‘Need ₹40 crore to retire in India?’ Founder’s claim leaves many questioning reality

On May 2, 2026, a podcast conversation between wealth management expert Sandeep Jethwani, co-founder of investment firm Dezerv, and journalist Sonia Shenoy went viral across India. Shenoy, nearly 40, spending roughly ₹2 lakh a month in a metro city, asked a simple question: how much would she need to retire comfortably at 60? Jethwani's answer was immediate,  ₹40 crore. The number landed like a punch. It spread across LinkedIn, Twitter, and WhatsApp groups within hours, not because people found it inspiring, but because for the vast majority of working Indians, it felt like being told the finish line was on another planet.

The Number That Broke the Internet and a Lot of Spirits

Jethwani's calculation is built around a specific scenario: someone currently spending ₹2 lakh per month in a metro city, aged 40, planning to retire at 60. His estimate excludes a primary residence and personal assets like cars, but covers all future living expenses.

The math, when you walk through it, is not pulled from thin air.

While official inflation hovers around 5–6%, urban households often experience closer to 9% inflation, driven by private healthcare, domestic help, premium travel, and education. When this 9% inflation is compounded over 20 years, a monthly expense of ₹2 lakh today rises to approximately ₹11.2 lakh per month by age 60, roughly ₹1.34 crore per year just to maintain the same standard of living.

That is not Jethwani being dramatic. That is what compounding inflation does, quietly, over two decades.

But here is what the podcast did not say out loud and what millions of people silently thought the moment they heard ₹40 crore:

I will never get there.

What Most Indians Actually Earn

According to a 2026 report by Salary Explorer, the average salary in India is ₹32,000 per month, roughly ₹3.84 lakh per year.

The median salary, which gives a more honest picture of what a typical person earns, is estimated at around ₹5–6 lakh per year. The most common monthly salary range in India sits between ₹20,000 and ₹30,000, particularly among early-career and entry-level workers.

Put those two numbers next to each other. ₹40 crore. ₹32,000 a month.

To be in the top 10% of individual income earners in India in 2026, you need to earn approximately ₹55,000 to ₹70,000 per month. In a city like Mumbai or Bengaluru, that feels average. In Patna or Bhopal, it is genuinely exceptional.

The person Jethwani was talking about, someone spending ₹2 lakh a month, is already in a rarefied group. Most people listening to that conversation, sharing it, stressing about it, do not spend ₹2 lakh a month. But they heard ₹40 crore and felt it anyway. Because the anxiety it triggered was not about the specific number. It was about something deeper: the creeping fear that no matter how hard you work, it will never be enough.

The Gap Between the Advice and the Reality

Every few months, a number like this surfaces. A financial expert, usually from the world of wealth management, explains what you will need to retire with dignity. The figure is always large. The math is always sound. And the people sharing it are almost always talking to a sliver of India's population while the rest of the country overhears and quietly panics.

Studies indicate that many Indians, particularly in urban areas, believe a corpus of ₹1–3 crore is sufficient for retirement. The industry norm known as the "30x annual expense rule" suggests a corpus of around ₹2.7 crore for someone with ₹9 lakh in annual expenses. HSBC's Affluent Investors Snapshot 2025 estimates ₹3.5 crore for a secure retirement.

None of those numbers are ₹40 crore. And yet, the moment ₹40 crore entered the conversation, it became the benchmark in people's heads, the new goalpost, whether it applied to their life or not.

Public discussion can create unrealistic expectations or anxiety when not tailored to different income levels and lifestyles. A target figure might be essential for one lifestyle but far too high for another, which is why generalised retirement planning so often fails.

The Silent Weight of Financial Anxiety

It’s More Than Just Worry About Money

That quiet dread many people feel isn’t laziness or lack of awareness. It is financial anxiety, one of the most widespread yet rarely discussed forms of stress today. It builds slowly, often going unnoticed until it starts affecting daily life.

Growing Uncertainty About the Future

Recent findings show that retirement-related anxiety is rising across India. Concerns around elderly care costs, financial independence, and lack of proper planning are becoming more common. This uncertainty makes the future feel unstable and hard to prepare for.

The Impact Spreads Into Everyday Life

Financial stress doesn’t stay limited to bank accounts, it affects sleep, relationships, and overall well-being. Constant worry can make even small decisions feel overwhelming. Over time, this pressure begins to shape how people live and interact.

Extreme Reactions Become Coping Mechanisms

Some people respond by cutting out every small joy in an attempt to save more. Others swing in the opposite direction, spending freely because the goal feels impossible. Both reactions come from the same place of feeling stuck and helpless.

When Effort Starts to Feel Pointless

Being told that your hard work still falls far short can feel deeply discouraging. Instead of motivating, it creates a sense that the system is unfair from the start. That feeling can drain hope and make long-term goals seem out of reach.

What Actually Matters for Most People

The ₹40 Crore Figure Needs Context

The headline number sounds overwhelming, but it doesn’t tell the full story. It reflects future value, not what you need to start with today. Without that context, it can create unnecessary panic.

Compounding Changes the Perspective

When adjusted for time and growth, ₹40 crore decades later is roughly ₹4–5 crore today. This shift makes the goal feel more realistic and grounded. It turns an intimidating number into something more approachable.

The Real Message Is About Consistency

The takeaway isn’t the final amount, it’s the process of getting there. Starting early and investing regularly matters far more than chasing a big number. Small, consistent actions over time create meaningful results.

A Practical Retirement Target

For many middle-class Indians, a retirement corpus of ₹2–2.5 crore can support basic monthly needs. This is still a significant goal, but far more achievable than it initially seems. It creates a clearer and more realistic benchmark.

A Solvable, Not Hopeless, Problem

Framing the issue correctly makes a big difference in how people respond. Instead of feeling defeated, individuals can focus on gradual progress. With the right approach, retirement planning becomes manageable rather than overwhelming.

What You Can Actually Do, Starting Where You Are

Stop Comparing Your Chapter One to Someone Else's Chapter Twenty

The ₹40 crore conversation was aimed at affluent Indians already spending ₹2 lakh a month. If that is not your life, that number is not your problem. The worst thing the viral moment did was make millions of people measure themselves against a benchmark that was never meant for them.

The Single Most Powerful Thing: Start. Now. Small.

Someone who contributed to EPF throughout their career at a salary of ₹50,000 per month since age 25 will have roughly ₹65 to ₹80 lakh in their EPF account by age 55. That corpus, while meaningful, will be exhausted in about 11 years if used to sustain ₹50,000 per month in retirement, which is why the NPS remains one of the most under-utilised financial tools in India.

Supplementing EPF with even a small NPS contribution, consistently maintained over decades, changes the outcome dramatically. The habit matters more than the amount, especially in the early years.

Give Your Financial Anxiety a Name, Then a Plan

The stress people felt reading that ₹40 crore number is valid. But free-floating financial dread, without any action attached to it, is just suffering. The antidote is not to pretend the number does not matter, it is to build a personal plan around your actual income, your actual expenses, and your actual timeline.

A number that terrifies you in the abstract becomes manageable the moment you put it through the lens of your own life. Your retirement is not a podcast case study. It is your specific income, your specific family, your specific city. Start there.

The Real Crisis Is Not the Number

India is in the middle of a quiet retirement crisis. Not because people are not working hard enough or earning enough. But because for decades, the conversation about money, about saving, investing, planning, was either absent or reserved for the wealthy.

The people who most need this information are the ones least likely to be listening to a wealth management podcast. They are working two jobs, supporting parents, paying school fees, and hoping there is something left at the end of the month.

For them, ₹40 crore is not a target. It is a reminder of how far the system is from serving them.

That is the conversation India actually needs to have.