Back to my Roots

There’s something about Gujarat.

I’ve travelled across India quite a bit now, and every state has its own personality, its own rhythm, flavour, and identity. But Gujarat… Gujarat always feels different.

Not just interesting.

Personal.

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I’m Gujarati.

Which is funny, because for most of my life, that identity felt more inherited than experienced.

I grew up in Southern California, in a very Gujarati household. My parents spoke Gujarati at home. The food was Gujarati (much to my childhood resistance). Most of the Indian families around us? Also Gujarati.

In fact, for a long time, Gujarati culture was my only reference point for India.

So naturally, I assumed… that this is what India is.

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Then came 2006.

My first trip to India.

I landed in Delhi.

And within hours, that assumption shattered.

This wasn’t the India I had grown up around. The language, the energy, the social dynamics, it all felt unfamiliar. Almost like I was discovering India for the first time… despite technically belonging to it.

That moment stayed with me.

Because it made me realize something simple, but powerful:

India isn’t one identity.

And neither am I.

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Fast forward to last week.

I receive an invitation from the Gujarat Chamber of Commerce & Industry to speak at their Annual Trade Expo.

I didn’t need much convincing.

Partly because of the opportunity.

But mostly because… it was Gujarat.

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The trip itself was brief, almost comically so.

Fly into Ahmedabad.

Spend half a day.

Fly out.

But somehow, in those few hours, a lot happened.

A one-hour podcast interview.

Conversations with industrialists in the green room.

And a panel discussion on the main stage alongside some of the most respected voices in Indian sport.

Short trip.

Full experience.

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But beyond the agenda… something deeper stayed with me.

So instead of just reporting what happened, I’ve been reflecting on what it meant.

Here are a few takeaways that have lingered.

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1. There’s a quiet momentum building in Gujarat

You can feel it.

Not loud. Not chaotic. But steady. Intentional.

There’s a growing belief that Gujarat, and especially Ahmedabad, can become a global sporting destination.

With discussions around hosting the 2030 Commonwealth Games and serious ambition for the 2036 Olympics, the state isn’t just dreaming… it’s positioning.

And what stood out to me wasn’t just the ambition.

It was the excitement and enthusiasm behind it.

 

2. Capital is not the constraint. Direction is.

In room after room, I met business leaders who had built incredibly successful enterprises.

People with resources; land, capital, networks, manufacturing power.

And many of them are now looking at sport.

Some want to give back.

Some see business potential.

Most are trying to understand how to enter meaningfully.

That’s where the real opportunity lies.

Not just funding sport.

But guiding it.

Because without the right structure, intent doesn’t always translate into impact.

 

3. There’s something deeply emotional about “giving back” to a place you never fully lived in

This one is harder to explain.

Every time I come to Gujarat, for a talk, an event, a meeting, I feel something shift internally.

It’s not nostalgia. Because I didn’t grow up here.

It’s not familiarity. Because, in many ways, I’m still an outsider.

It’s something in between.

A quiet sense of returning.

To a place that shaped my parents.

That shaped the culture I grew up in.

That, indirectly, shaped me.

And to be able to contribute, even in a small way, feels meaningful in a way that’s hard to articulate.

 

4. I wish I had learned Gujarati

This one hit me again.

Sitting in conversations. Listening more than speaking.

Catching most of what’s being said, able to respond with a few words in Gujarati… but not quite confident enough to fully step into a deeper conversation.

There’s a certain intimacy that language unlocks.

And I missed that.

For someone who thinks so much about identity and connection… this feels like an unfinished thread.

 

5. Gujarat has the potential to become India’s model state for sport

States like Odisha have set a powerful benchmark in recent years.

But Gujarat has a different kind of advantage.

Alignment.

• Political leadership with strong roots in the state

• Deep corporate presence

• Strong NRI networks

• Financial capacity to invest long-term

The ingredients are there.

The real question is execution.

Because infrastructure and funding alone don’t create athletes.

Systems do.

Coaching does.

Pathways do.

Culture does.

If Gujarat can solve for that, especially at the grassroots level, it could redefine what sports development looks like in India.

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As I flew back, I found myself thinking less about the panel… and more about the journey.

From a Gujarati kid in California…

To someone now returning, in some small way, to contribute to that ecosystem.

Life has a strange way of bringing things full circle.

And maybe one day…

If things unfold the way many hope they will…

I’ll be back again.

Not just for a conference.

But to attend the 2036 Summer Olympics.

In a place that, in its own quiet way…

Has always felt like home.