among Muslims in Hyderabad, India

Most studies of migration that ask why and how people migrate examine economic rationales and the network connections of migrants. In this article, I explore one understudied aspect of the migration process, the ‘culture of migration’, using data gathered from field research in Hyderabad, India. Hyderabad is a city with substantial capital investment, especially from IT companies, and is an excellent site to examine how the desire to migrate remains salient in spite of the immigration of capital to the migrants’ home setting, resulting in increased job opportunities at home, at least for professionals. Additionally, greater restrictions have been placed by Persian Gulf states on migrant labourers, resulting in decreased opportunities abroad. I argue that it is the culture of migration among Hyderabadi Muslim professionals and labourers that promotes migration to the US and Saudi Arabia, even though opportunities at home are greater for some, and opportunities abroad are more restricted for others. I further argue that this culture of migration helps to shape the effects of remittances on status relations and marriage patterns among Muslims in Hyderabad, which further promotes migration abroad.