Increasing popularity of Malls, its impact and changing trends on lifestyle in India.

No wonder to call India in itself a huge continent engulfed with people from all over and round the globe. With the increasing popularity and demand from the western community with the traditional fervour, educational hub as well as on other grounds, India has been one of the best hubs for making a living in this country. Though being surrounded by the ghost of global issues like corruption, politics, recessed economy, depleting currency rates etc, it has still been number one tourist hot spot in recent years. Apart from all these stuffs, India has recorded the best infrastructure in the world on a recent global summit and being voted one amongst top 30 nations globally for the Infra. Isn't it the silver lining or the icing on the cake? Yes, it truly is.

             With the advent of changing technology as well as the trendy lifestyle, Indian dress code and lifestyle have also undergone a dramatic face off in the years down the lane. More and more western community are adopting our dress code, and we are drifting towards theirs. Definitely its not a bad paradigm shift happening. However needless to point out that we have in our own drifted completely from our dress code and adopted western dress code sense in completely. For ex: The usual cotton cloth, khadi dress code, ethnic wear have been replaced with a slim fit, tight fit denim or jeans materials with T-shirts. This is just a glimpse of how the lifestyle pattern has changed. Now its like fast getting fastest and in same manner trendy getting trendiest looks. Can anyone realise and think of the root cause of such drastic changes being bought in our lifestyle?? Well its right in front of our imagination. Yes, its nothing but the tallest buildings or the sky scrappers termed more as "Malls" in the recent times. No wonder and why not? They are boon to a wide variety of people right from consumers, traders, manufacturers, avid shopping community, traders, business owners, avid cinema lovers etc. According to a nationwide survey as quoted by a popular aesthetic magazine and newspaper daily, its being termed that India has the best, safest, widest and largest chain of malls throughout the country next only to that of the three most superpowers US, China, Japan. Can we believe it? No I can't. But its the fact. There are almost 500-600 malls in India and every year a new mall arises in even smallest and unknown place/hamlet in India. This is simply unbelievable and amazing stuff. At one side our government keeps increasing rates of common usable commodities used for sustaining life in the wake of diminishing currency value as against USD, whereas on the other hand it funds organizations, institutions like Raheja's, Plymouth, Phoenix City, Fab city, and many such land developers and builders for getting sites on subsidised rates where they build malls and expand their businesses. Amidst all major and good developments what's remain unchanged in a developing economy like ours is that of "Richer getting richer and poorer becoming poorer".

Let us now have a look into the good and bad aspects of Mall culture in a country like India and its impact.

Pros/positive aspects of Mall culture:

1. Increased purchasing power means change in the buying habits:Well it's not new that with the average income of public getting higher, people are now leading a much affordable, flexible and convenient mode of life. They can come to a mall and shop in bulk, enjoy quality time with family, near and dear ones etc.
2. Wider, greater, flexibility, affordable, competitive reach to world class amenities and products from a wide brand of quality products:As it suggests that today the world has changed zillion folds and we do have lot of goods to be purchased as per our preference. So Malls are the best and convenient hideouts with our family, friends as we can shop at our will and at best affordable deals.
3. A good way of relaxation and enjoyment with old friends and near and dear ones: Malls are the best place to chill-pill or go on a hangout with. Also most of the malls apart from acting as one stop shop for all basic and other products, are also home to latest entertainment.stuff like Multiplexes cinema theatres-an instant hit amongst avid cine lovers, pubs, discotheques, bowling arena and a host of other entertainment, entertainment, and more entertainment stuffs wherein one can drool into a host of  activities.
4. A good and avid source of business, profit making and also a source to get employed for catering the needs of huge worldwide brands:Needless to point out this statement which is self explanatory. No one can deny that first thing we enter a Mall is to do a general tout of shopping apart from spending time with our friends, or any one else or even sometimes all alone! So whom does we meet there first? A shop sales agent or cashier or a hoard of people working tirelessly everyday, even on Sunday. 
5. Huge oppurtunity for getting employed and growth: Our readers or everyone, lets spare a word of thought to these people making us get perfect smiles every time one walks in and out of a store in a Mall near by your area or in your city. So there's a huge number of people who avail employment as well as businessman and traders setting up their franchisee who themselves get connected with major global brands. Isn't it just amazing? But have anyone spared thought of Malls being the leading source of employability. Well it definitely is. One would be shell shocked if I reveal facts published in a daily that Malls across India employ 90 % of the talent pool from various fields. Still not believing. Well jokes apart, but its a reality.
6. Benefit to Government-Centre as well as state and overall to the country:Till this point we have seen how malls are epicentre to personal, trading or business front. Moving on to the feather in its cap, Malls provide a great epicentre for establishment of various businesses, inter state/region or even global money and other transactional transfers. Apart from it central, state governments also tax these malls to get revenues and which bolsters the country's economic condition.

Cons/negative aspects of Mall culture:

Well this aspect need no introduction as we have already seen the issues and impact of the negative aspects of Mall culture in earlier paras. However just a jist apart from the usual dialogue so far, here are certain ky negative aspects and their impacts.

1. Leads to bulk purchase behaviour thereby diminishing the value of saving aspect:India and its womanhood were always in pretext of saving a lot to tackle future issues. However thanks to a changing lifestyle and advent of Malls and other business cum entertainment establishments, this practice has now been diminished in totality. This in turn has lead to hoard of issues like bulk purchase of commodities for more than a month, unwanted buying behaviour, no saving aspect being present in Indian household etc.
2. Diminishing of personal values, in-house time or creative time, play around time with friends etc: Many would not agree with my aspects or my way of thought. But its a ground reality which no one can escape that with constant changing lifestyle has also paved way for increased tensions and household issues. Thanks when its era marked with electronic gadgets like TV aptly known as Idiot box, PSP, PS3"s etc, leading to a mechanical life sans creativity, playful young minds, malls have also slowly casting their shadow as young generation who used to love playing and other creative stuffs in their past time are just fading way to a mall nearby to shop their needs and waste time. Also add to it many people, housewives, kids, younger gen next don't like home food and love mall or eateries outside food which is really causing issues like obesity, diabetes, food cancer, bile cancer and a hoard of ailments.
3. Elimination of small petty shops, small size traders, small buying habits etc: Aren't we all aware that once upon a time, our needs, wants, desires, perception of market used to be small daily usual chores and purchases, which is no longer there. Thanks to the advent of Malls nearby, we never-ever see our old petty or shop where we used to buy from as they are virtually eliminated and with them their entire set of people or those who survived are in lead to getting extinct.So in all what's the impact?? Well nothing much in terms of revenue which in fact has increased for governments, but the personal bonding of associating with a small shop which had all the answer to our daily needs is no longer their and is slowly but steadily diminishing. With that bulk preference, needs, desire, lust have taken away the saving mentality from Indian households.
4. Diminished Landscapes, flora, fauna, animal habitats means deluge of events like massive landslides, earthquakes, floods, droughts and a hoard of national crisis: Ever imagined astrologers and other set of people making public announcements, blogs in the internet predicting end of this era?? Isn't it coming true with hoard of events? Yes, it is. The epicentre being destruction of the vast beautiful landscapes enriched with natural flora and fauna, animal habitats being endangered for what? Just human beings need and greed? But we have forgot that if we rule the food chain or life cycle we also would be punished for all our wrong doings and that's exactly happening. With increased greed, lust and power to conquer everything we once possessed our landscapes have taken form of big huge buildings, sky-scrappers and phenomena called Malls. But what has it been created for? Just en-mass of deluge of destruction right in form of landslides like that of beautiful and unimaginable valley full of flora and fauna of Uttarakhand in India, to earthquakes that lashed the beautiful desert of Rann of kutch in Gujarat, and not to forget flurry of floods in our business capital Mumbai, India's capital Delhi and various other states and even floods like Katrina etc which rocked United States of America in recent times.   

Though I can go on and on and on regard the negative aspects about the Malls and their impact. However just limiting to 4 main and key points. No wonder that our life has got entangled and centred round Malls and its no doubt they are necessary. But are they so much important that we invite nature's own fury and also our very way of getting extinct.
                                 So my query to even myself and general public is "Are Malls really the epitome or symbol of our country's economic progress?" or that it is an "Epitome/symbol of once changing attitude/lifestyle/purchasing power etc also thereby bringing the selfishness,greed, lust and never caring attitude towards destitute and poor. This never used to be our way of thinking till the advent of 21st century when men and every other thing were replaced by machines.

This is time to keep all our think-tank running and have a serious go on how much malls need to be build up and if Government are providing lands and other sites for build up, why not for constructive purposes like building a school, district college or educational institutions, banks etc, instead of already mushroomed phenomena called Malls.

So think before its too late.................. and that's why the tag line............ "Better__________ than_________" or else our humanity would completely get wiped out just like the natural flora, fauna, animals.