How to Meet Expats in India

Being far away from your own culture can be a mixed blessing – on one hand you get to sample the different and taste the exotic but on the other, you miss the familiar ways of living and loving. In India, owing to diverse and complex social forces, finding one’s feet can be even more disconcerting for people from other countries. Here are however a few ways to meet other expats and get your social life going.

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Join the club

The international community in India is a large and diverse one; it is mostly made up by employees of multinational companies and their families, those working in the Embassies and diplomat services as well as those involved with UN or world organizations. Other than this there is also a healthy segment of students and volunteers living, studying, teaching and working in India. Most of the expat community is concentrated in the bigger cities like Mumbai, Bangalore and the national capital New Delhi where most of the MNCs and embassies are located. Here you can look for associations formed by members of the international community; most global expat organizations like Internations and Meetup have an Indian chapter as well which is made up of expats living in the country. If you are an expat yourself, it may be easy to join such an organization and then you will have enough opportunities to meet and get to know other singles from the international community. Some of the associations may however have strict membership policies where you can join only upon the invitation of an already existing member. However there may be other associations made of expats having less restricted membership policies and even if you are not an expat, perhaps you could become a temporary member. It is very rarely that expat clubs prohibit all socializing with locals since that would go against the very purpose of living and working in a foreign land. Prominent citizens of the community as well professionals like journalists are often welcome into these clubs where you can find enough opportunities to socialize and meet new people.

Attend various events

Apart from the Saturday nights at the expat club, keep a look out for various events hosted by the international community in your city. . Various educational and information centers like British Council and the USIS regularly host performances and literary sessions which usually have a healthy attendance from the expat community. Then again purely entertaining events could range from swanky cocktail nights and beer lunches to local crafts fairs, melas, Christmas bazaars and traditional holidays like Thanksgiving feasts and Christmas bashes. These events are highly popular among the expats as they help them to unwind and meet new people amidst a blaze of fun, music and lots of merry-making. If you are new to the scene, look for a friend you can go with; even if alone, don’t back out since with everyone at their friendliest, it is only a matter of time before you meet someone.

Don’t pass up invitations

As an expat yourself, you may have arrived in India to get away from the kind of people ‘back home’; however don’t discount the friendliness other expats show you once you land in India. Those working or studying with you may take some efforts to take you out to the best bars in town or even ask you over for Sunday lunch at their place. And even if they are exactly the sort of people you no longer want to have anything to do with, be gracious and accept their hospitality. You will not only end up picking up many practical tips on daily living in India but who knows even meet some people at their parties with whom you share many more interests and values. See these opportunities as the ground upon which to build your own social network – once you know a few people in town, you can make use of their contacts till you are meeting and going out with the kind of friends you wish to.

Take a trip

Though most work opportunities of expats in India are concentrated in the metropolitan cities now, several tourist spots in the country have long attracted people from all across the world. India has one of the most amazing natural diversity with quaint colonial-era town perched prettily on hilltops like Dalhousie in the north and Kodaikanal in the south to vibrant and colorful beaches like Goa and Pondicherry on the two coasts of the country. Other than this, five centuries of civilization offers visitors a whole wealth of traditional spiritual, artistic and lifestyle disciplines which is why a healthy section of expats can be found studying or practicing ancient Indian systems like Yoga, Ayurveda as well as other arts like music and dance. Then again India’s biodiversity and forest reserves too attract many wildlife experts and enthusiasts from all over the world.
Thus in order to expand your social circle, you can explore the idea of taking a trip to a well-known tourist or cultural destination of India, which is particularly popular among expats. While networking venues like bars and nightclubs may be fewer in numbers here as compared to the metro cities, you can be assured to have a wonderful time yourself – discovering the flora and fauna of Indian jungles or learning sudarshan kriya at an ashram by the Ganges – even if you do not significantly add on to social contacts.

Upscale hangouts

In the cities where they live and work, expats tend to become comfortable with certain recreational places or frequent certain areas of the city. This could be due to any number of reasons – safety at night, availability of certain foods and drinks as well as a likable ambience. Find out where members of the international community hang out in your place and make it a point to drop in on weekend nights. Initially you may feel awkward if alone – particularly if you are a local yourself – but eventually as you become more of a familiar face, you may find it easier to open a conversation by commenting on a particular band or music that is playing in the background or even a book that someone may be reading.