Author: The 50 Year Old Guy

Planning for retirement often feels like climbing Mount Everest in flip-flops — intimidating and overwhelming. But it doesn’t have to be that way. With the right approach, you can build a comfortable retirement corpus in India without obsessing over the stock market every morning or cutting down on your daily joys. Step 1: Understand How Much You’ll Need A common rule of thumb is that you need 20–25 times your annual expenses as your retirement corpus. Example:- Current monthly expenses: ₹60,000- Annual expenses: ₹7.2 lakh- Retirement corpus needed ≈ ₹7.2 lakh × 25 = ₹1.8 crore But here’s the catch:…

Executive summary (TL;DR): Zerodha is India’s most prominent discount broker — known for low-cost pricing, powerful trading tools, and a broad product ecosystem (Kite, Console, Coin, Varsity, Kite Connect). It is an excellent choice for cost-conscious traders, DIY investors, and developers who want programmatic access. That said, occasional technical glitches, rising competition and regulatory shifts mean Zerodha users should understand trade-offs and have contingency plans. This article is a comprehensive, sourced dive into Zerodha’s products, pricing, reliability, research resources, competitive position, pros/cons, real examples, and a practical verdict. Quick facts & scale Product ecosystem — more than just an app…

Your salary slip is more than just a piece of paper with numbers. It is a legal document, a financial record, and a window into your earnings, deductions, and tax obligations. Yet, many working professionals in India glance at their payslip once a month without truly understanding what each line item means. Decoding it correctly can help you plan your finances better, reduce taxes, and even negotiate smarter during appraisals. Let’s break down the major components of an Indian salary slip and what each one means for your take-home pay. 1. Basic Salary What it means: The fixed component of…

Love may be written in the stars, but bills, EMIs, and who pays for Netflix are definitely written in your credit card statement. Forget star-crossed lovers — the real test is whether your zodiac sign and your partner’s can survive a joint savings account. Let’s take a zodiac-style, tongue-in-cheek look at financial compatibility — with a sprinkle of real-life millionaires and billionaires to prove money really is cosmic. Aries (March 21 – April 19) Spontaneous spender. Thinks “budget” is a four-letter word. Famous Aries with cash: Mukesh Ambani, Larry Page, Robert Downey Jr. Compatibility tip: Pairs best with Virgo, who…

Ever felt like your wallet is always on a crash diet — shrinking faster than you can feed it? You’re not alone. With rising expenses, endless EMIs, and “one-day-only” sales popping up every hour, our money habits need a reset more than ever. That’s where a Financial Detox Challenge comes in — a 7-day reboot to cut out financial junk, flush out bad money habits, and kickstart a healthier relationship with your wallet. Think of it as yoga for your bank account. Ready? Let’s detox. Day 1: Track Every Rupee (No Cheating!) Grab a notebook or download an expense tracking…

Remember when your parents told you: “Save money, beta, it will secure your future”? Well, welcome to 2025—where saving alone is about as useful as bringing a spoon to a sword fight. 1. Inflation eats faster than you do You save ₹1,000 in your piggy bank. Great. Except inflation in India is hovering around 5% annually. That means your money loses buying power quietly every year—like a slow leak in your scooter tyre. Moral of the story: If you’re only saving, you’re basically running on a treadmill—sweating a lot but going nowhere. 2. Bank FDs: Safety, yes. Riches, no. Bank…

Walk into any middle-class Indian home on a Sunday and you’ll hear a familiar chorus: “Should we upgrade the phone?” “What do we wear to that big fat wedding?” “Is a bigger house EMI manageable?” The pressure to look prosperous is very real—and increasingly expensive. Below, a plain-English tour of the forces driving this pressure, the data behind it, and a practical playbook to opt out—without opting out of life. Why the pressure feels relentless 1) Social media and the “always-on” comparison loop.India had roughly 491 million social media user identities by January 2025. That’s a lot of highlight reels…

Ah, the eternal Indian dilemma: “Beta, kab ghar kharid rahe ho?” (Son, when are you buying a house?) This one question has haunted generations of Indians like a never-ending Ekta Kapoor serial. For many of us, the moment we cross 25, relatives assume we should either: But is it really worth it today? Let’s break it down—with some spicy, relatable Indian examples. 1. The EMI vs Rent Rasam (ritual) But hold on—if you do the math, that ₹40,000 difference is equal to: 2. Location Drama 3. Emotional Quotient: Maa vs Math Conclusion: Owning means sentiment + stress; renting means freedom…

Imagine this: you wake up one morning with a bold mission — not to run a marathon, not to start a diet, but something far more terrifying: spending ₹0 for the entire day. Sounds easy, right? You’re wrong. This is the Mount Everest of self-control in modern India, and my friend, there’s no Sherpa for this climb. Step 1: The Overconfident Morning You wake up thinking, “Piece of cake. I don’t need to spend today. I have food, water, and Wi-Fi. What could go wrong?” You even smugly make your own chai instead of running to the corner tapri. Congratulations,…

Congratulations! You’ve just entered the magical, sleep-deprived, coffee-fueled world of parenthood. Along with the cuteness overload, you’ve probably also noticed that your wallet feels a bit lighter than usual. Welcome to the land where tiny humans come with surprisingly large expenses. Fear not—we’re going to walk you through how to financially plan for this new chapter… with a few laughs along the way. 1. Accept the Obvious: Babies Are Expensive Let’s face it—your baby will cost more than your first scooter, first laptop, and possibly your first car combined. Diapers, formula, clothes, toys, medical check-ups—it all adds up. The sooner…