23: Kruti and Deepak: Balancing Roots and Traditions with the American Life

The Indian American Experience Podcast

Kruti and Deepak’s compatibility as a couple belies their very different environments growing up. While Kruti grew up in Mumbai, India, Deepak grew up in the US in NY/NJ. Their story and their own reflections are proof that this diversity of backgrounds allows for them to complement as well as reinforce each other’s value systems.
I absolutely enjoyed myself as they candidly shared with me how they met and decided to get married, followed by Kruti’s experiences while acculturating and adjusting to life in the US. It is very revealing as well as heartwarming as they answer my questions on identity, and explain the pros and cons of having lived through the stereotype that existed for the Gujarati Indian American community in the motel industry. It is impressive to hear from them how that business model worked to uplift various members of an extended family who brought different skills to the table, resulting in success that could be ‘duplicated’.
Kruti and Deepak also discuss, illustrated by funny and relatable anecdotes, raising kids and interacting with other members of the Indian American community, while working to disseminate Indian culture through celebrations of important holidays. This episode definitely stacks up as evidence, yet again, of the values that tie us all together and the individual differences that make us distinct from one another and truly a part of a mosaic in American society.
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