Acknowledgments

A book several years in the making necessarily incurs many chalked-up debts. I gratefully acknowledge the inestimable kindness, generosity, hospitality, and warmth of numerous individuals who have together nourished me on this protracted journey since I embarked on it more than a decade ago. Needless to say, Gurkhas and their families form the very backbone of this book. They have generously opened up their homes and shared their life histories, dreams, and aspirations with me. Throughout my continual visits to Nepal, Hong Kong, and the United Kingdom over the past several years, they have offered me gracious hospitality, cherished patience, goodwill, and good food as I learned so much from each of them about what it means to leave home, and what it takes to make someplace or somewhere else home in their lives. I cannot summon the right words to convey my deepest gratitude to all of them who have made this book possible.

Friends and colleagues at my home institution, the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, National University of Singapore, have continued to stand with me through time. The magnitude of Vineeta Sinha’s stalwart support, friendship, and invaluable insights offered over these past several years is not lost on me. Good-humored corridor conversations, friendship, and moral support come through such individuals as Maribeth Erb, Feng Qiushi, Narayanan Ganapathy, Indira Arumugam, and Anne Raffin. Friends whom I know will always have my back, laugh and cry with me, and journey together through various celebrations and challenges in life manifest munificently in the forms of Sidharthan Maunaguru, Anojaa Karunananthan, Suriani Suratman, Elaine Ho, Ethan Quek, Wong Meisen, Lim Yung Tzen, Audrey Chye, Gerald Yip, and Daniel Tan. Parts of this book were written during a brief summer stay with Jiwook Jung, Eunmi Mun, and Sammi Jung. Thank you for your kindness and much valued friendship, and for feeding me remarkably well.

At Cornell University Press, I owe my sincere thanks to editors Sameena Mulla, Kevin Karpiak, William Garriott, and Ilana Feldman for their collective editorial stewardship of the series Police/Worlds: Studies in Security, Crime, and Governance that has given this book a home. In particular, the professionalism and kindness rendered from Sameena have made the process all for the better. Jim Lance played a key role as acquisitions editor. He definitively steered the manuscript to the finish line in a more than unstinting manner, for which I express my appreciation. Two anonymous reviewers for Cornell generously offered their endorsement, important suggestions, and gainful critique that further strengthened this work. Karen Hwa and Alfredo Gutierrez Rios have been pivotal in facilitating the production and marketing aspects of my journey with the press. My thanks also go to Radhika Mathrani Chakraborty for her crucial help and finesse in preparing the manuscript for production, to Jack Rummel for his copyediting adroitness, and to Wu Yuanzhe for constructing the two maps for the book. My appreciation goes to Freddy Chong, whose editing skills made it possible for images to be included in this book, and also to Rachel Lyon for preparing the index.

Analyses presented in chapter 1 of this book originally appeared as “Migrant Warriors and Transnational Lives: Constructing a Gurkha Diaspora,” Ethnic and Racial Studies 39 (5): 840–57, https://doi.org/10.1080/01419870.2015.1080377. Discussions on the experiences of Singapore Gurkha families pertaining to belonging presented in this book first appeared as “Belonging and Not Belonging: Experiences of Nepali Gurkha Families on Returning from Singapore,” in Global Nepalis: Religion, Culture, and Community in a New and Old Diaspora, ed. David N. Gellner and Sondra L. Hausner, 163–87 (New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2018). Material from these publications have been substantially reworked, expanded, and updated for incorporation into this book.

A study that has brought me to different countries over a sustained period of time also requires a timely combination of funding support and research assistance. For their varied and invaluable assistance provided across the different parts, phases, and periods of research carried out for this book, I duly acknowledge the work and contributions of Sanjay Sharma, Tan Junbin, Farhan Musa, Josiah Berlian, Cybil Kho, Alexandra Galvez, and Woo Wee Meng. Academic grants that have supported my research include the Start-up Grant, together with a few ODPRT Grants for Research Excellence, all of which come from the National University of Singapore (NUS). In addition, a collaborative Tier 2 grant from the Ministry of Education led by Tim Bunnell as principal investigator made multiple overseas research trips possible. A subvention provided through the NUS HDRSS, together with the NUS Excellent Researcher Award, have also channeled the necessary funding to publish this book.

Staff members at various archives where I conducted research were of utmost help and immense support. I thank these individuals who serve with resolute professionalism at the Gurkha Memorial Museum (Pokhara), the Gurkha Museum (Winchester), University of Hong Kong, the British Library (London), the National Archives of Singapore, the National Library Board (Singapore), and the National Archives at Kew. I have benefited as well from the feedback, critique, and endorsement from several scholars for earlier ideas that culminated into this book. They include Joanna Pfaff-Czarnecka, David N. Gellner, Sondra L. Hausner, Naveeda Khan, Koh Keng We, Wyman Tang, and Siumi Maria Tam. I also express my appreciation to participants who have attended my talks and shared their ideas and comments on this project when we crossed paths at Seoul National University, University of Bielefeld, and University of Oxford.

If this book reads any better than its earlier drafts, I have Noorman Abdullah to thank. His forbearance, astute reading, and sage critique of my work have only improved my earlier ideas and presentation. I cannot but firmly find him culpable for the better parts of the book. Finally, my loved ones have constantly stood by me. Their quiet yet unyielding support and strength have enabled me to stand tall and forge ahead.