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Indian man explains why he left US for Punjab: 'It's about community, NOT the price diff'
Dhaliwal explained his reasoning using 2 personal experiences involving car repairs, one in the US and another in India.
An Indian man has sparked a discussion online after sharing why he chose to leave the United States and return to Punjab, saying the decision was driven more by “community” than the cost difference between the 2 countries.
In a video shared on Instagram, Sanjum Singh Dhaliwal recalled being asked why he would move back despite studying at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in California. “Sanjum, you were at UCLA, California. The weather is so nice, it’s the American dream. Why did you move back to Punjab? One word, community. Three more words, ease of living,” he said.
Dhaliwal explained his reasoning using 2 personal experiences involving car repairs, one in the US and another in India. “When I was in the US, my car’s entire right side was scraped by a government trash truck. I got no help from the city of Beverly Hills, from Los Angeles, from my insurance companies, no one,” he said, adding that mechanics focused primarily on the high repair cost, which ran into thousands of dollars. Eventually, with the help of friends, he replaced the car doors himself for about $250.
Contrasting the experience with one back home, Dhaliwal described a breakdown in India when his car’s clutch pedal failed. “I called the mechanic at 1pm. He was home by 2pm, took the car to the shop, and told me it would be ready by 7 pm, good as new,” he said, adding that the total cost came to $110.
“There is absolutely no amount of money which could match the level of hospitality, ease, and comfort. The culture is so helpful, like, ‘let me get your thing fixed first before we even talk money.’ It gave me absolutely zero tension,” he said, emphasising that his move was about “community, NOT the price diff,” as he wrote in the caption.
He added on a lighter note that while community was his “second strongest reason,” the top spot still belonged to “Amritsar kulche.”
HT.com has reached out to Sanjum Singh Dhaliwal. The article will be updated once a response is received.
(Also Read: 'Infrastructure, income, healthcare': NRI explains why he's moving to India from US, internet divided)
Social media reactions
The video prompted debate online, with many users weighing in on whether the difference stemmed from culture or labour costs.
Reacting to the video, one user wrote, “It’s a mix of culture and labour arbitrage. Not saying that things are absolutely amazing outside. But a lot of our “niceness” is class based as well.”
“value of labor is less in india. the reason is not community my dude the reason is cheap labor around you,” commented another.
“Sadly everyone is in survival mode in the US, the government has squeezed everything bit out of us over the generation,” wrote a third user.
“Funny how people come to the USA and think ever experience will be perfect. Someone will come at 1pm to fix a car is a privilege for Americans. You should have used next-door neighbors app. Plus our labor is expensive cause we value laborers. Yet, Im glad you made your existential decision. People come here for dollars and building a new community take time and patience. Enjoy,” said one user.
