What moving countries taught me about storytelling

When you grow up in one culture and move to another, you spend the first few months just watching. You notice everything — how people queue, how they talk to strangers, what they find funny, what they find awkward.

I moved from Pune to Leeds at 22 for my Master's. What I didn't expect was how much those observations would shape the way I think about communication.

The thing about context

In India, I grew up with a style of storytelling that was expansive. Context was important. Background mattered. You'd explain who someone was, what they did, why they were relevant — before you got to the point.

In the UK, I found a different rhythm. People got to the point quickly. Understatement was its own form of emphasis. "Not bad" could mean exceptional. The space around the words carried as much meaning as the words themselves.

Neither approach is better. But understanding both changed how I create content.

Cultural intelligence is a professional skill

I think about this a lot when I work with brands. Who is the audience, really? Not just demographically — but culturally, emotionally, experientially? What do they already know? What do they assume? What do they need to be told explicitly, and what's better left implied?

These questions are essentially the same whether you're planning a campaign, writing a caption, or presenting to a client.

The most useful thing travel does

I've been to Belgium, Greece, France, and across Britain — the Highlands, Yorkshire, the Suffolk coast, Canterbury. Every place taught me something specific.

In Antwerp, I understood how European students talk about ambition differently to British ones. In Greece, I watched how hospitality works when it's genuinely cultural rather than professional. On the Yorkshire coast, I noticed how much people communicate through weather commentary (and how much meaning is embedded in that routine).

None of this feels directly relevant to digital media strategy. All of it is.

The point

Stories travel when they understand their audience. The more places you've been, the more audiences you can understand.

That's the most practical thing I've taken from two years of moving, travelling, and paying attention.