2026-03-05 3 Min read
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There was a time when fathers kept cash in a steel almirah and called it planning. Hmm, the days were good at least. Or your mother tracked every rupee in a small diary with a rubber band tightly tied around it.
Most of the family savings sat in a post office account that took three forms and two signatures to access because the trickier the money is to access, the less you will likely spend.
And, okay, “loan” was a word spoken quietly, seriously, almost like you’d whisper a secret into someone’s ears.
Debt or as we know them as loans were something that happened to other families. The unlucky ones. The careless ones. Not yours. Because no one will ever willingly acknowledge that fact of being broke if they really are.
Let’s be clear. You’re not broke.
Your UPI works. Your subscriptions renew without asking. You’re brunching on the weekends, you’re watching content across multiple platforms, maybe even planning a solo trip because there was a long weekend and flights were cheaper.
Except there’s that one tab running quietly in the background of your mind. Not a crash. Just a lag.
Just enough to make you check your balance a little carefully. Just enough to do mental math before splitting a bill you could technically afford. Just enough that next month’s salary is already allocated before it lands.
Already gone.
You don’t call it debt. Nobody really does anymore.
You call it EMIs chal rahi hain.
You call it thoda credit card ka due pending hain.
You call it bonus aayega, tab dekh lenge.
You call it normal.
How it took over?
It didn’t happen all at once.
First came one EMI. All within your senses of reach. A phone, a laptop, something you needed. Then the Buy Now Pay Later feature turned ₹8,000 into four easy payments that barely registered with your foggy memory. Then the credit card started filling in the gaps on tighter months. Then an app pre-approved you for a personal loan you didn’t even ask for, and somehow that felt reassuring.
Okay, breathe. Calm down.
We know, access to money has become frictionless. And once that friction disappears, so does the pause that usually comes before a decision. You don’t feel the weight of spending anymore. You just felt the convenience.
First came one EMI. All within your senses of reach. A phone, a laptop, something you needed. Then the Buy Now Pay Later feature turned ₹8,000 into four easy payments that barely registered with your foggy memory. Then the credit card started filling in the gaps on tighter months. Then an app pre-approved you for a personal loan you didn’t even ask for, and somehow that felt reassuring.
Okay, breathe. Calm down.
We know, access to money has become frictionless. And once that friction disappears, so does the pause that usually comes before a decision. You don’t feel the weight of spending anymore. You just felt the convenience.
Let’s discuss *Facts*!
This shift isn’t just personal. It’s visible in the numbers.
India’s household debt has now crossed 40% of GDP, and it’s been climbing steadily. More importantly, over half of this borrowing is not going into long-term assets like homes. It’s going into consumption. Your everyday spending, short-term needs, things you use and move on from.
At the same time, household liabilities are growing twice as fast as assets. Which means the things you owe are increasing faster than the things you own.
India’s household debt has now crossed 40% of GDP, and it’s been climbing steadily. More importantly, over half of this borrowing is not going into long-term assets like homes. It’s going into consumption. Your everyday spending, short-term needs, things you use and move on from.
At the same time, household liabilities are growing twice as fast as assets. Which means the things you owe are increasing faster than the things you own.
How India compares to the world?
Now you’ll say, but hey, If you zoom out, India still looks relatively stable, no?
Short answer, yes.
The US sits at around 75% household debt to GDP. The UK is close to 85%. Australia has crossed 120%, and South Korea is above 100%.
On paper, India at ~40% seems comfortable. But the context is different.
Those countries have significantly higher average incomes and stronger safety nets, unemployment support, healthcare systems, and financial buffers. In India, your margin for error is thinner. There’s less to almost negligible protection if something goes wrong.
Which means even moderate loans and borrowings land heavier here. It’s not just about how much you owe. It’s about how much room you have to recover.
Short answer, yes.
The US sits at around 75% household debt to GDP. The UK is close to 85%. Australia has crossed 120%, and South Korea is above 100%.
On paper, India at ~40% seems comfortable. But the context is different.
Those countries have significantly higher average incomes and stronger safety nets, unemployment support, healthcare systems, and financial buffers. In India, your margin for error is thinner. There’s less to almost negligible protection if something goes wrong.
Which means even moderate loans and borrowings land heavier here. It’s not just about how much you owe. It’s about how much room you have to recover.
The part we don’t talk about enough
Debt doesn’t just stay in your bank account. It shows up in your body.
Studies have found that people carrying high levels of debt also show higher levels of cortisol, the body’s primary stress hormone. Over time, elevated cortisol affects sleep, increases fatigue, and contributes to long-term health risks.
Research from Northwestern University found that higher debt levels were linked to increased anxiety, depression, and poorer overall health. In the UK, nearly half of individuals dealing with problem debt also report mental health challenges.
In India, studies and surveys by institutions like NIMHANS and SEBI have pointed to financial stress as a growing trigger for anxiety, especially among urban working professionals.
So if you feel a constant, low-level pressure around money, it’s not just in your head. It may also be in your system.
Studies have found that people carrying high levels of debt also show higher levels of cortisol, the body’s primary stress hormone. Over time, elevated cortisol affects sleep, increases fatigue, and contributes to long-term health risks.
Research from Northwestern University found that higher debt levels were linked to increased anxiety, depression, and poorer overall health. In the UK, nearly half of individuals dealing with problem debt also report mental health challenges.
In India, studies and surveys by institutions like NIMHANS and SEBI have pointed to financial stress as a growing trigger for anxiety, especially among urban working professionals.
So if you feel a constant, low-level pressure around money, it’s not just in your head. It may also be in your system.
Why hasn't earning more fixed it?
There’s a common belief that once income increases, things will settle. But that’s rarely how it plays out.
Income goes up. Lifestyle adjusts and recalibrates. Commitments increase. And before you realise it, the baseline has shifted. The pressure remains, just at a different level.
Your parents had less, but their money was still. Yours moves constantly. It’s already allocated, already planned, already stretched into the future.
This doesn’t need a complete overhaul of your life. But it does need one honest moment.
Know what you owe. Know what you’re paying in interest. Be aware of where your money is going, not occasionally, but consistently.
From there, small shifts matter. Not upgrading your lifestyle every time your income increases. Paying down the expensive debt first. Building a buffer, not for some distant goal, but simply for breathing room.
Just enough that one bad month doesn’t spill into the next.
Income goes up. Lifestyle adjusts and recalibrates. Commitments increase. And before you realise it, the baseline has shifted. The pressure remains, just at a different level.
Your parents had less, but their money was still. Yours moves constantly. It’s already allocated, already planned, already stretched into the future.
This doesn’t need a complete overhaul of your life. But it does need one honest moment.
Know what you owe. Know what you’re paying in interest. Be aware of where your money is going, not occasionally, but consistently.
From there, small shifts matter. Not upgrading your lifestyle every time your income increases. Paying down the expensive debt first. Building a buffer, not for some distant goal, but simply for breathing room.
Just enough that one bad month doesn’t spill into the next.
We’d say You Matter!
You Matter
This isn’t about cutting back on everything you enjoy. It’s not about guilt.
That quiet moment at night when you check your balance. That low, constant pressure that never quite turns into panic, but never fully goes away either. You’ve learned to live with it. The way you’ve learned to live with traffic or slow internet.
But you don’t have to.
The goal isn’t just to earn more.
It’s to reach a point where you open your bank app and feel nothing. No stress, no calculations, no background noise.
Just normal.
Because that’s what financial stability is supposed to feel like.
