Economic and Political Weekly | January 13, 2025
Luxury consumption, so far seen as a problem of the global North, is now growing dramatically in India. We explore its complex dynamics, including definitions, drivers, impacts and responses. Luxury consumption has both material and symbolic value and is driven by various aspirations, amplified by social media. Environmental consequences include heightened carbon emissions, water depletion, air pollution, and biodiversity loss. The psychological toll includes materialistic dissatisfaction and cognitive dissonance, challenging the narrative of material wealth as a pathway to human flourishing. We call for a new definition of the “good life,” integrating eudaemonic well-being and sustainability into societal frameworks. Cultural movements and structural interventions such as luxury taxes are necessary responses to address this phenomenon. More research on luxury consumption adopting a mixed-method approach is essential to understand it better.
