Roma Historiography and Its Sticky Association with India

Romani people have been framed as a problem in Europe since the 18th century. Meanwhile, many scholars claim that the European Roma people originated from India. However, this claim is not conclusive. My talk focuses on the epistemic and political implications of ascribing an Indian origin to the Roma. How do scholars and savants seek to understand Roma populations with reference to their purported Indian origin? What are the epistemological implications of such claims that the Roma themselves do not endorse unequivocally?