On January 1, Rahul paid ₹18,000 for a yearly gym membership. The offer said it was a bargain, which in Rahul’s experience meant he would use it for twelve days and admire it for the other three hundred and fifty-three.
He went to the gym every morning for the first week. By the second week he went on alternate days. By March the trainer, Deepak, had started sending him messages that began with “Sir, everything okay?” and ended with a muscle emoji.
In June, Rahul did the maths. He had visited nineteen times. Each visit had cost him nearly ₹950, which was more than a very good thali and a very long walk combined.
He called his friend Anita, who had paid monthly all year. She had spent ₹6,000 in total and visited more often, simply because there was nothing to waste. “If you can’t cancel it,” she said, “you’ll never feel bad about skipping it. Monthly is motivation with an exit door.”
Rahul switched to monthly plans and a morning walk, which cost nothing and never sent messages. Deepak still sends him one every Monday: “Sir, ready for the comeback?” Rahul replies with a thumbs-up and a promise.