Monali Dambre, an IIT Bombay graduate and founding team member at Agno, has sparked an important conversation about India's surging cost of living. Sharing her concerns on X (formerly Twitter), the Bengaluru-based professional expressed alarm over rising grocery prices, even in tier-3 cities.

Monali noted that despite living in a relatively well-paying tech hub, her bills for basic essentials- fruits, vegetables, and staples have become “unusually high.” Her post triggered widespread debate, with many agreeing that both offline and online grocery shopping now carry similarly steep prices. Commenters highlighted factors such as rising energy costs, increased production expenses, heavy taxation, and a depreciating rupee as contributors to inflation.

Monali's observations underscore a growing fear: how will India's middle and lower classes sustain themselves as essential goods become increasingly unaffordable? As discussions intensify, the larger question looms- is India headed towards a deeper cost-of-living crisis that affects every stratum of society?