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Journalism of Courage
An Indian woman has sparked debate online after revealing she was let go just two days into her internship in Germany, despite relocating to a new city for the opportunity. Kaajal Tekwani shared her story in a candid Instagram video, describing how she moved from Berlin to Munich to join a startup, only to lose the role almost immediately.
“Imagine moving cities for a new internship and then getting fired within just 2 days. Yep, that’s happened to me,” she said. Tekwani explained that she had cleared several rounds of interviews, completed an assigned task successfully, and even turned down two other offers to accept this position. “They seemed super happy with my work. We went on rounds of negotiations, and they were offering me accommodation in Munich. Everything seemed fine,” she added.
Her internship officially started on August 15, after two weeks of remote work. At first, things appeared to go smoothly, but she soon faced unexpected criticism. “The founder came and told me that he thinks there is an issue with my attitude, and I lack some fire or something. And then, I was like, okay. I don’t know, I started receiving rude messages in the name of feedback,” Tekwani recalled.
She worked remotely until September 1, when she relocated to Munich. Her first day at the office went smoothly, but on the second day, she was slightly late because of an eye infection. Even after notifying her team, she was let go later that same evening.
“They gave me reasons – one is that I am not a team fit. Second is that they expected somebody with more senior knowledge and expertise. For an intern role, alright, but you have figured that out during the interview,” she said. “The third reason was that I am not punctual because I was late in the first two days,” she added.
Tekwani has since returned to Berlin. She cautioned others against rushing into similar situations: “Don’t immediately relocate for a startup, especially if they are not paying you what you deserve, because if the pay is peanuts and you can see red flags from the beginning, just don’t do this. It’s not worth it.”
In her post’s caption, she added that while the company reimbursed her travel and accommodation, the experience took a significant mental and financial toll. “The mental toll it takes on you is not worth it,” she wrote.
The videos quickly went viral, drawing a wave of empathetic responses. One user wrote, “This is so saddening to know. Thank you for sharing this here though, I hope this experience never repeats itself again for you, or anyone in this position.” Another commented, “It takes a lot of courage to share this type of experience publicly… I can tell it’s their loss. You’ll land way better internship with better pay.”
Others shared similar experiences, with one noting, “This same thing happened with me too. But I got a new job on the same day when the first company fired me. All I can say is everything happens for a reason, and maybe God has planned something good for you in this as well.”
A contrasting perspective came from someone who questioned the trend of leaving India, saying, “I don’t understand why people leave India to live a second-grade life in foreign countries. Our India is great with ample opportunities.”
