Abstract

Globalisation is a process that cuts across the boundaries of nations, cultures and societies privileging a move towards larger integration of the world and facilitating interdependence moving towards a global culture. The process often poses a threat to culture and identity of the marginalised people because it brings in large scale commoditisation of the cultures and erase their unique identities. Therefore, a vehement articulation of the local for preservation of indigenous cultures and identities could be seen alongside the process of globalisation.

In this study, an attempt has been made to analyse the effect of globalisation in the north-east India in the shaping of identity. Identity, in this region, is formed basically on ethno-nationalistic feature of various tribes or group of people. These people are identified in terms of differences and uniqueness they possess from the other. With the rapid development of technology in the age of globalisation, this difference is increasingly blurred and a culture based on common interest emerges. The unique characteristics of each group will slowly fade away, and the various groups will turn into a homogenous group. Therefore, it can be said that the effect of globalisation can essentially lead to de-historization of identities to form a hybrid identity where a person’s identity is formed by values inherited traditionally and acquired from other culture. It is, therefore, not impossible to say that in the distant future the identity politics will cease to exist at the face of globalisation which has the potentiality to reduce the identity into anonymity.