This interdisciplinary survey course explores the history and experiences of Asian Indians in the United States. The course paysparticular attention to the cultural politics of Indian American Film. The course is divided into thematic sections. Section I providesbackground information on the Indian American community. Section II will broaden the picture by considering issues of class, the model minority myth, family lives, and patterns of acculturation. Sections I and II set the stage to further examine how Indian Americans negotiate new forms of identity. Section III explores popular culture among second generation youth, religious maintenance and adaptation, gender and sexuality, and cultural politics. The course format is a mixture of discussions and presentations. We will view films to compliment presentations and class discussions. The class will be run as a seminar. Reading assignments will include historical, ethnographic and other scholarly texts. This class fulfills the Distribution I: Society requirement.