Prateek Tanmay
3 min readNew DelhiJul 4, 2026 12:06 PM IST
Indian communities abroad often look for small reminders of home, whether it’s through festivals, food, or neighbourhood stores. A newly opened Indian grocery store in New Jersey has become the latest talking point online after its grand opening descended into scenes that many social media users likened to a bustling Indian vegetable market.
A video circulating on social media shows the store packed with shoppers, many of them elderly, scrambling to grab discounted fruits and vegetables. The crowd can be seen pushing past one another while stuffing plastic bags with produce as shocked voices in the background repeatedly exclaim, “Oh my God.”
The nearly two-minute clip captures every corner of the store overflowing with customers eager to take advantage of the opening-day offers.
Watch the video:
🚨SHOCKING | “AMERICAN SABZI MANDI”
Scenes from the opening of Indian grocery store in New Jersey, where huge crowds of mostly Gujaratis gather to shop pic.twitter.com/3INsbQtx7Q
— The Tatva (@thetatvaindia) July 3, 2026
The footage has triggered mixed reactions online. While some viewers said the chaotic shopping reminded them of markets back in India and brought a sense of nostalgia, many others criticised the behaviour, saying such scenes reinforce negative stereotypes.
One user wrote, “Just because people change the country doesn’t mean they forget what they have learnt at their home. It’s their trademark. Regardless of degrees they gain and the amount of money they make, uncivilized people will stay the same forever, nothing surprising or shocking here.”
Another commented, “This is why the world is calling us senseless. They won’t do the same in American stores.”
A third user argued that the comparison with India was outdated, writing, “We order sabzi Blinkit Instamart Flipkart Minutes big basket Zepto etc. Even our markets at many places in metro or even our supermarkets are not that chaotic. Everytime something bad is seen with NRIs people compare it with back home. Even rural area markets now are more disciplined and organized than this India has moved away from that chaotic era quite a few time back.”
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A fourth person echoed a similar sentiment, saying, “This used to happen twenty years ago… even tier 2 and tier 3 towns do not have scenes like this any more. These poor NRIs are still living in the India of the past!”
