Liberalization, Liberal Media, and Aspirations of Muslim Women of Jamia Nagar, New Delhi.

This paper is an ethographic investigation of how do young Muslim women belonging to a segregated and exclusively Muslim enclave of Jamia Nagar in New Delhi engage with media narratives of new Indian womanhood. Indian womanhood has been transformed in media narratives from a coy and submissive persona to a bold assertive, and sexualized/eroticized personality after the globalization and liberalization of Indian economy. This research reflects on how audiences (especially members of religious minority communities) interact with media messages that diametrically opose their values and culture. The author seeks to understand how young women balance the tension between media messages and their religious ideology and how does this struggle inform their identity and aspirations for the future. This research proposes that interacoins between media narratives and identity of young Muslim women should be seen within the context of rising consumerism and job insecurity in transformed Indian economy. ..PAT.-Unpublished Manuscript [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]