They will have to work 10 times as hard as a person who would be more privileged than them.

Hey bosses, this is Paridhi from Asian Boss.

What we don't often hear in the mainstream media is the growing wealth gaps that are destroying the middle class all around the world.

This is especially true for India which has the 3rd largest number of billionaires in the world after US and China.

But did you know that the richest 1% of Indians own 40% of wealth in India?

So how do ordinary Indians feel about the wealth gap and the top 1%?

And what do they think is the reason behind this growing trend?

Let's hit the streets of Delhi to get some local insight.

Today we just wanted to know how much does average Indian people make per month?

So if you're comfortable, can we know how much you make per month or per year in INR?

Around 25,000 per month, minimum.

And then multiply by 12, whatever it is.

Around 7-8 lakh INR per year.

Actually I'm a business developer at a crypto project.

Plus I'm a YouTuber and I'm an overseas counsellor.

Per year I earn around 11. 11 lakhs per annum.

Mine would be around 7.5.

So that's a very personal question but I would say somewhere around 10-12 lakhs per annum.

I'm actually working in an overseas industry where we actually help students to study abroad.

So we help in their application process, we help in their visas.

I don't often make money because I'm a student.

But whatever internships I've done till now have earned me around 6-7 thousand a month.

Around that range.

I'm a student so I don't make any money.

But my household income is over 20 lakhs per annum.

The average monthly salary would be lower.

I think my household income would be in the top 15-20%.

Around 2.5 lakhs.

And what do you do for a living?

I'm a doctor.

Eye surgeon.

Would you say whatever you make is considered the average monthly salary in India?

No.

This is for the elite 5% of the Indians.

And then what amount would you say is considered average?

I think 3 lakhs per year would be an average.

Might be even lesser than that.

An average salary is around 25,000 currently running.

Because I've been interviewing a lot of candidates in my sector.

So would you say it is enough to get by or are you still struggling?

Actually I'm a more investment centric person.

So I think it's not enough to buy me a property or buy me a car.

For a living I'm making enough.

There are people who are even surviving at 10,000 per month.

Which results in a package of 1.2 lakhs per annum.

So if you're talking about the basic sustaining of the life like your food and very bare minimum necessities that could be taken care of in 10,000 even.

But if you want to go lavish or you try to explore the world then there is no limit to it.

India actually has the third highest number of billionaires in the world.

And from the outside world it might seem like everyone is relatively well off.

So how serious do you think the issue of wealth inequality is in India at the moment?

It's quite bad because a few people are hoarding wealth.

But most people are struggling to get by.

Poor people often get stuck in a vicious cycle of addiction also.

So there's a lot of things that affect income inequality and it's really bad in India.

There is a very large inequality of wealth.

Even as a student I do think I have certain privileges that a lot of people cannot afford because my parents are slightly well off.

I can own a good branded smartphone.

I can choose to do a lot of things that a lot of people on a daily basis cannot do in India.

A lot of people work for wages that are less than 100 rupees per day.

And there are people who are forced to do work that they would never otherwise do just to earn that one meal a day.

So yes, there is a large wealth inequality in India.

And when I heard that India has the third largest number of billionaires and then when I look around us then I do see that there is a stark difference between the people who are well off and the people who are not.

According to the recent report, the richest 1% of Indians own over 40% of the country's wealth.

So what's your reaction to that?

I am sad.

It's just sad.

I wish they gave some of their money to me.

No reaction.

I don't have anything.

What to say?

If I become a billionaire and the next morning I wake up and say that I am a billionaire it doesn't matter for me.

I am coming from a middle class family.

So what?

It's a by-product of capitalism.

I am not saying that I support other systems more but it's a flaw of capitalism that separates the workers from the means of production.

So the wealth naturally gets accumulated in the hands of a few people which are the capitalists.

So it's shocking and it shouldn't happen.

I did already know this statistic.

It actually increases quite a bit when you go to the top 10% of Indians.

They own around 60-70% of the country's wealth.

Just the top 10%.

And the remaining 90% are forced to live on around 20-30% of the country's wealth.

And that has been a statistic in India, I think, ever since its independence.

It is their luck.

They have been born in those families where they are already rich.

So for a rich person to take out more money is very easy for them.

The richer are getting more richer.

How do you think it is possible for someone to become that rich to be in the top 1%?

For example, there are a lot of self-made millionaires and billionaires in India or is it all generational family wealth?

See, I think almost 50% of them are generational.

And the start-up scenario has just begun in India now.

It wasn't there initially.

This is definitely not all generational family wealth.

There are people who have struggled and have worked really hard.

And sometimes things work out.

It takes a lot of hard work and planning just to get yourself to where some people are.

So I think that's definitely not all generational wealth.

Most people who are in the self-made billionaire category themselves have come from upper middle class backgrounds where they've been given access to the best education.

They've had access to the best facilities in a lot of different fields.

And because of this thing, there is their hard work and there is their dedication that has also been a role.

But even then, there has been a generational backing where they could afford good education.

They had a chance to do something.

Would it be possible in India for any young person from a poor background but with a big dream to climb up the social ladder and become super wealthy just based on his or her hard work and dedication?

I doubt it because again, the initial investment is important.

Plus it's also about luck.

How lucky you are and how opportunities present themselves.

See if a person is willing to study hard and work hard.

He can.

He or she can.

The thing is, this present generation, they want only shortcuts.

They are not willing to put in the hard work.

As far as I have my own opinion, you have to put in a lot of work and then the destiny will take its course and you will definitely go wherever you want to go.

And you have to have set goals.

I'm 28 years old and I see my cousins, like 20 years old and 19 years old, they are not into the jobs.

They want to do a startup and they want to hire someone who works for them.

And I've seen that.

One of my friends who is just 19 years old and he's earning a lot of money and he has adopted that culture.

So now a generation, the younger generation, they have that business mind, I think.

Gone are the days where people used to say, if you want to start your own business, you require 1 million or 2 million dollars or maybe at least 1 lakh rupees.

But nowadays you can even start your own YouTube channel or whatever you want by either investing your time or investing a spare amount of money, I would say.

And yes, that is actually possible.

It is possible, but all the factors are against them.

They will have to work 10 times as hard as a person who would be more privileged than them. 100 times more if someone has generational wealth backing them.

So yes, a person who wants to start a company today and comes from a lower economic background will find it very difficult to raise the capital to start the business.

But a person who is the son of a wealthy industrialist would be gifted that business.

So yes, I do think it is possible, but it is very difficult.

So, do you have any personal stories you can share that might highlight the gap between how rich and the poor live?

Do you get such direct contrast in the lifestyle in your everyday life?

Absolutely, so my house help actually has a daughter who is of my age and her lifestyle and my lifestyle would be very different.

I might be able to talk like this, but she could hardly read.

What I do right now and what she does right now is also one of the examples for the same.

It's kind of sad that we have to see that on a daily basis, but it is how it is.

See, I have seen people digging for food inside the dustbin and I have seen people even in the restaurants here and everywhere just leaving the food and sort of, I don't like that.

You should eat that much food which is sufficient for you.

You shouldn't waste the food.

In early 70s, when the green revolution has not taken place properly, people died due to hunger.

So, we should think about that, we should not waste food.

In general, how are these super wealthy 1% perceived by the broader population?

For example, do you envy them or does it motivate you to somewhere where they are or does it not bother you at all?

I don't bother it.

You don't really know that what person who was there, how they have, how he or she has reached over there.

What is the behind of the story, you don't know it.

I am happy with life, what I am.

I don't expect much, what I am, I am happy with that.

Just be happy, whatever you are holding on.

You might be holding much more than me or you might be holding less than me, but you should be happy.

I do not envy people, I look up to them.

I try to learn from their stories and see that what vision do they have in their mind for wealth.

I would say that taking inspiration from anyone is okay, but most of us really don't matter that much.

So, I think that majority of Indian population can take aspiration, inspiration from the greats or the wealthy people.

But we have to plan out our own journey, so our focus is on that.

Have you often seen rich people showing off their wealth or treating other people badly?

I think yes, I think yes.

There are quite a lot of couple of names, but I won't name them.

But yes, there are.

It's just because they can't handle the money they have or can't handle the wealth they have and they think they have become the God and they started dominating even the middle rich and the superior caste.

I did have a friend who was extremely rich and his way of talking, he was always offering things to which some people found little derogatory, but that was just his way of living.

So, I don't think they typically are bad.

Showing off their wealth is a thing that happens a lot, like lavish weddings that nobody really needs and calling celebrities on your functions as a status symbol.

Now, that's subjective.

Obviously, someone wants to do what they can, but it can be seen as showing off your wealth because, again, the purpose is to further your status into society.

The old rich will never disrespect any person, what I have seen.

The new rich, they are flaunting their wealth.

They think following moral values is a sign of backwardness, which I don't think is right.

Have you faced any of this in real life, where you have seen a rich person flaunting or treating somebody bad?

Definitely.

Some of my new rich friends, they treat the waiters very badly in the restaurant and I don't like that.

That person is also earning an honest living and he should be respected for his work.

Any day given, I would not like my son to be a rich person, I would like him to be a generous person and a compassionate person.

I think a person who is self-made millionaire or billionaire, I have not seen a single of them who is not humble.

Who likes to show off, because they don't have to show off.

If I am not rich, then I have to show my car, I have to show my wallets, I have to show this, this, this.

But rich person say, just search me on Google, you will get to know how much net worth I am.

Actually, they hide their wealth because of taxes.

Because if they expose their wealth and how much they earn, so they have to pay more taxes.

That is why the term is called black money in India.

Rich people like to hide their wealth.

Based on what you know, what do you think are the main factors contributing to such wide wealth inequality in India?

Is there something particularly about Indian society that allows for this?

Income inequality, we have a large span of population.

So, per capita GDP is much lower and the resources we have is limited.

In US, if you consider, there are short span of population and there are large amount of resources and the money they are making.

So, that's why I think it is because of population.