What transformative effects does a multimillion-dollar industry have on those who work within it? The Industrial Ephemeral presents the untold stories of the people, politics, and production chains behind architecture, real estate, and construction in areas surrounding New Delhi, India. The personal histories of those in India's large laboring classes are brought to life as Namita Vijay Dharia discusses the aggressive environmental and ecological metamorphosis of the region in the twenty-first century. Urban planning and architecture are messy processes that intertwine migratory pathways, corruption politics, labor struggle, ecological transformations, and technological development. Rampant construction activity produces an atmosphere of ephemerality in urban regions, creating an aesthetic condition that supports industrial political economy. Dharia's brilliant analysis of the sensibilities and experiences of work lends visibility to the struggle of workers in an era of growing urban inequality.

" "Namita Vijay Dharia has written a silver mine of suggestions and insights for a new generation of feminist (and possibly Indian) anthropologists about working in a male-dominated and macho world."" - Pacific Affairs

"Dhaira’s writing weaves a compelling narrative of the ephemeral core of the construction industry" - International Journal of Urban and Regional Research

"Dharia has taken change, non-durability, and even the ephemeral, as the structuring fibres that shape architectural, infrastructural, and design work."
  - International Institute of Asian Studies

"This book is different because it gives a field view of architecture enriched with construction workers’ perspectives." - Landscapes