From climbing rupee to choking lungs
and a few ba***rds!
Hello DoorDesi,
You know that feeling when you want to sound like you’ve got it all together, but really you’re just a caffeine-fueled chaos gremlin trying to make sense of the week? Yeah, that’s me right now.
It’s been a strange mix of moods — some big wins this week but a few wish-that-had-gone-differently. Plus autumn is setting in and in my part of the world, that means rain, wind, and the weakening desire to wake up in the morning.
In this week’s edition the rupee is glowing up, SEBI is finally thinking of being nice to NRIs (!!!), Delhi’s air is having its annual meltdown, and Trump is… well, being Trump. Somewhere in between, I found comfort in Dexter because nothing soothes your soul like watching a serial killer meticulously clean up after himself. Speaking of cleaning up well, Bastards of Bollywood is a refreshing output coming out of Bollywood so give it a watch will you?
Have a great week ahead, folks!
Just the gist
The rupee had a mini glow-up this week, appreciating 13 paise to ₹87.80 per dollar, thanks to fresh optimism over a possible India–US trade deal. Markets are betting that Trump’s latest tariff tantrum may soon ease — with means that duties on Indian goods could drop from 50% to 16%.
The cheer comes after a phone call between Modi and Trump, where both sides reportedly discussed “great deals” (translation: TBD). Trump also claimed India has agreed to drastically cut Russian oil imports, though traders are still waiting for proof.
With the Sensex up 734 points and foreign investors buying back in, the market mood is festive but cautious.
➡️ Did you listen to me over the last two newsletters when I asked you to send your remittances sooner rather than later? No? Your loss, not mine. ;P
🔗 SEBI feeling friendly towards desis abroad
For once, India’s market regulator is making life easier for NRIs. SEBI has proposed easing its notoriously strict geo-tagging rule that currently forces non-resident investors to prove they’re physically in India during KYC or re-KYC. (Because who doesn’t love flying home just to wave at a webcam?)
Under the new plan, NRIs can complete their digital verification or video KYC (V-CIP) from abroad — as long as their GPS location matches the address on their documents. Random prompts, time stamps, and anti-spoofing measures will stay in place to keep the process secure and prevent deepfake doppelgängers from investing in your name.
The move comes after endless complaints from overseas investors tired of compliance acrobatics. SEBI is now seeking public comments on the proposal till November 13.
➡️ As we put down roots elsewhere, keeping our roots intact and lucrative *wink wink* back home is also getting easier. Is dual citizenship on the cards after all?
Turns out, Punjab isn’t the only one choking Delhi’s skies. A new analysis by Newslaundry shows that 19 nearby cities — mostly in Haryana and Uttar Pradesh — are responsible for over a third of Delhi’s toxic PM 2.5 load. Haryana alone accounts for nearly a quarter of it, with industrial hubs like Sonipat and Jhajjar leading the pack.
Local factors aren’t innocent either: transport alone adds 18% of the pollution, while “residential” and “construction” trail behind. The most mysterious contributor, though, is a category called “others”, which accounts for nearly 28% of Delhi’s smog. No one knows what it actually includes — crematoria? restaurants? vibes?
Stubble burning, often the go-to villain, contributed just 1–4% so far, but experts warn it’ll spike soon.
➡️ If India wants to discourage brain drain one positive step towards it would be to make it safer to live the metros. Over 35 million people in India suffer from asthma which makes up for 13% of global asthma cases. And yet, your neighbour’s son can’t give up his Diwali fireworks because ‘it’s too woke’. FML!
Tata Technologies is tweaking its hiring playbook in the U.S. after Trump’s latest immigration squeeze. The new rules slap steep fees on H-1B visas, the lifeline for thousands of Indian engineers, supposedly to “protect American jobs.” Tata’s response? Hire more Americans.
CEO Warren Harris told Reuters that the company will expand local recruitment across its U.S. operations — where it already earns about 20% of its revenue. The engineering giant, which works with Jaguar Land Rover, Boeing, and VinFast, says over 70% of its workforce abroad is already local in countries like the U.S., China, and the UK.
Despite the visa headache and auto-sector jitters from Trump’s tariffs, Harris remains upbeat, expecting a pickup in U.S. business within 6–9 months.
➡️ Fewer jobs even in companies with India ties and a high proporiton of Indian workforce abroad.
Trending on the internet
Okay, confession: I went into Bastards of Bollywood expecting to cringe. You know, another glossy “let’s be self-aware” project that ends up congratulating itself for being self-aware. But this one? Actually funny. Like, laugh-out-loud, did-they-really-say-that funny.
What surprised me most was how light-footed it felt — sharp without being smug, and emotional without trying to earn empathy points. For a show filled with famous last names, it’s the relative newbies who absolutely steal the show (you’ll know exactly who I mean when you watch it).
And best of all, it doesn’t try to tick every social-justice or meta-commentary box. It just tells a good story, trusts its audience, and lets the humour do the heavy lifting. Which, honestly, feels more radical than another monologue about privilege.
➡️ Give this nepo kid a shot, will you?
Read with me
Indian liberals (hi, Sudeshna, almost did not see you there!) have a new crush: Zohran Kwame Mamdani, the 34-year-old New York mayoral frontrunner, socialist poster boy, and son of Mira Nair and Mahmood Mamdani. With his global polish and Gaza-solidarity cred, he’s the kind of progressive hero India’s elite wish existed back home. But the rubs is that we already have one: Chandrashekhar Azad, the fiery UP activist who talks Ambedkar and rallies the streets.
This essay argues that Indian liberals’ hero worship says more about them than their politics — fluent in English, comfortable at film festivals, uneasy with caste politics, and perpetually allergic to anything that smells like the “masses.” While Mamdani fights capitalism from Manhattan, Azad fights oppression from Nagina.
➡️ Mamdani fits the liberal fantasy. Azad doesn’t. And maybe that’s why one trends on Twitter, while the other fills the streets.
With love on behalf of two women who cringe at the mention of chai tea latte,
Sudeshna
Co-Founder, DoorDesi 💃
Housekeeping
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