DIASPORIC REALIZATION AND HYBRID IDENTITY IN HARI KUNZRU’S THE IMPRESSIONIST

Abstract

The present study examines Kunzru’s representation of diaspora and hybrid identity, showing how the protagonist’s shifting names, appearances, and social roles mirror the uncertainty of postcolonial subjectivity. Using a qualitative, text-based approach informed by Homi Bhabha’s theories of hybridity and mimicry, the analysis highlights the constant negotiation between self and other, homeland and host land, authenticity and adaptation. The study argues that Kunzru constructs diasporic identity not as loss alone but as an ongoing process of reinvention within cultural in-betweenness. Ultimately, the Impressionist illustrates how hybrid consciousness becomes both a survival strategy and a critique of rigid colonial and national boundaries.