Lexington Books Bombay Going: Nepali Migrant Sex Workers in an Anti-Trafficking Era

Susanne Åsman's compelling ethnographic account examines migration for sex work in the Sindhupalchowk district of Nepal. Åsman explores how this migration, known as "Bombay Going," is understood by the locals. With a focus on agency, Åsman investigates how the migrants carve out a space for themselves and create relatedness in the spaces in between, from their homes in rural Nepal to the brothels of Mumbai. This book is essential reading for anyone interested in the politics of sex trafficking, gender, migration, or the global south. Review "An important and rich account of Tamang women's experience of sex work: drawing upon 10 years of extraordinary fieldwork--in Maoist-controlled villages in central Nepal and in Mumbai's red-light district--Åsman focuses on the agency of Tamang women who have gone to work in those brothels and their efforts to remain connected to, to provide support for, and to return to their Nepal homes. Åsman's is a much-needed, in-depth, empathetic, and non-judgmental study which challenges and refines the usual contemporary I/NGO 'rescue' narrative of women universally 'victimized' by 'sex-trafficking'." - Kathryn March, Cornell University "Through rich ethnography Asman brings us into the world of gendered migration in South Asia with all of its nuances and complexities. A book that challenges received notions of 'home' and 'away', embodiment, victimhood, and agency, Asman pulls no punches in this critical read that is a much needed intervention in our oversimplified conversations about trafficking, labor, and migration."--Pardis Mahdavi, Josef Korbel School of International Studies, University of Denver About the Author Susanne Åsman is postdoctoral researcher and lecturer in the School of Global Studies at Gothenburg University and guest researcher in the Department of Anthropology at Cornell University and affiliated with the Department of International Relations at Tribhuwan University.