A Bengaluru woman, who was confused whether she should stay back in her city or move to the US, has finally decided that America will be her “new home”. Months of overthinking and several cups of coffee later, Viba Mohan, a product designer by profession, announced in a now-viral post that San Francisco will be her home for the “next few years”.
In her post, Mohan listed four reasons that helped her choose San Francisco over Bengaluru, with the first one being America’s culture and vibe.
“There are 2 things about culture here that I love. First — the wild, relentless optimism. Everyone’s stoked about the possibilities, and if you fail, you just try again! The second is craftsmanship. It’s all about perfecting your craft, and that vibe is contagious,” Mohan said.
This point was followed by “safety” in the US, as she explained, “It’s a breath of fresh air to work without tiptoeing around a colleague who’s obsessed with you and has zero boundaries. And the freedom to go for a walk or a run without always looking over my shoulder? Turns out, living somewhere safer doesn’t just make you feel calmer — it makes you more productive too.”
Mohan was delighted upon receiving her O-1 Visa earlier this week. Speaking about it in her third reason, she said, “The visa game is a nightmare. I knew I wasn’t about to tie myself to a H1B or drop a fortune on a master’s degree to move here. Getting the O1 and the freedom that comes with it made this so much easier.”
The O-1 nonimmigrant visa is for the individual who possesses extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business, or athletics, or who has a demonstrated record of extraordinary achievement in the motion picture or television industry and has been recognised nationally or internationally for those achievements.
“Tech” is fourth reason that Viba cited, adding, “Bengaluru’s got some brilliant minds, no doubt! But the tech scene? It’s often about Fintech, Last Mile, E-commerce—you know, the usual suspects. It’s changing, which is awesome, but the problems I’m most interested in? They’re still being solved in SF.”
Conclusively, Viba said that Bengaluru has her heart as her friends are in the city and she has learned the “most” there, but US is where she must head to now because that is best for her professional growth.
“Bangalore will always be where my heart is. I’ve made the best friends and learned the most there. But for what I want to do, America’s the place to be right now,” Viba said.
See her post here:
In the comments section, social media users posted congratulatory notes while others shared their thoughts and opinions.
“I agree with most points, will add infrastructure and civic sense here too. But O-1 comes with its own challenges. You are still tied to your own company and thus your startup has to succeed to maintain the status,” a comment on her post read.
One of the users also said that her decision was a “wise” one. An X user, who stayed in the US for over ten years, said that he returned to India to start his own company. “Both has pros and cons. So stay where you are happy,” he said.
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