Less shopping, no spa visits: How Delhi learnt to live on shoestring budget

NEW DELHI: Pooja Wadhwa had a few thousand rupees in cash when she heard the news about the recall of highvalue banknotes. The homemaker knew the money will be enough only for the next few days. But she could not muster the courage to stand in the never-ending queues that formed at ATMs and banks from the next day. “So I thought, I would try and make do with the little cash I had at home.”

Wadhwa, who always believed in cash-only transactions, set herself a money challenge -- try and live with the `4000 half of which was spent in two days on buying fruits, vegetables, milk and other essentials.

And as the going got tough, a friend suggested jokingly she should watch Living Without Money, a globally-acclaimed documentary about a German woman who lived for 21 years without money till her death this year.

The documentary changed Wadhwa’s worldview. Others have found their own ways of dealing with the peculiar situation. For many Delhiites, the cash crunch has been a lifealtering experience, changing their way of living and thinking.

“I found the movie inspiring. I learnt that you always need much less money and materialistic possessions than you think to lead a happy life. I have drastically cut down on my shopping, eating out, and I am not missing anything,” says Wadhwa.

Mina Tiwari, another homemaker, downloaded home-budget apps such as Good Budget, Mint, Wally, Fudget etc., for managing her home budget efficiently. “Being cashless forced me to tighten my budget. But instead of putting it all down on paper, I downloaded a couple of apps that help me handle my money better,” she says.

Then there are others who discovered that the best way to save money is not to spend it at all. Neetu Gupta, a teacher, came up with what she calls “no spending day”. She even cut down on the pocket money for her daughters. “I realised they were spending a lot of money not because they needed it, but because they had it.”

While some started using public transport, many others have stopped their weekly visit to the spa and salon.

As Niharika, the wife of a content writer, explains: “I am looking pretty fine without all of that.”

Life without cash, after all, has its own beauty.