Unapologetically Both

 Today is May 31st, 2026.

Exactly twenty-five years ago today—on May 31st, 2001—a younger version of me stepped off a plane and onto German soil for the very first time. I remember the air felt different. The light was different. Even the silence felt different. 

I didn't know then that I would learn  more languages, travel to 46 countries, or become the heart of a community in Heidelberg. I just knew I was starting.

Welcome to a  'Silver Jubilee' edition of Unapologetically Both. Today, we’re looking back at 25 years of becoming... well, me."

I have shed  many 'skins'  over these two decades. I’ve lived through a marriage and a divorce.  I’ve seen myself change .

25 years in Germany has taught me that integration isn't a one-way street. I didn't just 'become German.' Germany became a part of me. I brought my Bharatnatyam bells to the Neckar river, and I brought German punctuality to my Indian soul. I am the result of two worlds colliding and creating something entirely new."

For 13 of these 25 years, I’ve been building a tribe. Thousands of people have passed through my life in Heidelberg.

People ask me, 'Don’t you get tired of being the bridge-builder?' And on this 25th anniversary, my answer is: No. Because 25 years ago, I was the one looking for a bridge.

In the beginning, life abroad feels like a project. You're learning. you're adapting. You're figuring out how things work. You're trying not to make mistakes. And every small victory feels huge.

Opening a bank account feels like an achievement. Understanding a conversation feels like progress. 

But nobody really tells you what happens later. Not after one year. Not after five years.

I'm talking about 25 years later.

Because at some point, Germany stopped feeling like a place I was visiting. And slowly, almost without me noticing, it became part of me.

I started appreciating things I never expected. I love the German concept of Feierabend; The feeling that work ends, and life begins.

I love structure.  I love reliability. I love honesty, even when it feels direct. And then I realized something funny. I had started becoming German in ways I never planned.

But at the same time… there are parts of me that never changed. I still carry India with me. The warmth. The instinct to feed people. The comfort of spices. The emotional openness.

In India… I’m “the one from Germany.” In Germany… I’m “the one from India.

For years I thought I had to choose between these identities.

Am I Indian? Am I German? Am I something in between.

But after 25 years, I don't ask that question anymore.

Because I realized something. I am not half of anything. I didn't lose one identity and gain another. I expanded. I became someone who can organize with German efficiency... and still make sure the evening turns into a long conversation over food and laughter.

I became someone who belongs in multiple places... and completely in none of them.

There was a time when I thought belonging meant finding one place and planting roots. Now I think belonging is something else. I think belonging is alignment. It's the people who understand you. It's the life you intentionally build. It's the friendships you have. It's becoming comfortable with who you are.

So today, on this anniversary, I don't feel like celebrating only years but I feel grateful for my growth. For the difficult moments. For the beautiful moments. For all the versions of myself that existed between 2001 and 2026. Because each one brought me here.

And if you've ever lived between places... between cultures... between versions of yourself...

I hope you remember something: You don't have to choose. You can carry many worlds within you.

If you’ve ever felt too foreign in one place and too changed in another… if you’ve built a life that doesn’t follow the expected script… you’re not alone.

This is Unapologetically Both. And this is where we stop explaining… and start owning who we are.