Other Indias as a Third Space in Canada's Aging Anxiety and Bodily Corruption in Rohinton Mistry's Work

An aspect of postcolonial studies has become increasingly apparent in recent times: a kind of anxiety that is a consequence of new positions and perspectives. This has resulted in what might well be a sub-genre of postcolonial writing. Anxiety here means a state of mind that is referred to as a fear of the unknown, or as a loss of absolute certainties. In such works, there has been no break with convention, and no startling innovation that one might readily identify as new and experimental. But there has been, in certain contexts and among certain authors, a shift in emphasis and a desire to rethink their own writing styles and their ownsubject matter in ways that signal a point of departure to the reader. It is anxiety rather than fear, defiance, or subversion that defines this particular kind of otherness. Postcolonial anxieties take different forms, and theirmanifestations tend to be dissimilar (Kanaganayakam, 2003: 44).We will see how Mistry shows that identifying with others who share common roots and similar dilemmas can help overcome feelings of victimization, eliminate personal blame, avoid a sense of failure, generatecritical consciousness, and encourage self-reflection. Mistry has shown an anxiety to interrogate common assumptions about home and belonging in his Canadian narratives. Therefore, living between two countries can be fraught with tension but it does offer a potentially productive site from which to challenge homogeneous narratives of the nation and its people. Mistry's awareness of the ambivalence and instability of his cultural, geographical, and ideological location is evident in the way his textsexplore the cultural politics of diaspora.