18th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas Today:  Drawn To Roots, NRIs Return To Serve MP

Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Hindi film, Dunki, humorously told the story of desperate Indians trying to somehow enter foreign nations. There are, however, some Indians who take the reverse route. They return to India, leaving paying careers behind. On the eve of 18th Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, Free Press spoke to local residents who returned to serve their roots.

Excerpts: 

Attachment to hometown

Dr SM Mohsin is an ENT specialist. He was born and brought up in Bhopal and completed medical education from Indore in 1977. Two years later, he left India.  He worked in Libya for seven years and in Saudi Arabia for 28 years. In 2015, he returned to his hometown. “My attachment to my hometown brought me back,” he said.  At present, he visits Central and Hamidia Hospital to offer his services.

Close to roots

After working for 32 years in Dubai, Riyadh and Jeddah, Sheeba and her hubby Maroof Ali ‘Subzposh’ returned to Bhopal in 2016.  Sheeba was a teacher in an American School and Maroof worked with multinational companies. Their two daughters live in Jeddah and Dubai. “Most of my family members and friends live in India. We wanted to be close to them and to our roots. So, we have decided to come back,” Sheeba said, adding, “my hometown is Bhopal whereas my hubby is from royal family of Gorakhpur. We both enjoy being in Bhopal.”      

Urge to serve

After completing her Master’s degree in development studies from SOAS London, Srishti Pragat felt a strong calling to return to her roots. In 2019, she founded Sky Social, an organisation focused on women’s empowerment and gender equality. Her work spans both grassroots initiatives and policy-level advocacy, collaborating with the government to address gender gaps and mainstream equality in policies. “I could have worked in London but I wanted to work for my country. “Now, I feel proud when my work is appreciated internationally.”