As my friends and I packed our bags to head out to college abroad for the first time, we joked that, by the time we saw each other next, we would all have accents from our respective countries. We all assumed that we would easily bid adieu to our limited Indian heritage and become even more Westernized than we already were. 

After all, coming from an international school that prepared us to study abroad and become “global citizens,” coupled with frequent holidays to other countries and easy access to Western media — I spent an embarrassing amount of time watching “Riverdale” — made us modern, liberal and, frankly, less Indian. 

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I came from the section of the Indian population that was perhaps the furthest from the Indian stereotypes propagated by the Western media, which don’t really know any better.  We were Indian in just our appearances while on the inside, we had a very limited connection to our culture. Given this, none of us thought twice about leaving all of it behind and adopting the practices of a new country. 

But, to my surprise, a few months into college, where there was no one forcing Indian food down my throat or blaring the latest Bollywood item number in the street, I started to miss the very aspects I used to shy away from.

I’ve spent a lot of time wondering about this shift in my perspective and the sudden craving for my Indianness. At home, when everyone around me was following the same practices and customs, I took my cultural identity for granted. But here, as an international student, my culture wasn’t handed to me on a silver platter; rather, I needed to take active measures to stay connected with it. 

There was a gaping hole in my life — one only I could fix by choosing to connect with my roots. Today, I participate in Indian cultural shows, attend Bollywood-themed parties and never miss Maggi Night by the Students For South Asia club — all things I would have never dreamed of doing in India. 

I have friends from home who were barely able to form a full sentence in Hindi, but now go to temples to celebrate our festivals abroad. Instead of being whitewashed, we became more Indian after moving to a foreign country. 

I’m not advocating to forget all Western aspects of our lives — where else will I find life-changing shows like “Riverdale” that seamlessly integrate extraterrestrial life into a small-town plot? But, I’ve come to realize that embracing my culture and the West isn’t mutually exclusive. Unlike the past, when I dissociated myself from my culture, today I actively seek it; distance makes your heart grow fonder, I guess. 

This balancing act isn’t easy. Sometimes, I go weeks without speaking my native language of Hindi, and when I do, it sounds so foreign on my tongue. But there are days when I add the perfect amount of spices to my vegetables and cook food that tastes exactly like home, or I put on my jhumkas and I feel 1,000 times prettier. 

It takes time and effort, but I was eventually able to find the sweet spot and embrace my identity. So, to all my friends from back home: I’m really sorry to disappoint, but I’m not going to return with an American accent anytime soon. 

Edhita Singhal is a sophomore from India writing about her experiences as an international student in her column, “Foreign Footprints,” which runs every other Tuesday.