Rajeev Kumar Nagotra
Of its many definitions, consumerism as “the acquisition of goods and services” is implied here. The Indian word for it is “bhog”. We might have forgotten but the great Indian thought has always exhorted us to suppress the tendency of “bhog”. The Bhagwad Gita lays down the following traits of a resolute yogi – he consumes less (mit:ahari), works constantly (karmath) and lives detachedly (ni:rlipt). Apparently the Chinese are following this philosophy more ardently than us. Dr. Bharat Jhunjhunwala in one of his articles in this paper had once explained how the core strength of Chinese economy lies in high production and not in high consumption of goods and services. Large volumes of their manufactured goods are available for export at an unbeatable price because of a relatively low domestic demand. On the contrary, the US economy has relied traditionally on debts and consumption. India is at the cross-roads between these two economic models. Its political leadership dreams to build, produce and export goods while its burgeoning new middle class aspires to acquire more and more things without any further delay. While the former is still figuring out the way to realize its dreams, the latter is getting its aspirations fulfilled by the low quality and cheap Chinese products flooded into our markets.
The carefully spending Indian has suddenly begun to spend recklessly. This transitory phase is not harmful. At least not yet. However, history tells us that increased consumption has always been accompanied by increased debts. Large corporate houses and institutions are conspiring day and night to pull even the last rupee out of the common man’s pocket. Banks are making your dream of owning a sedan car or an SUV a reality by offering attractive loans. Then there are housing loans for your dream home and financing schemes for upgrading your bike, TV or fridge. In short, the money is made to look like a non-issue even though the entire drama is being enacted for money alone. Time has also been reduced to a non-issue for the online shopping sites promise to deliver the products at your doorsteps even before you finish your day the office. There are so many plans and solutions on the platter that the poor man has no reasonable reason to refuse to buy a commodity. And, if he still has the nerves to refuse and run away from the maddening market to reach back home in one piece, he is greeted by the melodious jeers like “dabba hai dabba, uncle ka TV dabba” emanating from his TV room! The evolution of this ad itself can teach a quick person a great deal about the intentions of the big corporations. The old box shaped TVs has to be pushed off the shelf to ring in their new line of sleek LED TVs. After all, “purana jayega to naya aayega”. Then comes Diwali, the annual day of consumerism in India, and it is revealed that the sleek LED TV alone cannot get you salvation. You need to subscribe to HD channels in order to remove the stigma of a “dabba” owner. Ads like these keep pushing the bar silently away even as the consumer gets used to the new norm – more goods/services in day to day life and less savings. In a society like ours, where economic disparity is appalling and corruption so rampant, ads like these, by the way, are utterly immoral in taste. A person of limited resources and honest means stands ashamed and ridiculed in the face of such marketing campaigns. The torment follows him everywhere he goes – home, office, neighbourhood or mall.
Again, this phase is not very harmful. At least not so much yet. But the future is fraught with dangers. Desires are being constantly created and the bar is being pushed away steadily. Without even realizing, the unsuspecting humans are getting caught in the pursuit of “a good life” because “they are all worth it”. The US led economic crisis of 2009 is a clear case for reference. The misplaced sense of being “worth it” nudges people to buy more, consume more and, when they suddenly run out of cash, to swipe more and borrow more. The madness continues until it becomes practically unsustainable. That is when the governments read us the riot act and tell us that we, the common people, need to start behaving ourselves. Austerity measures are suggested and new taxes are legislated in much the same way as house cleaning is carried out after a hard party through the night. Only in this case, the house cleaner is the same gullible shopper who was ushered in as the hero of the campaign at the beginning of the trade cycle.
In conclusion, we must take the advantage of being a late entrant in the global economy. We can and must avoid the mistakes committed by other major economies. Indians must avoid the habits of the Americans that had led to the 2009 meltdown in the US. Instead we should read the words of advice Obama gave to his countrymen when he started dealing with the mayhem – build, produce and export and learn to save. Alternatively, we should go back to our own rudiments and understand that “the simple life” really is “the good life” and that a happy man is not the one who owns more, but the one who wants no more.
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