I was in London for Christmas. The lit-up angel wings hanging over Regent Street, the glorious Christmas market at Covent Garden, and a guy trying to snatch my phone at the Oxford Circus tube station, were all beautiful. The pickpocket reminded me that it's the Commonwealth.
It wasn't easy to get there though. My port of entry was London airport, and not Dover Beach in a dinghy; hence, I had to furnish my property papers, six months of bank statements, and my firstborn to get entry. I hope the immigration official had fun parsing the 57 pages of Unified Payments Interface (UPI) transactions.
A sudden development of thick skin is a unique trait of Indians who migrate overseas or even those applying for a tourist visa. No amount of casual racism, bigotry, rudeness, and requirement of income-tax returns deters them; they just laugh it off. They just comply. The same people who would break your rearview mirror if you dared to overtake them in India would suggest you ignore a racial slur while standing in a ticket queue in Glasgow. Everything is a means to an end. The end is to stay put, till the time your passport changes colour.
Denne historien er fra January 05, 2025-utgaven av Hindustan Times Navi Mumbai.
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Denne historien er fra January 05, 2025-utgaven av Hindustan Times Navi Mumbai.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
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Negotiating trade deals with Europe
India must deepen ties with multiple partners to protect its interests at a time of global churn
ED Carries Out Searches in Illegal Foreign Remittance Case
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has carried out searches at 16 locations in Mumbai and four other cities as part of its money-laundering investigation into alleged illegal foreign remittances worth ₹400 crore in lieu of smuggled valuables.
Upgrading the plumbing of India's administration
The hegemony of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) has never seemed as complete as it does today.
Retail inflation likely eased to 3.9% in Feb: Poll
India's retail inflation likely eased further to 3.9% in February from 4.3% in the previous month, driven by a continued decline in food prices, according to a Mint poll of 25 economists.
Prosecution declares notary advocate hostile in Sheena Bora murder trial
The prosecution in the Sheena Bora murder case on Monday declared a notary advocate hostile after he refused to identify will documents presented in court, citing that they were photocopies and not originals.
27% Fewer Indians Went to Canada, US, UK to Study in 2024
The number of Indians going to Canada, the US and the UK for studies recorded a 27% decline in one year, from 604,926 in 2023 to 440,556 in 2024, the Union education ministry informed the Lok Sabha on Monday.
Stalin Intensifies Attack on Pradhan Over NEP
Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Monday told Parliament that the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) in Tamil Nadu refused to implement the National Education Policy (NEP) for \"politics\", prompting a strong reaction from the party's president and chief minister MK Stalin, who accused the former of \"arrogance\" and asked him to \"control his tongue.\"
Countries must see Brazil meet as crucial turning point: COP30 prez
Brazil's incoming COP30 presidency has urged countries to view the November climate summit as a crucial turning point for global action, invoking the football concept of \"virada\" — fighting back when defeat seems almost certain.
'Shouldn't have taken place in any month': CM on Gulmarg event
DESIGNERS SHIVAN AND NARRESH SAID IN A STATEMENT THAT THEY DEEPLY REGRETTED THE HURT CAUSED BY THE EVENT IN GULMARG
1 Gets Death Penalty, 6 Life Term in '18 Hate Crime Case
A Telangana court on Monday sentenced a man to death and awarded life imprisonment to six others convicted for killing a 23-year-old Dalit man, allegedly at the behest of his father-in-law in a sensational case of hate crime in the Nalgonda district of Telangana, people aware of the matter said.
