Senior living is a very interesting space in India, split between extremes, one in which elders do not have enough money and are forced to live in a dilapidated place to spend their days in crumbling buildings, where walls carry the stains of neglect, meals are ladled out without love, and seniors are crammed into a small space like chickens in the cage. It feels less like living, more like waiting.
And on the other side the pendulum swings to glitter. Glossy brochures, polished marble lobbies, and marketing lines that sparkle with promises, fancy projects showing as if you don’t buy the senior living project probably you won’t be able to age well or live your golden years, rediscover passion and a lot more such enticing lines, Evergreen and ever social, feels like a grand post-retirement story. The words are attracting, but the shine feels too perfect, too curated, like a stage set built to impress but not to last.
Just the other day, I was talking to Abhay Patil, a fellow about to be retired just like me, we were sitting in a café having a chit chat about our life post-retirement, how are we going to plan our retirement, Patil’s brow was furrowed as he spoke, his voice tinged with frustration.
“the so-called senior living prices starts from 85 lacs, and you need another 1 Cr in your account for any contingency, Afterall you just can’t sell a flat when you need money. This makes the entry barrier as high as 2Cr minimum, now having that kind of money is crazy Who is actually buying these?
In all this glamour and glitter, something is lost, something that’s the very essence to the happiness of seniors, community. At times I wonder if there is a place that considers us the seniors more than just a source of revenue, something that’s trying to make life’s better.
What if we could have a unique senior living offering, that really focuses on the needs of seniors:-
Something which is available on rental, so that more seniors can enjoy life instead of current entry barrier of 2Cr for enjoying the senior living lifestyle, a project that may charge 50 – 60K a month for the couple all-inclusive so that we don’t have to worry about house maintenance, food, laundry etc etc. Pure Bliss.
I don’t understand the rationale behind a centralized club house no matter how grand that is, will a senior be willing to walk half an acre or an acre every single time to get to a club house, well the answer is a big fat no, these senior living developers still prioritize a centralized club house which largely remains underutilized, what if along with a centralized club house there are extended club house on each floor so that residents could chit chat, with other neighbors on their floor this will encourage better social interaction.
Why can’t senior living be more carefree, like the good old college days, fresh fun parties, beer with friends the ones you truly feel are close to you, a place that amplifies my social life, star gaze at 2 am in the night with friends. Some other day beer party with live barbeque while enjoying the fresh breeze of air, now that’s what I call a fiver star retirement.
A large balcony that’s more like a getaway to nature, you can sit there and enjoy lovely breeze of air, which playing chess with better half, she also does not need to care about household chores, just socialize and explore the unexplored, be it painting, singing, Gardening or may be try hands on a new podcast series, well why not.
I wish a senior living like this existed, that not only said they are unique but were actually unique beyond just their marketing collateral but on ground.
Our intense discussion got instructed by Jagdish Kadam, another friend of ours same age group same problem, he joined we ordered coffee and he asked what were you discussing, we casually told him about us building castles in the air, how we let horses in our head run loose. Kadam looked at us and chuckled, we were like what happened.
Kadam spoke while regaining his calm, well he took a sigh and begin to speak, “You guys won’t believe what happened yesterday, I got a call from some company named Cradle, and God knows how, they described the facility exactly how Patil is talking about, To be very honest I don’t really believe all that, probably it’s some new marketing agenda or gimmick to make people fall for it. But the way their executive explained it… for a moment, I actually got carried away”.
We were sure that it’s nothing but a coincidence, Like if something like this really exists, that’ll be a game changer in the senior living industry, Things we imagine, things we picture coming to life, What else could be better, I was tanged up with my thoughts, thinking about the possibilities of this facility actually existing, When Patil’s excitement bought me back to the coffee table,
“Let’s go for a visit” Patil said, his eyes gleamed with boyish excitement. I wanted to caution him, to remind him of disappointment, but before I could, Kadam leaned forward with the same eagerness and agreed to his suggestion, I looked at both of them two grown men glowing like children and couldn’t gather the courage to refuse.
As a result, the three of us decided that we’ll be visiting the facility this Saturday.
Three days later…
“Hello! Patil where are you? we’ve been waiting for the past 15 minutes!, hurry or we’ll be late True to form, Patil was late. He was always late, whether for road trips, family dinners, or important meetings. Thirty minutes passed before his car finally rolled up. He stepped out with that same carefree grin, adjusting his watch as though time bent to him.
“You are late again” I said with an annoyed look on my Face, he didn’t reply instead gave me a laugh, climbed into the back seat of the car and asked me to hurry or we’ll be late. I wanted to stay annoyed, but his infectious laugh melted it away. That was Patil irritating and irresistible in equal measure.
The drive stretched for two hours, our car filled with nervous chatter and bursts of laughter. None of us said it aloud, but hope hummed quietly in the air.
And then, there it was.
Cradle of Life.
A community that we didn’t even know would actually exist, we stood there admiring the beauty of the place, The air felt lighter, scented with jasmine from the hedges. Greenery rolled in every direction, soft hills cupping the horizon. Not a single honking car intruded, only the song of bird’s overhead. For a moment, we stood rooted, drinking it all in, the beauty of this place which for us was sure a heaven on earth for seniors.
“There you are!” A warm voice broke our trance. A manager walked toward us with the most welcoming smile, and gave us a tour of the whole facility, Room after room, path after path, the place unfolded like pages of the very book we had written in our imagination, we were actually mesmerized by what we were witnessing, The world of our imagination, something that we dreamt of was actually in front of us, alive, breathing, taking shape, and that’s when something hit me, Senior Living in India has actually came far from what we think, there are communities and developers who’re actually changing, redefining the essence of senior living, and Cradle of life at this point of time is surely leading the path.