'Aao, ab laut chalen': Radhika Gupta says Trump’s $100K H-1B shock is India’s opportunity

As Indian tech workers reel from Donald Trump’s latest move to slap a $100,000 annual fee on H-1B visas, Edelweiss Mutual Fund CEO Radhika Gupta is urging students and young professionals to look at opportunities back home.

“I was fortunate to graduate in 2005, when H-1B norms were far more favorable in the U.S.,” Gupta wrote on X. “But things changed quickly in 2008 during the financial crisis — many Indian students felt upset, lost, and stuck.”

Gupta, who herself once held the visa, recalled how many chose to return to India. “Years later, even those of us who still had the visa made the same choice. Today, we’ve built fulfilling lives here — with tremendous professional opportunities and the deeper joy of creating in our own country. Personally, I wouldn’t want to go back — at all.”

Her message comes at a time when Indian graduates in the U.S. are rattled by Trump’s proclamation, which requires companies to pay $100,000 a year per H-1B employee. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick framed the move bluntly: “Train Americans. Stop bringing in people to take our jobs.”

The policy threatens to raise costs by millions for top employers such as Microsoft, Amazon, Apple, TCS, and Infosys. Venture capitalist Deedy Das warned the decision would deter global talent: “If the U.S. ceases to attract the best talent, it drastically reduces its ability to innovate and grow the economy.”

For now, those who have recently secured H-1B visas are shielded until renewal. But with legal challenges expected, uncertainty remains over whether the fee will endure or be struck down.

To Indian students now facing that uncertainty, Gupta’s advice was clear: “If you’re on a U.S. campus right now feeling shaken or disheartened, I know what that feels like. But remember: when one door closes, many others open back home. And India of 2025 is a far more exciting place than India of 2005 ever was. Chin up. Aao, ab laut chalen.”