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‘I feel judged in Kerala, free in Bengaluru’: Viral post by Malayali man strikes a chord
A Malayali man reflected on the contrasting lifestyles of Bengaluru and Kerala, leading to a shared love-hate sentiment among migrants.
A social media post by a 26-year-old Malayali man from Kannur is going viral for perfectly capturing the love-hate relationship many migrants share with Bengaluru.
Having lived in the city for over four years, the man poured out his conflicted emotions on Reddit, from romanticising the weather to resenting the chaos, from craving home in Kerala to missing the freedom of Bengaluru the moment he leaves.
“Let’s start with the most cliché part, the weather,” he wrote. “It’ll be so sunny in the morning… then boom, it rains like crazy. You're standing in traffic like an idiot, all wet.” And yet, the very next moment, he finds himself missing the city’s cool breeze.
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Read his full post here:
He then compared the cultural shift between Bengaluru and Kerala, especially among young people. Sharing his experience interacting with teenagers at his gym, he noted how bold and open their lives seemed compared to the conservative atmosphere back home. “College students in Kerala will have a hard time trying to match the ‘rizz’,” he wrote.
However, the post’s most relatable moment came when he described returning to Kerala, only to feel suffocated by societal judgment. “Neighbours and relatives’ criticism and bitching… Here I am, missing the freedom I had in Bangalore.”
His words, “When you stay in Bangalore, you wanna go home. The moment you touch Kerala, you miss Bangalore like crazy”, resonated deeply with fellow Malayalis and city dwellers, many of whom shared their own experiences in the comments.
His post, however, could not be independently verified by HT.com.
How did Reddit users react?
One user wrote, “I lived in Bangalore for four years... In 2013-14, I happily packed up and moved to Kochi.” Another said, “Freedom and better weather are what I miss the most. That, and the fact that most of my closest friends live there.”
While many acknowledged Bengaluru’s traffic and rising cost of living, others agreed that the city still offered unmatched personal freedom and opportunities, especially in IT and creative sectors.
As the post continues to rack up upvotes and comments, it’s clear that this “endless loop of love and hate” with Bengaluru is a shared emotion,
especially among those who’ve migrated from quieter, more traditional parts of India.
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