The world’s first pieces of vanity, dating back to 1,42,000- 1,50,000 years ago, were discovered in Morocco in 2014-2018 in the Bizmoune Cave. Archaeologists found 33 beads made from the shells of the Tritia gibbosula, a small sea snail. This discovery is a testament to man’s zest for joy. Last week, a tiny one column item tucked away in an inside page of a mass circulation daily, noted that around 90 per cent of India’s population lack sufficient money to spend on “discretionary goods or services” or “non-essential items”— stuff you took for granted and that brought personal satisfaction; a pricey body lotion, a new shirt, a pair of trendy sneakers, popcorn at cineplexes, etc. Only 13.14 crore of the Indian “consuming class” out of 143.80 crore citizens are lucky enough to live beyond a dal-roti existence today. It seems flawed economic policies, red tape and poll politics are thrusting India back to the 1970s Socialist era, when Indira Gandhi’s diktat was to stop “ostentations living” and “conspicuous consumption.” It is sad that in a country with the most colourful and extravagant festivals, and a heritage of maharajas and palaces, the majority is forced to tighten its belt just to survive.
The whole point of life, human and animal, is to prosper and be content. From the 1960s to mid-80s, only Ambassador and Fiat cars ruled India’s potholed roads. The only good career choices were medicine, engineering and government jobs. Hardly anyone travelled abroad, and those who did were entitled to just $500 in forex. In the 1990s the astute PM Narasimha Rao and visionary finance minister Manmohan Singh crafted a New Deal. By 2000, Manmohanomics had liberated and enlarged the middle class. Malls came up even in small towns where nobody had seen a pair of Levis before. Pizza parlours, fusion food and haute cuisine boomed. People savoured fine wines and single malts. Families ate out, bought trendy clothes, went to the movies (there was no 18 per cent GST on caramelised popcorn then), bought cars and homes on EMIs, took holidays abroad, purchased cellphones and LED TVs. Money surged into the economy on steroids. Markets millionaires became legion. There is joy in picking up that silk scarf in the shop window, taking an unplanned holiday to Goa, getting that extra scoop of ice-cream, and upgrading an old car. Incomes have risen but so have prices, and disproportionately so. In December, 2023, annual disposable income was at its highest at `29,70,59,026.7 from `91,540 in December, 1950. The value of `100 in 1950 was `10,226.16 in 2024. Spinning statistical self-salaams, the fukre-fukre gang of netas, bureaucrats and unqualified economists are playing fast and loose with data to make the economy shine politically. Blaming the Gandhi family for all that goes wrong is a boilerplate tactic, but now a tad banal; though Indira Gandhi did mess up the economy Soviet-style.
Into every life some rain must fall. If Hindutva united a nation, penny-pinching will dampen its spirit. Life is not black and white, there is a big rainbow in between. People used to even small luxuries will become sullen when their buying power shrinks. Good economics is about leading people to the pot of gold at its end, not switching off the lights to save power, literally and metaphorically. Retail therapy is essential to revive the national spirit. When the going gets tough, the tough go shopping. Can’t do that by watching every rupee you spend.