Clean air over 10-min convenience: 3 NRI families share why they don't miss India
If given an option, would you choose the convenience that India has to offer, or a life abroad with cleaner air, better food quality, higher pay, work-life balance and a better standard of living? Three NRI families weigh in on just that.
A few days ago, a video of an Indian woman living in Bangkok went viral on Instagram in which she said she would choose clean air, safer roads and peaceful mornings over the culture of 10-minute deliveries and hyper-convenience that dominates urban India today. The internet predictably split into two camps. One side argued that no country matches India’s convenience and service economy. The other pointed out that convenience means little if daily life itself feels exhausting.
People living in India may brag about the convenience — groceries in eight minutes, coffee in ten, late-night ice cream at your doorstep before your craving fully develops. And now, even house help in 10 minutes. But if you look beyond this convenience, there’s a grim picture many don’t acknowledge (by choice or otherwise). The air quality, standard of living, remuneration, work-life balance and education — everything at this point is open to debate. Not that people expect luxury or facilities equivalent to first-world countries, but the basics, like the ease of breathing fresh air.
And increasingly, for many Indians who move abroad, it is not just about earning in dollars or dirhams anymore. It is about quality of life.
Because for several Indians abroad today, the appeal is no longer just about “settling overseas”. It is about living in systems that feel less chaotic, more humane and more predictable.
Take New Jersey-based software engineer Kunal Arora (name changed), who moved from Noida to the US six years ago. He says the biggest culture shock was not America’s scale or infrastructure, but the idea that life does not have to revolve entirely around work.
“In India, especially in corporate jobs, overworking is almost glorified. Staying online till midnight, answering messages during vacations, working weekends — it becomes normal,” he says. “Here, once people log off, they genuinely disappear.”
Kunal says he earns significantly more in the US, but what changed his life more was the concept of hourly value.
“In India, people work insane hours because labour is cheap and competition is brutal. In America, your time has a clearer value attached to it.”
And it is not just about salaries. Better quality food, ingredients and education also play a huge role. Kunal, who has a son, says, “Can you believe my son goes to the same public school attended by a janitor’s son and an astronaut’s daughter? That’s the quality of public education here.”
For Dubai-based couple Arkojyoti and Sunaina, the biggest factors were better pay, better infrastructure and, of course, no income tax.
The couple moved from Mumbai in 2019 after their daughter was born because Arkojyoti got a job offer there. Today, Sunaina says she cannot imagine raising her child amid the stress they experienced back home.
“In Mumbai, both of us were constantly burnt out. Long commutes, overcrowding, pollution, unpredictable infrastructure, expensive real estate — daily life itself consumed all our energy. We barely saved anything,” she says.
In Dubai, they found something they describe as “mental bandwidth”.
“There is a certain dignity to everyday life here,” Arkojyoti says. “Roads work. Public spaces are clean. Schools are organised. Systems are efficient.”
Education, they say, became a major reason to stay.
“In India, even middle-class parents are under enormous pressure. Good schools are expensive, competition starts absurdly early, and children grow up in a constant race,” Sunaina says. “Here too education is expensive, but there is less social chaos attached to it.”
The couple also speaks about food quality and regulation — a conversation increasingly common among urban Indians abroad.
“In India, you are constantly suspicious. Is the milk real? Are vegetables loaded with pesticides? Is the paneer adulterated?” Sunaina says. “Abroad, there is more trust in food systems and regulation.”
Of course, they miss India deeply. The festivals. The food. The spontaneity. The warmth of community living.
“But nostalgia and practicality are two different things,” Sunaina says. “India gives emotional comfort. Dubai gives daily comfort.”
Then there is 39-year-old content strategist Megha Banerjee, who moved from Kolkata to Bangkok with her daughter after her divorce. “I wanted a change from everything around me, so Bangkok seemed like the place to be frankly,” she says.
Megha works with an F&B company and her daughter is 10. "Since good international schools are in Bangkok, it was natural that I went with that option. Even medical facilities are much better here. Thailand may seem affordable at first, but not all places have the same cost of living. I don't even own a car here, but I am happy."
"I take my daughter to yoga classes, I enjoy different activities. There's also an Indian community here and I have been able to make quite a lot of friends here and home (India) is just a couple of hours away," she tells India Today.
Ironically, all three families say India still beats many countries when it comes to convenience and affordability of services.
Domestic help is cheaper. Food delivery is faster. Healthcare consultations are easier to access quickly. Quick-commerce apps can bring groceries to your doorstep before you finish scrolling Instagram.
But many NRIs argue that these conveniences often exist because urban Indian life has become too demanding in the first place, and labour is cheap because of the lack of proper work opportunities and, of course, population pressure.
Arora says, “I don’t mind going back to India once or twice a year, but to settle back, I am still not sure. Maybe at the fag end of my life after getting my kids settled. Until then, I would choose staying back in the US unless, of course, we are forced to move.”
Because ultimately, it is also about whether your child can play outside without toxic air. Whether a two-hour commute eats into your day. Whether your salary matches your effort. Whether you can disconnect from work without guilt. Whether basic civic systems function without constant jugaad.
None of this means India has nothing to offer. In many ways, Indian cities remain unmatched in ambition, energy and opportunity. There is a reason so many people still return. There is life here in a way many global cities can never replicate. Because if you look at it closely, just as many Indians are leaving to settle abroad, there are also people from abroad choosing to make India their home.
*Note: All the names mentioned above have been changed to maintain the anonymity of the speakers.
A few days ago, a video of an Indian woman living in Bangkok went viral on Instagram in which she said she would choose clean air, safer roads and peaceful mornings over the culture of 10-minute deliveries and hyper-convenience that dominates urban India today. The internet predictably split into two camps. One side argued that no country matches India’s convenience and service economy. The other pointed out that convenience means little if daily life itself feels exhausting.
People living in India may brag about the convenience — groceries in eight minutes, coffee in ten, late-night ice cream at your doorstep before your craving fully develops. And now, even house help in 10 minutes. But if you look beyond this convenience, there’s a grim picture many don’t acknowledge (by choice or otherwise). The air quality, standard of living, remuneration, work-life balance and education — everything at this point is open to debate. Not that people expect luxury or facilities equivalent to first-world countries, but the basics, like the ease of breathing fresh air.
And increasingly, for many Indians who move abroad, it is not just about earning in dollars or dirhams anymore. It is about quality of life.
Because for several Indians abroad today, the appeal is no longer just about “settling overseas”. It is about living in systems that feel less chaotic, more humane and more predictable.
Take New Jersey-based software engineer Kunal Arora (name changed), who moved from Noida to the US six years ago. He says the biggest culture shock was not America’s scale or infrastructure, but the idea that life does not have to revolve entirely around work.
“In India, especially in corporate jobs, overworking is almost glorified. Staying online till midnight, answering messages during vacations, working weekends — it becomes normal,” he says. “Here, once people log off, they genuinely disappear.”
Kunal says he earns significantly more in the US, but what changed his life more was the concept of hourly value.
“In India, people work insane hours because labour is cheap and competition is brutal. In America, your time has a clearer value attached to it.”
And it is not just about salaries. Better quality food, ingredients and education also play a huge role. Kunal, who has a son, says, “Can you believe my son goes to the same public school attended by a janitor’s son and an astronaut’s daughter? That’s the quality of public education here.”
For Dubai-based couple Arkojyoti and Sunaina, the biggest factors were better pay, better infrastructure and, of course, no income tax.
The couple moved from Mumbai in 2019 after their daughter was born because Arkojyoti got a job offer there. Today, Sunaina says she cannot imagine raising her child amid the stress they experienced back home.
“In Mumbai, both of us were constantly burnt out. Long commutes, overcrowding, pollution, unpredictable infrastructure, expensive real estate — daily life itself consumed all our energy. We barely saved anything,” she says.
In Dubai, they found something they describe as “mental bandwidth”.
“There is a certain dignity to everyday life here,” Arkojyoti says. “Roads work. Public spaces are clean. Schools are organised. Systems are efficient.”
Education, they say, became a major reason to stay.
“In India, even middle-class parents are under enormous pressure. Good schools are expensive, competition starts absurdly early, and children grow up in a constant race,” Sunaina says. “Here too education is expensive, but there is less social chaos attached to it.”
The couple also speaks about food quality and regulation — a conversation increasingly common among urban Indians abroad.
“In India, you are constantly suspicious. Is the milk real? Are vegetables loaded with pesticides? Is the paneer adulterated?” Sunaina says. “Abroad, there is more trust in food systems and regulation.”
Of course, they miss India deeply. The festivals. The food. The spontaneity. The warmth of community living.
“But nostalgia and practicality are two different things,” Sunaina says. “India gives emotional comfort. Dubai gives daily comfort.”
Then there is 39-year-old content strategist Megha Banerjee, who moved from Kolkata to Bangkok with her daughter after her divorce. “I wanted a change from everything around me, so Bangkok seemed like the place to be frankly,” she says.
Megha works with an F&B company and her daughter is 10. "Since good international schools are in Bangkok, it was natural that I went with that option. Even medical facilities are much better here. Thailand may seem affordable at first, but not all places have the same cost of living. I don't even own a car here, but I am happy."
"I take my daughter to yoga classes, I enjoy different activities. There's also an Indian community here and I have been able to make quite a lot of friends here and home (India) is just a couple of hours away," she tells India Today.
Ironically, all three families say India still beats many countries when it comes to convenience and affordability of services.
Domestic help is cheaper. Food delivery is faster. Healthcare consultations are easier to access quickly. Quick-commerce apps can bring groceries to your doorstep before you finish scrolling Instagram.
But many NRIs argue that these conveniences often exist because urban Indian life has become too demanding in the first place, and labour is cheap because of the lack of proper work opportunities and, of course, population pressure.
Arora says, “I don’t mind going back to India once or twice a year, but to settle back, I am still not sure. Maybe at the fag end of my life after getting my kids settled. Until then, I would choose staying back in the US unless, of course, we are forced to move.”
Because ultimately, it is also about whether your child can play outside without toxic air. Whether a two-hour commute eats into your day. Whether your salary matches your effort. Whether you can disconnect from work without guilt. Whether basic civic systems function without constant jugaad.
None of this means India has nothing to offer. In many ways, Indian cities remain unmatched in ambition, energy and opportunity. There is a reason so many people still return. There is life here in a way many global cities can never replicate. Because if you look at it closely, just as many Indians are leaving to settle abroad, there are also people from abroad choosing to make India their home.
*Note: All the names mentioned above have been changed to maintain the anonymity of the speakers.
