Videos have gone viral on TikTok of a group of international students assisting their fellow foreign student who was found sleeping under a Toronto bridge.
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In the series of videos posted by Chirag Gondi, the group helps the unidentified student find housing for the night at what appears to be a local Salvation Army shelter.
According to Gondi, the group spotted the student near Scarborough’s Victoria Park and stopped to speak with him. He told the group he needed to make a call to his home in India.
“We said ‘Let’s go, we can take you to your home’ and he said he (doesn’t) have a home,” Gondi wrote, adding that the student told the group he’d been living under the bridge for the past four days.
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In a longer video posted to YouTube, the group takes the student to a shelter, where he explains to a staff member that he’s studying at Conestoga College in Kitchener, Ont. He carries just one small bag of belongings, including a blanket, and some food.
The group then tries to arrange a way to transfer the student $20 so he has money to commute to class. While the group discusses the situation in the shelter lobby, two other individuals can be seen sleeping on the floor.
“He is safe now. But (the) second guy on the floor (in the) blue hoodie was also (South Asian),” wrote Gondi, who moved to Canada from India in 2021 and is studying business at Niagara College in Toronto. “Man, I don’t know what is happening.”
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According to immigration resource e-Visa, international students can expect to spend between $15,000 to $30,000 per year for undergraduate programs in Canada and between $10,000 to $25,000 a year for graduate programs. It notes that tuition fees may increase annually, and students should be prepared to pay higher costs year-over-year.
In terms of housing, transportation and other personal expenses, international students should budget up to $15,000 to cover those costs, and possibly more in larger cities like Toronto and Vancouver.
Earlier this year, Eric Weissman, an assistant professor at the University of New Brunswick in Saint John, told Global News that students across Canada are increasingly relying on temporary housing solutions, including couch surfing and sleeping in cars.
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According to research from Weissman, four to five per cent of students in universities are finding themselves homeless.
“Students are starting courses or semesters and leaving and taking on two or three jobs, and not doing as well as they wanted to. This is very common now,” he said.
A 2020 report from Global Affairs Canada noted the number of long-term international students in Canada grew 16.3 per cent from 2017 to 2018, with students from India contributing the most to the overall increase. Ontario saw the largest spike in the total number of international students.
According to information from the federal government, international students contribute more than $22.3 billion per year to the Canadian economy.
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“International graduates are also a source of key talent to help support Canada’s future economic growth and counteract the country’s aging demographic,” notes a 2023 statement from Citizenship and Immigration.
Since posting the videos, Gondi said he’s received many offers from people willing to help the student, while others have commented offering advice and even accommodations in their own homes.
“Salute to you guys for such act (of) kindness,” one comment reads. “South Asians struggle the most here and no one knows the reality back home. We should really step up to assist people when needed.”
Gondi has not responded to a request for an interview.
