India High Net Worth Individuals and Children’s Parties

Three videographers and two still photographers documented the birthday party of Taisa Arora, shown here with her mother, Shivali, at a New Delhi hotel.

Recently I wrote about how there’s an immediate need for a Chuck E. Cheese or similar entertaining place for kids in India to address the lack of options for children. A week later I came across an article written by the Washington Post describing how birthday parties in India are the new weddings.

From the article; “Waiters in black tie waded through the crowd, serving endless silver trays of chicken tikka kebabs, grilled shrimp and samosas. Several DJs spun fast-tempo Punjabi pop that pulsated from refrigerator-size speakers. There were cocktails for the adults, and for the kids, cotton candy.”

The party the author is describing is one that is extravagant even for Western standards. The party was for a 2-year-old with 125 guests in attendance. Let’s ignore the fact that the party was for a 2-year-old child that will never remember the occasion (can you remember anything from 2 years-old?) but notice where the party was held. Hotels as children’s playgrounds do not work very well and are expensive to rent. I therefore again urge the entrepreneurs in India, this is a market that can make you a lot of money.

“The birthday party is the new wedding in India, and the sky is the limit,” said Rakesh Gupta, a party planner who has seen his business double in the past few years. “It's a serious industry now, and people want to spend lavishly and outdo each other. People in India don't like to save. They want to enjoy life and live for today after so many years of poverty and struggle.”

While the planner clearly has a biased view, most NRI’s returning to India understand that there are no real options in India for birthday parties or children’s entertainment besides that found in the home.

The author goes on; “When it comes to birthday parties, the change has been striking. Gone is the quiet birthday visit with grandparents to a Hindu temple and a simple box of Indian sweets. Now there's the frazzled party planner to hire, invitations with calligraphy to buy, elephant and camel rides to plan, a sports or cartoon theme to pick out, and a moon bounce to choose.”

While extremely premature to declare the birthday visit to temples are gone, it is a shift in culture which will only grow stronger as the economy matures. “If you have money in this country, anything is possible,” said Gupta, the party planner. “It's the best country in the world to be rich. But it's also the worst country in the world to be poor.”

Indians themselves are aware of the contrast but we must not look at India’s economic advancement as a fixed photograph in time. India must see the contrast as a moving picture with a happy ending for everyone. For if the India miracle continues, every Indian rich or poor will have the opportunity to increase their wealth.

Suggested Reading

• Editor Musings – New Service Tax, Chuck E Cheese India, and India Executive Optimism

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Article Attributes: Emily Wax | Washington Post