A content creator, the Founder of a Content Marketing Agency, and a Freelancing educator – Shreya Pattar dons multiple hats in the field of content. She boasts a community of 169K followers and 12,900+ students in 92 countries. Shreya recently went viral for putting out her honest opinion on the “Indian Student Community” studying abroad.

On May 12, Shreya Pattar put up a post on X that advised Indian students planning to study abroad to avoid universities with large Indian student communities. She explained how “a big Indian community of students doesn’t come with a “homely” feeling. It comes with toxic Indian patterns…” While quite a few netizens agreed with her views, some took offence and were upset over the generalisation.

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Shreya’s Reaction

Over the past few days, her post blew up on the internet with 875K+ views currently. Many leading publications covered her tweet and the reactions to it. She woke up to this viral news today and also put up a story saying “Look Mom, my tweets are sensational news now! 🙂” While most publications quoted that Shreya’s viral post and opinions sparked a debate, she disagrees and says most people agree with what she’s said.

Shreya Pattar viral news trending post on X Indian students studying abroad toxic patterns opinion reactions

The Post

Shreya advised that while considering universities to study at abroad, students must check how many Indian students that university has. “The more the number of Indian students, the lower that university should be on your list of places to join” she said. Pattar cited “too much drama, lack of professionalism, no good role models, no leadership or responsibility towards juniors, self-centred behaviour, “group-ism”, back bitching, no seriousness towards the future,” as the toxic patterns that Indian students come with.

The Ones Who Agreed

Quite a few X users seemed to agree with her on this one. One user wrote “On point. What’s the point of going abroad if you only hang out with your own people.” Another shared their experience saying, “1000% true. I got to study abroad for highschool and bachelor’s and it was in quite unconventional places. There were very few Indians and at first it was difficult but so worth it now. It makes the biggest difference in learning.“

The Ones Who Disagreed

An X user asked her to avoid “generalising” and wrote, “I spent about a decade studying & working abroad. There’s all sorts. Generalizing and avoiding South Asians is not helpful. Neither is only sticking to them outside of work. Take each one as an individual, regardless of origin, accent, appearance, income. That way I found friends.”

“I’d say you are projecting your own toxic experience. And life? I studied in top schools in India and the US. Made great friends in the Indian community and outside it” said another. A netizen wrote, “This advice might applies to mediocre or low quality institutions. Point is you should try to go to the highest quality university you can go to.”

The Ones Who Questioned

Some were also curious about what her experience was like which makes her think and feel this way about the Indian student community. An X user asked Shreya that according to her, “why are those patterns found disproportionately in Indians? Is there something that breeds those patterns more that’s not in other nations?” To which she responded saying:

Another netizen questioned “Every nation must have its own toxic patterns. You have studied abroad; what are some toxic patterns that you noticed in other nations’ students?“

Shreya Pattar responded by saying, “Almost none, and that’s the point. My association was mainly with students from Europe and the US (I was the only Indian in my class.) They were respectful, never trash-talked, had lots of stories to tell, had experience travelling/ working/ deeper studies; didn’t exclude me if I said no to some events sometimes, and even showed up to any speaking events of mine that I invited them to (to support me, even though we weren’t that close.) No freeloading; no patronising behaviour.“

From The Lady Herself

We had a quick chat with Shreya and asked her a few questions. Read on:

Did you expect your post to go viral to this extent?

I don’t expect anything from the content I post online. I share my experiences and hope that they serve well to those who read it.

How are you feeling now that many lead publications are covering your views on the Indian student community abroad?

I don’t have any feelings associated with the news coverage. It is interesting to see parents and students resonating with my writing, and how helpful they found it.

Is there a message you would like to give to these Indian students planning to move or are currently abroad to study?

I believe my tweet says it all.

What’s your take on the Indian student community studying in universities abroad? Do you agree with Shreya Pattar’s honest views and thoughts about them being toxic or do you feel differently? Let us know in the comments below!