The history of migration during the colonial period is fraught with a chequered history that forecasts the nature of human movement dominated by multiple narratives of the human condition. Be it better living conditions, employability or the state machinery, large scale migration has dictated the scope of historical connections between the mainland of India with its neighbouring nations during the colonial period. The late nineteenth and the early twentieth century have seen large scale movements of Bengalis to Burma which has resulted in the emergence of complex cultural exchanges and the possibilities of divergent social constructs. Burma as a country itself shares a complex and shared history with India. Yet a significant set of narratives both popular and obscure has supported in evaluating the hybridity of relationships. Marked as a land of fascinating opportunity with a possible erasure of social evaluations Burma allowed and enabled mass migration of Bengalis during this period. Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay’s Srikanto published between 1917 and 1933 traces the life of the eponymous and itinerant protagonist who becomes the quintessential “seeker” as he travels through Bengal and Burma. His escapades in Burma are particularly relevant as it allows the reader to experience the multiplicity of possibilities and conflicts of those who travel across lands and the Indian ocean in pursuit of a better life. My paper attempts to analyse the way in which far off lands is perceived among those migrating looking at the various reasons that triggered migration across the Indian ocean. I shall also particularly focus on Bengalis migrating to Burma with a special emphasis on Srikanto as a classic example of the fascination with Burma among the Bengali population.