If you’ve found yourself also wondering all this, then this Reddit thread that we found might offer you some great insight. Here, NRIs are revealing whether they’d ever move back to India, why or why not. Read on. 

1. I moved to India from Kuwait around 2 years ago. Pretty good, same salary but a better standard of living as a software engineer I probably won’t stay for more than a couple more years though, society isn’t maturing as far as payscales. people are still kinda weird and antagonistic if you don’t fit into the mould they expect.

– harshnerf_ttv_yt

2. People are nosey and judgemental for no reason. Simultaneously, have very poor social skills and will try and ego challenge you about whatever they’re insecure about (wealth/fitness level/attractiveness etc). 

– TheUltimateAntihero

3. You have assumed that people that left India did so for better education and opportunities. That might have been the case earlier, however, most people nowadays leave for a better, easier life in a low competition/low-stress environment. I stay in a small city in Canada and would never move to competitive places like USA or India. People around me are happy living non-ambitious lives in this city as well. People in India and big cities in the USA seem way too deep in the rat race and don’t seem to understand there’s more to life than being “successful.“

– Sean__2000

4. Life is much better in Canada or US. There is literally no reason to come back to India. I visit India for 3-4 weeks every few years to scratch the itch and usually get drained by the end of the trip. Kids that are born and brought up overseas think of India as some alien country for the most part so there is very little attachment in that aspect. Education overseas is also much more superior, so you aren’t doing your kids any favours by forcing them back. Overall life is so much simpler and stress-free, you have to be a hardcore believer to want to go back. Either that or you have some other compelling reason like your parents etc.

– alphaqu2twice

5. As a woman, I am so glad that I can take public transportation even at 12 a.m. and not be constantly worried about being followed or fear for my safety. I love the freedom to exist as a human being with equal opportunities everywhere. Calling this better would be an understatement, it is truly the definition of living. On top of that, nobody cares what I wear or drink or who I meet.

– ChasingMiles1

6. Exactly. Canadians have problems like transgender equality, in India, you are worried about getting raped on your way home. There is no comparison.

– alphaqu2twice

7. The same thing happened to me, seeing what a low crime society looks like was a game-changer. People don’t even realize, they’ve no idea how bad their lives are – it sounds condescending, but being poor doesn’t mean you have to be in survival mode constantly. I’m back home again (thanks to COVID), and the inability to do the same things I used to do just because I’m a girl is driving me mad and my primary motivation is to leave again.

– ragini95

8. Getting through the door is very competitive. After a certain while, it calms down a fair bit. Still a rat race with the visas esp. in the U.S, but professionally you can choose to stay in a decent paying job v/s the insane rat race. 

– heeyyyyyy

9. Unlike some of my friends, moving abroad wasn’t a goal for me while coming out of college. Had a good job and was happy with my life in Bangalore. But 9 years of working in Bangalore took its toll. I was often sick due to pollution/allergies etc. Tried to look for a house to buy in the city and realised that half of the city doesn’t have water supply and the places that do are out of my budget. We were also planning on having kids and wanted a better life for them. We moved to the U.S 3 years ago and do not want to return anytime soon. The only thing I miss is my parents. And as long as they are healthy, and are able to come visit us and stay here for extended periods of time, I have no reason to go back. I am still not sure what I would do when they grow old and need my support regularly.

– goonervik

10. I wish I did return to India when my kids were younger. It is too late now. I am juggling between 2 countries as my parents are getting old and are weak and need me. Right now I am in India taking care of my parents, but my mind is in the USA with my family. I can’t stay anywhere peacefully. Education seems too materialistic at this point in my life. What is an education without many well-rounded life experiences?

– kanch0807

11. The funny thing about these questions always is, most of the people who say “I am not coming back!” are usually young and have lived abroad for only a few years. Initially, the money and the glamour feels great. I was like that in my mid-20s, I was like ‘I am never going back.’ Most of the people who have lived abroad for more than 10 years seem to think about coming back as the money is no longer as attractive and the glamour fades away.

– esc_ss

12. There are people who successfully moved their parents abroad with them too. Trying my best to get my siblings here as well. There is absolutely no comparison between the quality of life in the Western world and India.

– Uncertn_Laaife

Valid reasons, all of them!