Bangladeshi students, who love to call Mumbai their home, continue to look forward to building their future and hope that the diplomatic strains between the two countries will soon improve.
Their hope flickers amid news of suspended tourist visas and evident manifestos against illegal Bangladeshi migrants. We speak to these students about the challenges they faced in 2025.
Ananya Raha, who has made Mumbai his home since the last 17-months, says for her, things are in fact looking better. “I am doing my Master’s in English Literature at a university in Mumbai, and my academics and personal life have still been smooth sailing,” he says. Raha had left her homeland in the early days of the unrest, “My scholarships and visas were already spoken for. While the tensions in the country were definitely a matter of concern, I never felt them creep into my life in Mumbai. Out of all the places I have lived, Kerala, Delhi, and West Bengal, this felt the most like home,” he said while talking to Sunday mid-day.
Utsha Sarket loves how Indian academics include the international perspective; (right) Shajib Kumar Das says that news coverage of his country on sometimes lacks nuance
Raha never experienced any discrimination but the room does quiten when his nationality is mentioned. “Some students get slightly uncomfortable, but that too is very rare, and most importantly, it hasn’t impacted my academics,” he says.
Students, though look for few essential factors when deciding to move — safety, diversity, liberal outlook, and social life. “I love how Hinduism is practised in Mumbai, then back home. Also, staying in the financial capital of the country works best for my career,” said Shajib Kumar Das, who arrived in Mumbai only seven months ago to pursue MCom.
To live in a city that is a pot of cultures was essential for Das. “I am here to experience diversity and different opportunities,” he said. Das’s only grouse? The representation of his country in news coverage. “At times Bangladeshi residents do see civil unrest and even safety issues, however, I have realised that it is not really shown in right light by the Indian media. At times, there isn’t enough context in the
coverage,” he adds.
Ties eased and the ice thawed when Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Tarique Rahman, the newly elected Bangladesh Prime Minister from the BNP. The immediate effect was the reopening of Visa offices; students relay that things are getting better. “If the leaders accept each other, the citizens do too. However, while studying, we are always more than our nationality, we are good students and much more,” said Das.
For many, the syllabus was the key factor. One of them is Utsha Sarket, who studies at Mumbai University’s sociology department and says that what he learnt during his Master’s in Mumbai varies from what he studied back home. “There we focused more on the social dynamics within Bangladeshi society from an international perspective. Here, my course also has an international aspect, but I have been introduced to multiple Indian perspectives on Indian society. I can relate to various aspects and have been learning about concepts such as caste, gender,” he adds.
Hitesh Sharma Edupeer
‘The world in general, has been experiencing a largely political climate. It’s crucial that the students are comfortable with it before travelling. When it comes to India, we can still be attracting many more students from Africa, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and even countries from the West, since we already have a robust education culture and we can bring in a larger diversity and a bigger influx of international students’
