Bollywood dreams become true blue reality for Indian family

Raju Allam is even planning to begin supporting Australia in cricket after his citizenship ­ceremony.

‘We want our children to be part of this nice culture’: Raju Allam with wife Jhansi and daughters Avianna and Aashika. Picture: Nikki Short

Raju Allam knew of Australia through the lens of Bollywood when he moved to the country for an IT job in 2010.

“I play cricket a lot, so whenever anyone spoke of Australia, I thought of cricket and kangaroos,” he said.

Now acquainted with more than sports and animals, the 39-year-old is set to become a citizen on Australia Day, January 26, at his local council in Parramatta.

He’ll share the day with his wife, Jhansi, 33, and daughter ­Aashika, 6, who will also become citizens. The couple also have a 10-month-old daughter, Avianna, who was born a citizen.

Mr Allam grew up in Hyderabad, India, and first moved to Sydney on a temporary skilled working visa to work for Optus.

After briefly returning to India, he moved to Sydney with his new wife in 2011 and later applied for permanent residency. He now works for Vodafone in an IT role.

“I had never been to another country and was so excited,” Ms Allam said of coming to Australia.

“We always spend time outdoors on the weekends and I love the Opera House and the Harbour Bridge.”.

The wildlife is also a drawcard for Ms Allam, who works at ­Taronga Zoo in an administrative role, but is on maternity leave.

“When we see Australian animals like koalas and emus, we are so excited to see a country’s nat­ional animals,” she said. “Even when my daughter goes to the zoo now, it’s like she is watching for the first time.”

Despite the excitement of a new sunny landscape, Ms Allam was struck by homesickness when the couple first migrated to ­Australia.

“In India, we were a joint family, but when we came here, we were just two people alone.

“I didn’t work when we first ­arrived and when my husband would go to the office, I would feel all alone and miss my home.”

She credits the friendliness of Australians for making it easier to adopt the country’s laid-back way of life.

“I like the mateship here,” she said. “If you don’t know anybody, they come and talk with us. I like that part of the culture a lot.

“We want our children to be part of this nice culture.”

The family often attends ­Indian cultural festivals in Parramatta, such as Diwali, the Hindu ­festival of lights, for a taste of their home country in their new country.

For Aashika, it’s the animals that are her favourite part of her new country. “It’s so fun chasing the birds here,” she said.

Mr Allam is even planning to begin supporting Australia in cricket after his citizenship ­ceremony.

“It’s a big change, but I want to support and be loyal to the country I am living in,” he said.