Away from home, but never too far

Rana Preet Gill

CHANN Pardesi’ is a popular radio station in Michigan and has built a fan base among the predominant Punjabi community in the US and Canada. So, when I got a call from one of the presenters for a talk show I was surprised. ‘Why will the NRI community be interested in a veterinarian working in a non-descript Punjab village they might have never heard about?’ The presenter laughingly remarked: ‘They are interested in everything happening back home. A woman vet working in a rural area is something they would like to know more about.’

The day of the talk show was decided and a live recording session was done on the phone. I jotted down a few points about my work, some anecdotes that happened during the course of treatment of animals in far-flung villages and the constant challenges women vets face in remote areas. For an hour, I chatted about my life, my job and my aspirations to be a writer. At the end of the session, the host encouraged me to divulge my contact details. I did so, but wondered why anyone would contact me from another part of the world. The audience mainly comprised of people in the US, Canada and Europe. 

To my utter surprise, I got a call from Germany the very next day. The caller sounded ebullient. He had heard the show and wanted some help with the treatment of his buffaloes back home at a village near Ludhiana. I provided him the contact number of the doctor posted at the nearby vet hospital. I was amazed at the concern he elicited for his animals while being so far away from home. 

An elderly woman called up, narrating her tale of woes. She did not have anyone to talk to because her grown-up kids were busy and had no time to interact with her. She and her group of friends were avid radio listeners, which provided some form of human connect and outlet. The fast-paced life made her crave the comfort of friends back home. 

A young girl wanted to know if her sister could gain admission in a veterinary college in Punjab, for she did not want her to come all the way chasing foreign dreams. She sounded forlorn and disillusioned. 

It was a strange feeling to listen to people reposing their faith in a complete stranger, but with one they could identify, simply because she was one of their kind. It was not me they were relating to, it was the long-lost motherland they had left behind in their chase for a better world for themselves. It was the most fundamental, innate desire to be heard and acknowledged. 

I understood their feelings: there was a connection they never wanted to lose; neither with their home away from home nor with the people they were tied to. The distance had only made that bond stronger.