Indians can be warm and generous abroad too

A typical religious arrangement as part of the Diwali celebrations. Gaurav Singh

An invitation to celebrate the festival of Diwali softens Gaurav’s attitude to fellow Indians in Switzerland.

After a couple of bad interactions with Indians in Switzerland, I became reluctant to speak to my compatriots here. But not all people are the same and with this thought I opened myself to others. A woman living in canton Neuchâtel (the same region where I live) contacted me through Facebook and invited me to dinner on the Indian festival of Diwali. Her family was very kind. They said it was not just me who had bad experiences with fellow Indians. They had their own share of unpleasant encounters.

It was first time I celebrated Diwali in Switzerland. Usually, I stay at home but this time I was happy not to be alone. The ambience of the house was very joyful. They prepared traditional Indian sweets like Laddoos and Rasmalai at home. As the family is from a different part of the country, I was curious to know how they would celebrate Diwali. It was interesting for me to observe that even though we hail from different Indian states and speak different languages our rituals are very similar. The celebration started with an aarti (prayer) to the deities Lakshmi and Ganesh. Then we lit some fireworks even though it was raining. Finally, we had dinner, which was so delicious and elaborate that I felt I was dining at a fancy Indian restaurant.

Delicious home-made sweets add the perfect touch to Diwali. Gaurav Singh

The whole experience taught me that one shouldn’t stop meeting people because of a few bad experiences. It does not matter whether you are in Switzerland or somewhere else, you should approach people warmly no matter how others have treated you. We should not let our ego or attitude affect our behaviour towards others.

It is not Diwali without fireworks. Gaurav Singh

For more blog posts and information on studying in Switzerland visit our dedicated page Education Swiss Made.