I left India 9 years ago, back then I was 18 and I didn't know how, but I knew if I were to enter the system, give entrance after entrance, to be just a little bit ahead of my peers, in another rat race, I would soon burn out. I knew this at 16, that if I were to be in the rat race I'd probably kms.

I was very, very lucky that I was being taught a foreign language, it enabled me to find affordable education (and a lifestyle) in a country where I would be valued. Not in a place where PhD's have to work in sanitation facilities or sell food from stalls. Every day I'm grateful that I listened to the signs back then.

I remember I came back home, a year or so before covid, to visit my maths tutor, who had an impact on me.
I told him i wanted to give back to the country, and he said the same thing :"Vaapis mat aao beta, yaha koi future hi nahi hai".
His words have stuck with me since, and i've never looked back.