Winners all the way

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All over the media we have people complaining about inflation and the toll that it’s taking on them — the things they can’t afford anymore, the hole that it’s burning in their pockets. The working man feels the pinch every time he pulls into a petrol pump to re-fuel. Rickshaw and taxi drivers strike every so often to make it known that they are not earning enough. Mothers hope against hope every time they go grocery shopping — that the prices of onions and tomatoes will have suddenly fallen.

In all this cacophony, a voice unheard, is that of the teenager — your normal college-going kid. Of course, there will be that occasional grumble, but by and large this tribe has somehow managed to make adjustments and live life king size with the same amount of pocket money that they received six months or a year ago. But don’t you go around thinking that they remain unaffected by world economic trends. They feel the pinch as much as any one else does.
“The main area where inflation has affected me is the recent hike in auto rickshaw and taxi fares. I usually end up having to ask my parents for more money as travel allowance or take a train or bus instead — the latter two being considerably cheaper alternatives,” says Sathvik Shetty, a student at D J Sanghvi College of Engineering.
However, just asking your parents for more money is usually not an option. The expected answer is either an outright, ‘No’ or a demand to see the list of expenses that you make in a month — not something you’d like them to look at. So how does the average teenager stay afloat? “I definitely won’t get any increase in my pocket money,” says Daksh Shah, an 18-year-old, adding “I’ve tried to cut down on my travel expenses. And my friends and I meet up at public places like parks instead of heading to coffee shops.”
By now, everyone has devised their own ways and means to hold on to those precious rupees. “Carrying food from home instead of eating at the college canteen or at a restaurant,” says Awin Salian, a student at IIAEIT, Mumbai. “And buying mineral water is a waste when you can carry bottled water with you,” he adds.
Deval Marolia says that watching movies at single screen theatres works out cheaper than going to multiplexes. “Window shopping at malls is also an inexpensive way to have fun with friends,” he adds.
So, while it may be a fact that no matter how much money you give a teenager it’s never enough, it’s also true that with skyrocketing inflation it’s almost impossible to make it all add up at the end of the month. Every teen is therefore bound to find his/her own way to cut corners and make adjustments and they seem to have coped admirably — so far!