‘Is she rich’: NRI founder slams internet bullies for mocking her looks, questioning her marriage to American husband

When Mumbai-born Rashmi moved to Austin, Texas, she expected to build a life defined her entrepreneurial drive and her marriage to Matt. Instead, a simple photo on social media turned her into a target for “brutal” rac trolling. From being shamed for her looks to strangers debating her “worth” as a wife, the dehumanisation was relentless. Speaking to HT.com, Rashmi opens up about the emotional toll of being treated like “a piece of cattle on the internet” and how she eventually found the strength to stop shrinking herself. grounding herself in faith and family, she is now standing up to the online hate to show other Indian girls that they don’t have to compromise their light for anyone.Rashmi with her husband Matt. (Rashmi)When did the trolling begin?Rashmi told HT.com, “The trolling really began when I first started posting on X. I made what I thought was a completely normal post and attached a photo of my husband and me. Somehow it went viral, but for all the wrong reasons. The comments were brutal and it honestly caught me completely off guard. Eventually it got overwhelming enough that I stopped posting on X altogether.”Also Read: Indian-origin CEO hits back at rac troll: ’15 of my cousins came here on H-1B, paid millions in taxes’Six months later, Rashmi tentatively returned to social media, hoping the tide of negativity had finally receded. The initial response was encouraging, but the peace was short-lived. After she shared a romantic clip from her wedding, the atmosphere turned toxic almost instantly. While the video went viral, it was followed “incredibly harsh” comments that reignited the brutal trolling she had fought so hard to escape.What was your initial reaction to the trolling?“At first I honestly didn’t know how to react. My instinct was just to pull the post down, which I did, but that doesn’t really make it stop. Once something goes viral, it takes on a life of its own,” the entrepreneur told HT.com. She owns an Indian restaurant, 7 Monk’s Cafe, and a hotel management company, Reso Hospitality.She recalled, “What I remember most was how exposed it made me feel. My phone started blowing up with calls and texts because so many people had seen it. Friends, family, even people I hadn’t spoken to in a long time were reaching out.”Rashmi continued, “And as women, we’re already so hard on ourselves. We’re constantly told to lose weight, look better, be prettier. But when thousands of strangers start pointing out every single thing about you, commenting on your marriage, your appearance, your worth as a person, it hits in a really different way.” adding, “What bothered me the most was that I wasn’t even posting about beauty or trying to be controversial. I wasn’t giving opinions or making some bold statement. I was just sharing a normal moment of my life. It was simply a photo of me and my husband, and somehow that alone became enough for people to tear apart my looks, my relationship, and my value as a person.”Rashmi revealed that the cruelty often took the form of baseless assumptions, with trolls suggesting her husband was only with her for her wealth. Posts meant to celebrate her bond with Matt were often met with the cutting remark, “He must be blind,” as strangers sought to pick apart her physical appearance.“One comment that really stuck with me was when people started comparing me to the ‘Pot of Greed’ card from Yu-Gi-Oh. I used to own a comic book shop so I knew of the game, but suddenly there were threads of people posting the card next to my photo and making fun of my smile. I’ve always thought I had a sweet smile, and seeing thousands of strangers mock it made me incredibly self conscious,” she told HT.com.“Then the comments took another strange turn where people started debating my appearance like I wasn’t even a real person. Some people would say things like ‘what does he even see in her?’ while others would reply with ‘she’s not that bad, I’d date her.’ Reading that felt awful because it was like I had stopped being a person and instead became something people were judging and rating online. It honestly made me feel like a piece of cattle on the internet.”How did you handle the intense trolling?Navigating a storm of unprovoked backlash from strangers is a daunting ordeal, and for Rashmi, the weight of the backlash was immense. Yet, she refused to let the noise drive her into hiding. Instead, she leaned on her family’s support and drew strength from her faith to navigate the crisis.Through this journey, she arrived at a sobering realisation: an open life on social media invites both kindness and cruelty. Speaking to HT.com, Rashmi shared that she is gradually coming to terms with this digital reality, choosing to focus on her purpose rather than the “unkind” voices of the internet.She shared, “It took a lot of conversations with my family, my husband, and honestly, a lot of talking to God to work through it. When you post online, you open yourself up to the public, and that means not everyone is going to be kind. That was something I had to slowly learn how to accept.”The US-based Indian expat added, “What helped me the most was grounding myself in the people who actually know me. My family and my husband reminded me that the opinions of strangers on the internet don’t define who I am or what my marriage is. They see the real life behind the photo, not just a snapshot that people feel free to judge.”“Over time I’ve also learned to set boundaries with it. Sometimes that means stepping away from the screen for a bit, and sometimes it means choosing not to engage at all. You can’t control what people say online, but you can control how much power you give those words and how you choose to respond.”Why did you continue posting despite the backlash?Rashmi revealed, “I also had to remind myself why I started sharing in the first place. I wasn’t posting for validation from strangers. I was sharing pieces of my life and my story because I want to show more Indian girls that they can be whoever they want to be. You can become a doctor, a lawyer, an art, an actor, or an entrepreneur. You can build a successful business, have a great marriage, and marry a spouse who pushes you to grow and become better.”“You don’t have to keep diminishing your light for others, becoming smaller or compromising just to make people comfortable. When I focus on that purpose instead of the noise in the comments, it becomes much easier to keep going,” she continued.Rashmi’s message to the trolls:“To the trolls, I would honestly say this. You’re seeing a tiny snapshot of someone’s life on the internet, not the full story. Behind every photo is a real person with a family, a marriage, and a life that exs far beyond a comment section,” she explained.Her advice to other women:Rashmi shared the advice she would give to other women. “If anything, the experience has made me more determined to keep sharing my story. Because I know there are other girls watching who might feel like they have to shrink themselves or fit into some narrow idea of what they should be. You don’t. You can build a life that looks completely different from what people expect. You can build a career, a family, and a relationship that makes you proud. And if that makes some people uncomfortable or gives them something to comment about online, that says a lot more about them than it ever will about you/me,” she told HT.com.How did Matt react to the trolling?“My husband usually gives me space to process things on my own, but he has always been one of my biggest supporters, along with my parents. When everything was happening, I actually felt really guilty for dragging him into it. My intention was never to make us some ‘controversial’ couple on the internet. Most of the time I’m just sharing about my restaurant, my businesses, and my life,” she said, adding, “But he handled it with a lot of calm and support. More than anything, I’m grateful that he’s proud to be married to a woman who wants to stand on her own feet and build her own path.”“The way he reacted also reminded me of the kind of men I hope we see more of in the world. Men who encourage women to grow, who stand behind them when things get hard, who are protective when needed but also give their partners the space to have their own voice and identity. That kind of support means everything.”How did Rashmi and Matt meet?Reflecting on the beginning of their journey, Rashmi admits that their love story started in the most modern of ways: a dating app. At the time, she was healing from a previous relationship and was hesitant to step back into the dating world. It was her mother who gently nudged her to stay open to new connections.Though she nearly declined Matt’s request, assuming she would eventually marry someone from a similar cultural background, Rashmi decided to take a leap of faith. That single “yes” paved the way for a cross-cultural romance that she now describes as nothing short of wonderful.“From the first date, something just clicked. We talked for hours, and it felt easy in a way I hadn’t expected. A few days later he did something that really stood out to me. He randomly called me just to check in and see how my day was going. It felt spontaneous and thoughtful, and it showed me the kind of person he was,” she recalled while in a conversation with HT.com.“Over time we just kept building from there. We learned about each other’s cultures, families, and traditions. Instead of our differences being a barrier, they became something we celebrated together. What started as a date I almost didn’t go on turned into the person I get to build my life with.”When asked if she wanted to add anything else about her situation and how she faced online trolling, Rashmi told HT.com, “I think the biggest thing I would want to add is that the internet can make it feel like everyone has an opinion about your life, your relationship, and your worth. But at the end of the day, those opinions don’t get to define who you are. Only you get to define that.”Also Read: Italian calls out Indian woman who trolled her for marrying Kerala man: ‘Exposing our haters’“For me, this experience actually made me stronger in a strange way. It reminded me that the people who truly matter are the ones who know you in real life. Your family, your partner, your friends, and the community you build around you.”