Monday, March 19, 2007

In the land of plenty, what's one lakh and twenty?

In the land of plenty, what's one lakh and twenty?


The other day I went to this fabulously expensive brand store at a five star hotel in New Delhi.
There I saw this dress (a Christian Dior). As you can see it is a simple yet elegant evening dress which would look good on any girl who has the figure and height to wear it.

Just out of curiosity I asked the price of the dress. The salesperson told me that the price was one lakh and twenty thousand rupees! (Rs. 1,20,000 or £1400 or $2700).

This simple fact really stunned me.

I wonder in which other country in the world such a duality exists? Where on one hand people can afford such dresses (which probably won't be worn more than one or twice before they go out of fashion) and on the other hand farmers are committing suicide because they are in debt by a few thousand rupees.

This also highlights the growth of the new middle and upper-middle class in India. There is money in the market and the consumer is now not shy of spending money on luxury items. No wonder most of the fashion labels can't wait to sink their teeth into the Indian markets!

India has indeed become a land of plenty, but only for those who can afford it.





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