DIGITAL BELONGING AND EMOTIONAL DISPLACEMENT IN DEVIKA REGE’S QUARTERLIFE

Abstract

The rapid expansion of digital technologies has transformed contemporary experiences of belonging, mobility, and identity. While geographical distance once defined the migrant and diasporic existence, digital communication now enables continuous participation in multiple social and cultural worlds. Devika Rege’s Quarterlife (2023) captures this transformation through its portrayal of young urban Indians negotiating globalization, class mobility, political change, and networked forms of connection. This study examines the novel through the concepts of digital belonging and emotional displacement. Drawing upon Stuart Hall’s understanding of cultural identity, Dana Diminescu’s notion of the connected migrant, and contemporary discussions of networked publics, the study argues that Quarterlife presents digital connectivity as a paradoxical condition. Although digital networks create opportunities for affiliation and participation, they simultaneously intensify emotional uncertainty, social fragmentation, and feelings of unbelonging. Through the experiences of characters such as Naren and Rohit, Rege exposes the gap between connectivity and community, revealing the limitations of technologically mediated forms of belonging. The study asserts that the novel redefines home not as a fixed geographical location but as a fragile emotional space continually negotiated across physical and digital environments. Therefore, Quarterlife contributes to emerging literary conversations concerning migration, identity, and belonging in an increasingly interconnected world.