31/08/2026
One thing I have noticed after years of speaking with people dealing with debt is that most people don't fall into debt because they don't understand money.
Sometimes, they fall into it because debt is designed to feel smaller than it actually is.
Think about how we see credit today.
A ₹1 lakh purchase sounds expensive.
But ₹3,500 a month?
Suddenly, it feels manageable.
A ₹60,000 phone can become an EMI of a few thousand rupees.
A large credit card balance can become a "minimum payment."
A loan that would otherwise feel unaffordable can be presented as an amount that fits comfortably into a monthly budget.
And this is where I think we need to pause.
We have become very good at understanding the monthly cost of borrowing, but not always the total cost.
The EMI isn't necessarily the problem.
The problem is when the EMI becomes the only number we look at.
I have spoken to people who were not struggling because of one particularly large loan.
They were struggling because they had accumulated several "manageable" payments.
₹8,000 here.
₹12,000 there.
₹5,000 on a credit card.
Another ₹10,000 for something else.
Individually, each payment seemed affordable.
Together, they had consumed a significant part of the person's monthly income.
That's how financial pressure often builds.
Not through one dramatic decision, but through a series of small commitments that never felt dangerous individually.
There is another side to this that we don't talk about enough.
When borrowing becomes easy, saying no requires financial discipline.
And financial discipline becomes difficult when every purchase is presented as something you can afford "for just a few thousand rupees a month."
We shouldn't stop people from using credit.
Credit, when used responsibly, can be extremely useful.
But I believe we need to change the conversation around it.
Before asking:
"Can I afford this EMI?"
We should ask:
"Can I afford the total cost of this decision without compromising my financial stability?"
That is a very different question.
Because affordability is not just about whether you can make the next payment.
It's about whether you can continue making that payment when life doesn't go according to plan.
A job change.
A medical emergency.
A business slowdown.
An unexpected family expense.
Financial stability is tested during those moments, not when everything is going well.
After so many conversations around debt, one thing has become very clear to me:
The most dangerous debt isn't always the debt that looks expensive.
Sometimes, it's the debt that looks affordable enough to say yes to.
And perhaps that's where better financial awareness needs to begin.
Not by teaching people to fear credit. But by teaching them to look beyond the EMI.
Because a small monthly payment can still lead to a very big financial commitment.
