'Moving to India changed the way I see' : Japanese woman shares her Mumbai experience after 8 months, questions negative social media posts

Social media posts can often shape how people view a country, but Japanese woman Hikraru San says her eight months of living in Mumbai gave her a very different perspective on India than some of the negative content she had seen online.

San, who moved to India eight months ago, said she often received recommendations and warnings about India from Japanese people and others. Some described the country as dirty or focused on its negative aspects, she said.

“I think every country has its pros and cons,” she said, questioning why people chose to focus on such content and make a living from posting it online. “But what's the point of picking it up and posting it to make a living?”

San stressed the importance of experiencing a place firsthand rather than forming opinions based solely on social media. She pointed out that Japan, too, had places that were dirty, something people might not realise if they did not live there.

She also said experiences could differ depending on where a person lived in India.

Watch the viral post here:

“I live in Mumbai, so India is big. So I think it depends on the place,” she said, clarifying that her views were based on her own experience of living in the city.

What San experienced in Mumbai

Reflecting on her time in India, San said she had been surprised by small things but had not encountered the kind of experiences that some online posts portrayed. She also questioned who benefited from content that consistently presented the country in a negative light.

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In the caption accompanying the video, she wrote, “Moving to India changed the way I see so many things.”

She added that she wanted to keep showing the world “just how beautiful and amazing India truly is.”

Viewers react to her comments

The video also drew reactions from viewers, with some discussing the way negative and controversial content about India gets attention on social media.

“It is the behaviour of the average Indian audience, they don't ignore hate posts and rage bait. They start responding with offensive language and provide them engagement, it is a tried and tested strategy at this point to farm views from first world populations,” one user said.

Another user wrote, “U know like people judge India like just seeing from outside like seeing people posts like as u said those who are seeking for veins or something but the main thing is that u should first visit and explore the place yourself u are talking g about like I am from India I accept that there are some bad people not all people are bad or something so just visit India and explore it’s beauty like in Kerala Tamilnadu Himachal Pradesh Kashmir just visit and than comment it like don’t throw blind arrows.”

A third user noted, “But unfortunately the social media algorithm points out only dirty side of india and some ai slops made by bots !”