Within the social, political, and economic contexts existing in modern-day India, family is neither a simple remnant of tradition nor a domain merely representing insulated private lives. Rather, it is implicated in malleable yet overpowering structures, relationships, and practices. If the 'family' is a crucial site of ideological and imaginative investments playing a critical role in reproducing and defining contemporary selves and societies, 'families' are responsive to and constrained by the complex dynamics in which they are enmeshed. Family relationships remain fundamental to survival and security even as policy and legislative imperatives as well as reproductive and communication technologies play a crucial role in reshaping them. Critically interrogating the extant approaches to and concepts within the study of family, Family Studies brings together diverse contributions by scholars from varied backgrounds to focus upon issues central to the conceptualization of family and their implications for Indian society. The chapters in this volume make a strong case for why family as an ideological construct and families as a multitude of lived relationships should continue to be subjects of critical social scientific attention.
