Without Passports and Only 220,000 Won... The 'BTS Expedition' of Three Rural Indian Schoolgirls

Departure Plans from Visakhapatnam Port

News has emerged that three schoolgirls living in a rural village in India chose to travel to Seoul with 220,000 won in hand in order to meet the K-pop group BTS. On the 8th (local time), India's NDTV reported that three 13-year-old schoolgirls living in the Karur area of Tamil Nadu in southern India ran away from home on the 4th to see BTS. It was reported that the budget they took with them at the time was only 220,000 won, and they did not have passports.

They were classmates from the same school and decided to run away together with the resolution to "go to Seoul to meet BTS." The three girls left their hometown with money they had saved in advance. They reportedly planned to take a car from Erode to Chennai, then move to Visakhapatnam to board a ship bound for South Korea.

Three female students living in Karur, Tamil Nadu, ran away from home carrying 220,000 won without passports, saying they wanted to meet BTS.
[Photo by NDTV, India]

The three left their hometown and arrived in Chennai, India, which was a transit point. After spending a night at a hotel in Chennai, they inquired about ways to get to South Korea. Unable to find a viable method, they boarded a train back to their hometown. When the children disappeared, their parents reported to the police, and a search began across the state. It is known that the girls got off the train at midnight to buy food, missed the train, and were found by authorities. The three students were placed in a facility in the Bellur area of Tamil Nadu. Upon hearing the news, their parents came to find them, and counseling was subsequently provided.

Bernadagam, Chairperson of the Bellur Child Welfare Committee, explained, "The girls knew very detailed aspects of BTS's attire and even bought shoes similar to those worn by the group." She added, "BTS was a source of inspiration for them," and "It was clear that they longed for a life filled with dance and music."

They reportedly grew up in difficult family circumstances with little parental supervision. The committee reminded the girls that their decision to go abroad was a mistake, NDTV reported. Chairperson Bernadagam added, "One girl came from a single-parent family, and another had a father with an intellectual disability," and "The mothers worked as laborers on farms and had no time to monitor what their children were doing." The journey of the three girls who even ran away from home to meet BTS ultimately ended on the 6th when they took a train back to their hometown with their parents.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.