I was born and raised in Bombay and had never lived outside home. Consequently, it was a very big decision for me to come to the USA in part because I didn't have any family, friends or close relatives here. When I was corresponding with the administrative staff of the department here, I was told that an Italian graduate student would be waiting to pick me up at the airport at 6 p.m. when my flight lands. Somehow, I had never expected anything to go wrong and didn't ask for any contact number to call in case of an emergency. It so happened that due to bad weather at JFK airport, my connecting flight got cancelled and all the passengers had to board a bus which reached our destination at 3 a.m. I was completely dazed and scared to land in an unknown city in the middle of the night not knowing where to go. And then I saw this girl who was sitting on the pavement outside the airport and greeted me with a warm hug as I got off the bus and said that she was waiting from 6 p.m. to pick me up! I had never met a non-Indian in my life before but I knew at that moment that I would share a very special friendship with this girl. I also learned that day that human bonds require tolerance, nurturing and an open mind to blossom and are not limited by geographical boundaries and culture. As we became close friends, I was also pleasantly surprised to learn that Italians were very similar to Indians in their values, ideas and behavior.

Then on a trip to India a few years ago, I experienced something completely different. Everyone back home has always told me how westernized and modern our society has become over the years. However, at a social occasion, I came across a group of people who were very judgmental, condescending and abrasive in the name of tradition and culture. I was really stunned to see that in this day and age, there are people who use the garb of tradition to mask their narrow-minded, judgmental and offensive behavior.

That's where movies like "Mr. and Mrs. Iyer" play a very important role in our society. It was such a pleasure to watch this movie that conveys its message with subtlety and elegance. The character of Raja Choudhury played so convincingly and with such finesse by Rahul Bose really makes one wonder that instead of creating boundaries in the name of religion, tradition and culture, why don't we all first try to be good human beings who help each other in times of need?

Kudos to Aparna Sen for making such a refreshing and meaningful movie and to Rahul Bose for his effortless acting skills which made Raja Choudhury seem so real and endearing. Money is certainly important but in addition to making money, if we all make a conscious effort to use our professions to try and make a difference in this world, it would certainly make the world a better place to live in.

After dabbling in journalism, brand management and business development, Suchita came to the USA to pursue a PhD in Microbiology and currently works as a Post-doctoral Research Associate.

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