Poor, illiterate, lawless, caste-discriminatory Bihar is every Indian’s stereotype of rural backwardness. Yet today the state is touted as a shining example of economic development, which is greater than in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state of Gujarat. But problems remain deep, and out-migration high. And when migrants arrive in India’s metropolises looking for work, a so-called anti-Bihari sentiment offers them a cold welcome.

Shambhavi Singh, a native of Bihar based in New Delhi, has for many years been exploring the plight of the Bihari farmer in her work. Her preference has been for