: From the CEO of a TV channel to a one-man placement agency, Indians are making their presence felt in Kabul. Security concerns may have restricted their social life to occasional evenings at Indian restaurants and visits to gurdwaras and temples, but attacks like the recent one still don’t deter them.
THE word ‘Hindustani’ works like magic in Kabul. It opens welcoming doors, brings out smiles and an odd hug, and even reduces the haggling cab driver to a Bollywood music showoff. For the small Indian community in the Afghan capital—mostly professionals working on major developmental projects—the respected Hindustan tag is reason enough to stick on to Kabul despite an upscale of violence.
Of course, the more than comfortable pay packages offered to Indians—more than twice what they would get in the Gulf states—also helps. Kabul is a city being rebuilt from scratch and Indians are deeply involved in its emergence as a democratic capital. Television channels, road construction companies, internet service providers, hotels, civil engineering companies, all have a significant Indian presence.
While the embassy blast on Monday sent shockwaves throughout the community, no one is yet thinking of moving back to India. They still feel safe in the capital primarily due to the warmth of the local people. However, most have not brought their families here due to lack of educational facilities or a vibrant social life.
Indians employed here are top of the line professionals tasked with setting up new businesses. When a venture capitalist decided to put in money in the upcoming television sector and take on the leading local network, he was adamant on recruiting and Indian to head it. After all, India has the most vibrant television industry in the region and Indian soaps already the rage in Afghanistan.
NAVED Sarosh, who is the CEO of this channel in Kabul, worked for over two decades in Doordarshan before deciding to move on. Roped in to begin the channel at the earliest, he is busy juggling the schedule for soap operas, news stories and movies on the network. His task, he says is “planning and execution of the complete programming of the channel” at the earliest.
“We are looking at a complete channel with news and entertainment that will cater to all sections of life. I want to showcase the new face of Kabul to the world. This is no longer a place of rockets and guns,”...
