'NRI's dream life' is a trap': Wife leaves husband, considers returning home over isolation, endless jobs, unpaid work

A social media user sparked a row about the dream life of an NRI after she shared details of the harsh reality behind the door. She looked into the challenges of living abroad and tried to erase the misconceptions associated with an overseas lifestyle.

Social media in a post on X revealed why her cousin got separated from her NRI husband. A post shared by a user named ‘Dewy.dee’, who claims to be a financial professional, sparked a debate about expectations versus reality. “Remember, the ‘NRI dream life’ is often a trap. My cousin just left her husband and returned to India,” the post said.

She further revealed that her cousin decided to take the life-changing step of returning to her country and rejoining her work due to unforeseen struggles. She described the pressures many young women endure in a foreign country, from excessive household responsibilities, isolation, overwhelming jobs, unrealistic expectations and unpaid work to toxic mothers-in-law.

The post added: “She said the reality of moving abroad was just extreme isolation, endless jobs and toxic in-laws demanding more work to ‘stay rooted.'” The financial professional argued that life abroad was grim and one couldn’t leave because they were trapped by family pressure at home.

User X claimed that the fascination with clean roads and fresh air fades with reality after marriage. Emphasizing the importance of a social life and financial freedom, she wrote: “She mentioned that the ‘clean roads and fresh air’ aesthetic faded really quickly when she realized she was expected to be a 24/7 unpaid worker with zero social life. 🫠 So many young girls are stuck in it but can’t leave because of family pressure back home in India.”

Reaction on social networks

The user commented: “So this isn’t the ‘NRI dream life’, she married into a misogynistic family. Basically she had a toxic family that she would have gotten in India as well. NRI dreams weren’t the problem, she just married a bad Indian (sic).”

Another user wrote: “Nothing like that. It also brings freedom and a high quality of life.”

A third comment read: “NRI life is worse than India if you are on a dependent visa as a wife and your husband is a piece of shit (which they regularly are). NRI life is GREAT if you work or you and your partner work.”

A fourth user said: “Sorry about your cousin, but this has ZERO to do with the ‘NRI Dream Life’ and everything to do with her marrying into the wrong family. So in New York or Nagpur, she would have had the same experience and the same family pressure back home.”

A fifth user replied: “In the west everyone does their own housework – dishes, washing, cooking – most households have cleaners, but they come once every two weeks or once every three weeks because manual labor is expensive. Indians are not used to doing all these jobs and find it exploitative if they have to do their OWN work. Social life is great, money is great if you are willing to change your lifestyle and become more hands-on.”