‘Infrastructure doesn't equal inclusion’: Oswal sisters on Switzerland’s systemic bias and ‘curry muncher’ taunts

For the global Indian elite, a ten-acre estate in one of the wealthiest countries on earth is often viewed as the ultimate symbol of having “arrived”. But for the Oswal sisters, Ridi and Vasundhara, their family's sprawling ₹1,649 crore Swiss property, Villa Vari, did not buy them immunity from what they say is a deeply embedded, systemic xenophobia.

Following a viral video in which a local man hurled racist abuse outside their gates, the sisters shared with LiveMint the reality of being a successful Indian expat in Switzerland.

The harassment captured on camera, the Oswal sisters said, was not an isolated incident of a rogue neighbour. Instead, it was the culmination of a culture of offensive stereotypes against Indians, which begins in classrooms where teachers ignore slurs like “curry muncher”.

They also challenged the very definition of a “developed” nation, arguing that pristine infrastructure means little if a society's mindset remains aggressively underdeveloped.

‘Indians told to become more Swiss’

For many, Switzerland represents the pinnacle of the European dream, a safe haven of neutrality and luxury. However, Ridi and Vasundhara's lived experience paints a starkly different picture of assimilation and exclusion.

Since the Oswal family has had a permanent home in Switzerland for nearly a decade now, the recent harassment was not a mere misunderstanding levelled at a tourist, but a persistent reality for residents of colour.

“I started studying in Switzerland when I was eight years old. I never felt like I belonged there, which is very important to highlight,” Ridi told LiveMint. “Growing up in a country where the culture is mostly unaccepting towards Indians is difficult. While they try to accommodate other cultures, Indians were almost told to stay back, change ourselves, and become more Swiss.”

This pressure to assimilate, the sisters said, often targeted Indian core cultures.

Ridi recalled being pushed to abandon her vegetarian diet simply to fit into the local norm, a subtle but pervasive demand to erase her heritage in exchange for acceptance.

‘Curry munchers’: Silent complicity of system

The Oswal sisters highlighted that the foundation for adult prejudice is laid in Swiss classrooms, where institutional silence breeds complicity. Ridi pointed to the specific, targeted nature of the xenophobia she faced as a young student, and the alarming failure of authority figures to intervene.

“I would quite often get comments like ‘India is trash’. The most important thing to highlight is that the teachers never said anything,” she said. The casual use of racial slurs went unchecked.

Vasundhara explicitly connected the adult screaming outside their gate in the viral video to this environment, noting that it was simply the byproduct of a school system that allows slurs like “curry muncher” to be normalised.

“The prejudice starts there, when adults silently accept that behaviour from a young age,” she explained.

Selective outrage

Talking about the Instagram video, the Oswal sisters shared that the viral confrontation was widely misconstrued by some viewers as a standard neighbourhood noise dispute. However, they highlighted that the outrage was very selective.

“He started screaming outside our gate. I spoke to him politely in French, explaining that it was Thursday at 3:00 PM and there is no law against using a leaf blower,” Ridi said. “What’s telling is that our neighbour, who is much closer in proximity to this man, was also using a leaf blower at the exact same time but was not targeted.”

When pressed for his name, the man fled, screaming racist remarks, Vasundhara said. She believes that her family's visible wealth, rather than acting as a shield, made them a direct target. “For some locals, accepting Indian economic superiority remains a bitter pill to swallow.”

The sisters expressed little faith in local law enforcement, saying, “Truthfully, even if we had lodged a complaint against him, the Swiss police wouldn't have taken it seriously because prejudice exists within their system as well.”

‘Undeveloped mindset of developed nation’

Vasundhara noted that the high-end designer shops and immaculate streets of Switzerland often mask a legal and cultural framework that inherently doubts minorities.

“We believe they are developed because they have incredible infrastructure and function as a hub of wealth,” the sisters argued. “But a country can have all these things and still have a completely undeveloped mindset regarding the acceptance of other cultures.”

She suggested that cultural inclusivity and robust, unbiased legal protections are equally critical indicators of a nation's progress.

“In today's day and age, a majority of Fortune 500 companies are led by Indian CEOs. We are an incredibly competitive and smart population, and we should own it,” Ridi said. “If a country harbours so much prejudice against a nationality, it should state that on its website. Stop taking our education fees, our labour, and our investments. You have a population of 7 million telling a population of 1.4 billion how to live.”