Like the majority of my peers, I too am an above-average student who has a decent academic record with a fair share of extra-curricular activities that I take part in. Being brought up in Dubai with only my parents and my twin sister, I was quite oblivious to the lifestyle back in Chennai, where I originate from.
It is said that life is full of surprises, but I learnt that not always are they pleasant. After spending 18 years of my life at Dubai, when I moved to Chennai for my higher studies I was in for a whole world of challenges. It felt like I was picked out my comfort zone and dropped into a maze of life. I wasn’t familiar with the locality, it was my first time away from parents (in a different country altogether), having to manage studies myself, take care of my laundry and other needs, the list goes on. The phrase “Practice makes a man perfect” couldn’t have been more relatable. I pushed through all my hardships, learnt to do things myself and survived. But this was all the materialistic part, how about the emotional intelligence?
Being a naïve person, I initially found it very difficult to live with the ‘NRI’ tag weighing down my shoulders. There were days that I felt miserable and wanted to go back to Dubai. The stereotypes that existed seemed bizarre to me but then I remembered my favourite ‘About Author’ part in a magazine that I used to read regularly. It was “Suresh Menon is a writer based in India. In his youth he set out to change the world but later decided to leave it as it is.” So, I decide to live with the stereotypes and not argue about it. But at one point I felt responsible and decided to break the stereotypes to my best capacity. I started interacting with more and more people, I was a part of 6 different clubs in the college in my 3rd year of UG, a majority of the college had never seen a NRI – and that too a girl, participate so actively.
I overcame the challenges with perseverance. It took a lot of effort, dedication and hard work to be able to manage academics, extra-curricular activities and maintain a balanced life when it comes to friends and family. Eventually, I noticed the acceptance, I was not seen as an NRI. I became one among the others, no more feeling like the odd one out. It went so much to the extent that I was elected the Vice President in my department’s Student body which, you guessed right, was a post that was rare for a NRI-girl to hold.
Looking back, I realized that it wasn't so difficult to change the perception afterall. I wonder why others like me didn't try to break the stereotypes. I would have loved to change the world of stereotypes by being a living example but I realised, like Mr. Suresh Menon, that it's better left as it is.
