Capital

It was three years ago in November 2022 that I last wrote about my financial situation.

That post ended with my bank balance at around 11 lakhs.

I left Kinara capital in June 2023, and then I perhaps had around 20 lakhs if I put everything together.

From then, I was spending more money than I was making.

I was taking a honorarium from SOCHARA till March 2025. Between October 2024 and January 2025 I was also taking consultancy fees from DemTech, as part time head of engineering.

I have also been doing small-ish projects here and there, like JeevaRaksha courses, open data projects with Manoj/Sahya, web development projects, data engineering projects, etc fetching anywhere from 3,000 to 1,00,000.

So, now in August I have around 14 lakh in liquid cash (7.3 lakh in savings account, 6.5 lakh in fixed deposit). I also have perhaps a couple of lakhs that I’m due to get from house owner, etc. And about a lakh in share market (which has been red for months now).

Safety Nets

I think my parents back at home might have around 3-5 crores in assets, lands, fixed deposits, etc with their long government jobs as doctor and teacher.

My brother is earning well. He even gave me YouTube premium.

Swathi might have a couple of lakhs in her bank account, and her family might have some assets too.

Worst case plans

In case I want to make some more money for whatever reasons, there are some possible ways.

If the hiring market is good, I can possibly get into a engineering leadership position anywhere from 36 to 72 LPA.

If I put together a good resume I could probably also get into management positions in hospitals, I’m not sure how much that would pay. In any case, I’m extremely unlikely to pursue this.

Social Capital

I have a handful of very close friends. Their financial situation is similar or worse than mine.

Outside of this, my social network is mainly surviving activists and struggling friends.

I do have some elite connections, but I’m not used to using them, and I don’t know how to . I’m used to just giving giving giving, without asking for anything in return.

Through volunteering in free software communities and my engineering career, I know a few rich software engineers.

Through volunteering in groups like Bahutva Karnataka, I know a few NGO heads, lawyers, do-gooders, etc.

Through my doctor career, I know a few big doctors and entrepreneurs.

Can I get out of jail if they put UAPA on me? Probably not. But can I get out of other tricky situations with my friendships? Probably yes.

The Point

This post probably will evoke very strong emotions inside a lot of people. These are perhaps going to be for different reasons. Some will be like “Oh, Akshay is filthy rich and that’s why A can act/live the way A does”. Some will be like “Oh, Akshay has so much money, yet A doesn’t do any shit for society”. Possibly some will be like “Oh, I have as much money as Akshay, but I do much more (or less or the same)”. And some others will even be like “Oh, Akshay is trying to claim moral high ground by writing about this” (That’s okay).

Basically, I want to enable a comparison exercise. Yes, the dreaded thing that Instagram tells our parents shouldn’t have been doing with their neighbors. I think comparison is actually fine. I want to enable transparency in this crucial detail about my (our) lives such that everyone is able to compare themselves and their situations with mine (others). We should all be thinking about how much capital we have and how we are using it, and how much capital others have and how they are using it. We should then share our notes with each other and help each other do better with whatever resources they have.

If you do document your wealth, please share with me.