REMAINS OF CENTRAL

self-discovery and multiculturalism

uation in this case did matter. My family was pretty financially stable and so our experience would differ compared to someone who was less financially stable.”

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U2 Science, grew up in Montreal but still sees the city “through the eyes of a Tamil kid.” She echoes Jaime, having witnessed how assimilating into the dominant culture comes with its own financial and mental costs.

“When it comes to integrating into a new culture, to be able to go out and experience culture, to partake in activities with colleagues, to be able to look the part, all of this gets harder when you’re not part of the same class because you also need to afford these things, not just in money but in time and energy as well,” Perinpanathan said.

“When you’re part of the same culture, you’re already in the same boat and it becomes easier to relate to integrated into my French community. Every time I lack the words to sing along to the songs my French friends play, I find myself back in this “cultural void” scaffolded by the bits and pieces I picked up from both worlds. If you asked me today if I’d rather be French or Indian, I would tell you a thousand times that I’d rather be both. But being in touch with both sides of one’s cultural identities as a child of immigrants is not innate. It requires time, introspection, and a little bit of a spark. For me, I found these in Montreal. A couple months ago, my best friend and I were cooking baingan bharta while listening to Indian music (at his request). Everything, all of a sudden, felt as though I were six years old again. My music on shuffle, I did not expect to hear Madrasapattinam’s theme song come out of my similar experience of self-discovery for Dhanishta Ambwani, U2 Science. Ambwani grew up in New Brunswick with Indian parents, but found more opportunities to commune with her Indian culture here.

“It’s just so amazing to […] be friends with people with similar experiences [...], and with whom I can relate on completely different levels,” Ambwani said. “I think being in university, and in an environment where there are classes […] that focus on my rich cultural history also helped me become more interested to learn more about my culture. I definitely feel more connected with my culture right now than I have ever felt before.”

In Montreal, my feeling of belonging to the Indian community has similarly been reinforced through academia. Being here at McGill gave me the opportunity to explore South Asian politics, studying topics that I would not in a million years be able to learn about in France. One essay at a time, Montreal and McGill bring me closer to my roots and give me the legitimacy to speak about my country—even if it is not in perfect Tamil. My academic interest in India was initially performative—piqued by the conviction that it would differentiate me from my peers. But, as I fell down a rabbit hole of politics and history, a more authentic kinship with my parents’ home country emerged. I found a fascination in studying the 1947 Partition that tore India apart and drenched it in blood, breaking up families and pulling apart lovers, separating Arya and Amy forever in independent Madras.

As unbelievable as this may seem to my younger self, I now look forward to going to India. I may not be as Indian as my blood says, but I will never be as French as my passport declares me to be, either. Stuck in this in-between, I choose not to choose, and to love both. I know that, somewhere in Chennai Central’s clock tower, time stands still—and the little piece it took of me as a child will always remain.

*Name has been changed to preserve anonymity.

Design by Shireen Aamir, Design Editor