Gautam, an IT professional in California with a flourishing career, had only one qualm in life — his septuagenarian mother never agreed to move countries and stay with him despite several requests. She was not comfortable leaving her house and staying away from relatives and friends. But her body was slowly giving up, and eventually, she passed away, leaving behind her beloved house and a lot more. Gautam had to fly for more than 24 hours to see his mother for one last time. And then begins the flurry of activities he is not prepared for, either mentally or physically. Let’s have a look at how things unfold in the next seven days (his limited time in India) for Gautam:
Day 1: As soon as he lands, Gautam has to rush for the last rites, and after one of the longest days of his life, he just wants to crash in (jet lag!). But there are relatives in the house, and they want to know what caused his mother’s death and why he hadn’t come earlier.
Day 2: Gautam thinks about his mother, childhood, and the house. He has to arrange for rituals and answer a million questions (well-wishers!). Meanwhile, someone asks what his plans are for the house, and it strikes him he needs to figure that out too.
Day 3: Gautam explores his mother’s drawers looking for property papers and bank details. He calls the bank to inform them about her demise and asks for the next steps, nominees, etc. He checks with his mother’s closest aides if she had written a will or told them anything about her plans.
Day 4: The entire day goes in puja and rituals.
Day 5: Trip to the bank, a lawyer, and the local municipality to figure out the succession procedure. Gautam, who is too used to smart solutions in the US, realises he will need to become Gautam Buddha to deal with the Indian system.
Day 6: As the rituals come to an end, he finds some time to meet old friends and do a little bit of ‘Indian’ shopping before he jets off the next day.
Day 7: Gautam wonders if his suitcase would be enough to pack in all the memories he has had in this house. He had no reason to come back to India anymore. But what about this house and whatever little asset his parents had acquired over the years? Gautam has no solution, and neither does he have the time for one.
Gautam’s story is the reality in many Indian households, where children living abroad have to suddenly face the bitter truth of a parent’s death and then struggle with succession procedures. In most cases, the parent or relative whose name the property is neither informs them about it nor writes a will or gets a portfolio. The children are left clueless, with most of them not even knowing how much and what their parents have left behind.
If you are an NRI who has aged parents in India, you need to talk to them about their assets and what they plan to do with them. They can choose to give away their properties or savings to you or anyone else, but they must let you know about it all or have a portfolio that helps you do the needful in their absence. In the era of digitalisation, distance is no more a hurdle for such things. All you need to do is choose a platform like EasyInherit and create a portfolio for your parents that will have detailed information about their assets.
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