We usually start liking the place where we live, especially if it’s a beautiful place like the Bay Area in California. Relocating the whole family in such a case is a very big decision. During such times, emotions keep fluctuating, and there is always some confusion. That’s why it’s important to make the decision logically and not only based on emotions.To help ourselves decide, we made a list of our main life priorities. Then we gave weightage to each point and rated both the US and India on a scale of 1 to 10.

After adding the scores, we checked which country matched our priorities better. Of course, there were compromises in both places, but we wanted to see what was overall better for us. Even this exercise wasn’t easy. Emotions kept getting involved, and the scores kept changing. So we repeated this exercise a few times at a gap of 2–3 months. When the results finally became stable, we made our final decision. This list was really long.

Ageing parents:We wanted to spend as much time as possible with our aging parents, and it was much more practical and easier to achieve while living in India.

Family bonding: We wanted our kids to grow up close to family and relatives so they naturally learn family values. Financial independence, early retirement : Amit wanted to leave corporate life and start something that both of us could work on together. This didn’t seem practical in USA.

Explore our motherland: I believe India has a lot to offer in terms of culture and heritage. While exploring the world is definitely part of our life goals, we wanted to explore the culture, heritage and food of India at the root level. This is one of the ways to connect with our own country.

Domestic help: In USA, you have to do almost everything yourself. In India, you get daily help for household work. If you want to focus on your dreams, saving time really helps—and in India that felt easier.

Medical facilities: We had a few bad medical experiences in USA, and surprisingly, we received better treatment for the same in India. USA is more advanced in technology, no doubt, but personally I feel India’s medical system is also very good and much more accessible. Clean air, good roads, personal space—many such points were in favor of the US. But still, we gave more importance to family, culture, and personal growth. So we decided to move back to India. It’s been almost 8 years now, and honestly, even today, based on our priorities, returning to India still feels like the right decision. One thing is clear though—we should live wherever our dreams and happiness are, no matter whichever country it is. 

- Shilpi, Amit

The authors run a Youtube channel “Foods and Flavours” with nearly 2 million subscribers and over 2000 videos