A Gurugram-based finance influencer has triggered a heated online debate after claiming that a retirement corpus of Rs 5 crore is insufficient to live comfortably in India. The remark has reignited wider discussions around lifestyle inflation, financial planning, and what it truly means to “retire well” in today’s economy.
Sumit Behal sparked the controversy with a blunt post on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), stating: “You cannot retire on 5 Crore in India.” The post quickly went viral, garnering over two lakh views and a flood of reactions within 24 hours.
Notably, Behal did not clarify whether the Rs 5 crore figure referred to liquid investments, total net worth, or a retirement fund excluding assets such as property—an omission that became a key point of criticism among users.
Lifestyle, assets and assumptions under scrutiny
Many users pushed back against the claim, arguing that retirement needs vary widely depending on personal circumstances such as housing ownership, family size, city of residence, and spending habits.
“If one has own house and 2 kids or less, 5 cr is more than enough if asset allocation is proper or bucket strategy is followed. If one does not have their own house and wants to buy one, it is a different story…” one X user posted.
Financial planners and individual investors echoed similar sentiments, stressing that retirement planning cannot be reduced to a single headline number. Several users pointed out that someone living outside metro cities, with controlled expenses and diversified investments, could comfortably retire with a far smaller corpus.
Accusations and online backlash
As the debate intensified, a section of users accused the influencer of making an intentionally provocative statement to drive engagement rather than offer nuanced financial advice.
Many were of the opinion that Rs 5 crore is more than enough to retire comfortably, and accused the finance influencer of posting ‘ragebait’ to farm engagement.
“You cannot retire on Rs 5 crore” — said every doom-monger who forgets some people live below metro extravagance,” a person said.
Others questioned the lack of context behind the claim, calling it overly simplistic and detached from reality.
“That certainly depends on the city you live in and how luxurious you want to live.
For tier 2/3 cities, that’s actually good enough to afford mid luxury, assuming you will still be investing the amounts and not just have all the money in a savings account doing nothing except 5% returns from the bank”
Another user says ‘There is no need to retire. You should do what you enjoy doing and do it till you die.”
(Disclaimer: The content in this article is based on a viral social media discussion and is intended for informational and entertainment purposes only. The financial figures and strategies mentioned are personal to the user and have not been independently verified. )
