‘Too Indian here, too American there’: NRI’s viral post reveals what glossy Instagram updates leave out

A viral Reddit post by a Non-Resident Indian (NRI) has sparked a candid conversation about the unseen struggles of life abroad. While Instagram often shows vacations, good schools, and picture-perfect homes, the post peeled back the glossy layer to reveal the quiet, emotional trade-offs of being an NRI.

The post resonated instantly with thousands. From searching “urgent care Hyderabad” at 2 am to managing family finances across countries, the Reddit post struck a chord.

“Most people see the highlight reel. Vacations. Good schools. Nice homes. Kids doing well. But what they don’t see is the quiet side of this life: Parents growing older without us there to drive them to the doctor. Googling ‘urgent care Hyderabad’ at 2 AM after dad’s casual text: Feeling unwell, don’t worry. Watching mom struggle to unmute herself on a video call. Learning about surgeries only after they’re over… because they ‘didn’t want to trouble you’,” the post read.

It went on to capture the push and pull of living between two worlds:

• Paying bills for family back home while juggling mortgages, insurance, and kids’ college funds abroad.
• Saying yes out of guilt even when the math doesn’t add up.
• Balancing cultural dualities: too Indian here, too American there.
• Choosing between Diwali with parents or Halloween with kids.

And yet, despite the heartbreak, the writer admitted: “We’re grateful for this life. We chose it. But behind the glossy pictures, there’s a side of the NRI story we rarely tell.”

The post struck a deep chord. One user wrote, “This post does emotional damage. You just put a mirror in front of me. There is not a day when I am not thinking about my aging parents.”* Another said, *“It’s not about 70k, 100k or 1 million. The compromises are immense. You only realize it as you grow older. We are stuck with our feet on two boats.”

Others echoed the same bittersweet truth — NRIs are constantly chasing belonging, split between two countries, trying to hold on to both roots and wings.