By buld_online
The real trap isn’t inflation or taxes — it’s the belief that a ₹10 lakh car is a just reward for hard work. That’s the message Mumbai-based data scientist Monish Gosar delivers in a blunt LinkedIn post targeting what he calls the Indian middle class’s “willing participation” in its own financial downfall.
Gosar’s takedown focuses not on policy failures or stagnant salaries, but on the mindset that turns credit into comfort and status into necessity. He recalls a friend earning ₹15 lakh per annum who opted for a brand-new car instead of a modest used one, justifying the decision with: “I deserve it.” Gosar’s response is unsparing: “That’s exactly how the system wins.”
In his post, Gosar challenges the idea that India’s salaried professionals are passive victims of rising costs. Instead, he blames impulsive decisions, lifestyle inflation, and an obsession with appearances. “We confused wants with needs,” he writes. “We let Instagram dictate our financial goals. We made emotional decisions. And we ignored the math.”
That math is sobering. India’s credit card debt has ballooned to ₹2.92 lakh crore in just four years. Personal loans have surged by 75%. But Gosar argues that no one was coerced. “Banks didn’t trap us,” he writes. “They offered the rope. We tied the knots.”
His critique taps into a growing anxiety. According to investor Saurabh Mukherjea, 5–10% of India’s middle class is now stuck in a debt cycle — not to build assets, but to preserve the illusion of a lifestyle. With job security under threat from automation and AI, Mukherjea says the traditional salaried path is fading fast, calling it the “death of salaried employment.”
Gosar doesn’t deny systemic issues, but insists real change begins with personal accountability. “Every swipe, every EMI — that was on us,” he writes. “It’s time we stop playing victim and start playing smart.”