Controlling Body and Sexuality: Cross Border Marriages Among Muslim Women in Kerala

Abstract

Globalization has facilitated increased mobility for purposes such as education, employment, and leisure, resulting in a rise in cross-border marriages. Existing literature predominantly focuses on unions formed between individuals who have prior familiarity with each other. Typically, such marriages involve individuals who are educated, employed, and financially independent, often belonging to the upper-middle or upper socioeconomic strata. In these unions, there is usually an aspiration towards fostering relationships based on equality. However, this study diverges from the conventional narrative by examining "commercially arranged" cross-border marriages. Such marriages entail unions between individuals from disparate geographical, national, educational, socioeconomic, and linguistic backgrounds. Utilizing a qualitative methodology, this research employs a case study approach and gathers data through interviews with 67 Kerala Muslim women who have experienced various forms of cross-border marriages. Among these cases, 46 involve grooms from Mysore (Karnataka state), 18 from Arab countries (UAE, Kuwait, Iran, Saudi Arabia), and three from the Maldives, encompassing both inter-state and international marriages. The study seeks to elucidate the social and economic drivers behind such marriages and their subsequent impact on women's lives from perspectives rooted in bio-politics, gender justice, and human rights. It delves into the complexities of multiple marginalities resulting from the intersection of poverty and gender to deepen our understanding of the social construction of womanhood within the context of cross-border marriages. Notably, marriages often serve as arenas for extreme forms of sexual violence and expressions of male dominance, necessitating an examination from a bio-political standpoint