In 1955, a man from a small village in Kerala paid 500 rupees for passage on a crowded boat to Abu Dhabi. He told no one he was leaving. 

He wasn't the first, and he certainly wasn't the last. 

Over the decades, millions followed  — and the money they sent back quietly rebuilt everything: houses, schools, entire towns. 

Today, remittances make up over a fifth of the state's economy. Which means when war broke out across the Middle East last month, Kerala isn't just watching from a distance. The hurt is closer home.

Tune in.
 

Want to work with The Ken? Apply here!

Daybreak is produced from the newsroom of The Ken, India’s first subscriber-only business news platform. Subscribe for more exclusive, deeply-reported, and analytical business stories.