JAY JOSHI
Twitter recently offered an insight into the world of rich broke yuppies. A young professional posted a tweet displaying her month-end bank balance, which was around Rs 6000, and asked Tweeple whether their lie was also as tough. Now, having just 6k left in your account is not that big a deal, but this woman went on to state that she had no savings-in terms of fixed or recurring deposits, or mutual fund SIPs.
While some people offered her a word of comfort, may began posting their own bank balance, confessing that they too did not have any savings. The thread also witnessed netizens sharing articles on how a class o “urban poor’ was emerging, which spent a considerable amount of their earnings on maintaining a particular standard of lifestyle, and having fun. There have also been a number of media reports suggesting that Indian millennials are diving headlong into consumerism, often indulging in spending beyond their means. Is this really a trend, or is it only a few people?
“That is a tough question” said Nishad Upadhye, a chartered accountant from Ponda. “I cannot exactly say that most millenials are spending, but I would say there is considerable pressure these days from the market and to a certain extent from the society to keep up a particular lifestyle. It depends on each person’s nature whether to succumb to this pressure or not.”
Manguirish Mopkar, (name changed) a young student also shared some information on the topic on condition of anonymity. “I come from a middle class family, and I will spend if I get the opportunity.” said the young student. “ I have seen people around me spend, and personally think saving is not of much use. If there are so many opportunities to spend money, what are you going to achieve by keeping it aside instead? Asks Mopkar. He says that having an insurance cover is of course important, but apart from that, one already gets an account with employee provident fund when one gets a job, and that is good game. “With inflation, the value of your money is going to decline over time. Now is when you can have what you want, so why keep the money idle” asks Mopkar.
Insiders from the finance industry refrain from stating whether today’s youth are increasingly preferring spending over savings, but do point out that spending has been made considerably easier in today’s day and age. The access to loans and credit cards has become easier, and it is possible to buy an expensive iPhone on a small EMI that makes it look affordable.
Panaji-based investment expert Girish Potdar also indicates the same. “There are two factors at play here,” explains Potdar. “First, spending has been definitely made easier, but similarly, investing has also been made easier. However, many people are not as keen on investing as they are on spending. This is because most often, young people do no get correct information or advice relating to finance. Here too, it is possible that the voices promoting saving and investment schemes get drowned in the noise made by brands that want you to spend money on their products. This is why, even when there is information available on Internet about the best ways to invest and save, users will most often end up on websites that drive spending.
Secondly, some financial players are busy pushing their product rather than understanding your requirements and offering you the right investment advice.” he avers.
Analysis suggests that even while it is difficult to determine whether headlong hedonism is a rising trend, the market does seem to want young India to spend. In such a situation, how your youth think about the future is the key, because vision for the future is what shapes one’s choices in the present.
