Caroline Osella

Dr. Caroline Osella is an Associated Academic at the Sussex Asia Centre, University of Sussex, specializing in ethnographic research on Kerala-Gulf migration since 1989. Her interdisciplinary work explores Muslim fashion, Islamic reformism, migrant masculinities, and gender dynamics through extensive fieldwork in South India and the Gulf region.

Research Focus: Dr. Osella's key research domains include:

• Migration studies examining Gulf-Kerala labor flows and identity formation
• Islamic reform movements in South Asian Muslim communities
• Gender and sexuality in transnational contexts
• Ethnographic analysis of Muslim fashion and moral aesthetics
• Cross-cultural stereotypes in Abu Dhabi's migrant communities

Project Leadership: She directs the REALM project ('The Paradox of the Gulf as a Space of Freedom and Aspiration'), conducting qualitative fieldwork with 84 respondents across Kerala. Findings reveal complex migration motivations beyond economics, including gender liberation and religious discrimination avoidance.

Publications: Her recent scholarship analyzes COVID-19's impact on women workers (2024), youth sexuality in Kerala (2020), and stakeholder challenges in migration policy (2020), consistently published in interdisciplinary journals and handbooks.

Collaborations: Works with researchers including Jane Bristol-Rhys (NYU Abu Dhabi) and PA Ansari (Aligarh Muslim University), utilizing research assistants like Helen Underhill for data analysis.