career optional now?

Why this poll?

Last week, my cousin Arjun quit his ₹18 lakh consulting job.

Not for another job. Not for higher studies. Not even to start a "proper" business.

He's freelancing full-time now.

My uncle called me, panicking. "Talk some sense into him. He's throwing away a stable career."

When I asked Arjun why, his response was simple: "Papa doesn't understand. The math has changed."

He pulled out his phone and showed me his freelance income from the last three months: ₹16.2 lakhs.

That's more than his annual take-home from the "stable" job.

My uncle didn't get it. Most Indians don't. Why?

India currently has 7.7 million gig workers. By 2030, just five years away, that number will hit 23.5 million, according to a NITI Aayog report.

That's a 205% jump. In five years.

One in every 25 working Indians will be a gig worker by 2030.

Maybe you'll be one of them.

And it's not just delivery riders and Uber drivers anymore.

The gig economy is splitting into two extremes: low-skilled work and high-skilled consulting.

The middle is vanishing.

Software developers, designers, writers, marketers, and finance consultants they're all going freelance.

And most Indians have no idea this is happening.

After Arjun's decision, I started digging.

What I found changed how I see the future of work in India.

India is now the world's second-largest freelance market, with approximately 15 million freelancers. We're growing at 46% annually, faster than almost any other country.

For context, the U.S. has 72.9 million freelancers out of a workforce of 165 million. That's 46% of their entire workforce freelancing at least part-time.

India?

We're just getting started. And the growth is accelerating.

But you know what nobody's preparing for? It's going to fundamentally restructure the way India works.

After that call with my uncle, I sat down with Arjun to understand his decision.

His breakdown was brutal.

He's making 3.6x more. Working from wherever he wants. Choosing his clients.

"But what about job security?" I asked.

He laughed. "What security? My friends get laid off during 'restructuring.' At least I control my income. I have eight clients. If I lose one, I still have seven."

That line stayed with me.

What about on a larger scale?

I kept thinking about what Arjun said. Is traditional employment actually secure?

The data suggests otherwise.

55% of Indian organizations have already hired gig workers.

In some companies, gig workers make up 20% of the total workforce.

And it's not just for basic tasks. The sectors are driving gig growth in India?

E-commerce, IT consulting, finance, creative services, and project management.

A Boston Consulting Group report says India's gig economy could service up to 90 million jobs and contribute 1.25% to GDP over the long term.

A report in 2019 showed that Google had 102,000 full time employees and over 120,000 contractors…

YES. Google globally has more contractors than full-time employees.

Meanwhile, during every economic downturn, 20-30% of "stable" employees get laid off.

So what exactly is stable about depending entirely on one employer?

Arjun's freelance model: 7 active clients. If he loses one, he still has 6 income streams.

My corporate friends: 1 employer. One layoff away from zero income.

Which model actually carries more risk?

BUT BUT BUT…. most gig workers in India still earn around ₹18,000 per month on average, contributing 61% of their household income.

The gig economy is creating millionaire freelancers and barely-surviving delivery workers simultaneously.

There's no middle anymore.

What bothers me most about India's reaction to the gig economy is….

We celebrate IIT graduates getting ₹50 lakh packages from Google.

We post about it on LinkedIn. We frame the offer letter.

But when the same IIT graduate freelances and makes ₹80 lakhs, families panic. "What if clients stop coming? What about marriage prospects? What will people say?"

The cognitive dissonance is hard to ignore.

One in seven Indians not working on farms will be a gig worker. But we're still treating freelancing like it's a phase before "real employment."

The Code on Social Security 2020 now officially recognizes gig workers. Rajasthan and Karnataka have passed state-level bills for worker welfare.

The government knows this is coming. They're preparing. But families? Companies? Society?

We're still stuck in the "stable job with provident fund" mindset from 1985.

Meanwhile, 24% of gig workers surveyed by CIEL chose freelancing specifically for flexibility. Because they actively preferred gig work (not because they couldn’t find jobs).

What I'm Seeing Differently Now

I'm not telling you to quit your job tomorrow.

But I am saying: the definition of risk has changed.

Traditional employment isn't stable. It's single-point-of-failure risk.

Freelancing is distributed risk. Multiple clients. Multiple revenue streams.

Three months after Arjun quit, he's fine. Better than fine.

He just signed a 6-month consulting project worth ₹18 lakhs.

His old job would've paid him ₹9 lakhs for that same period.

My uncle still doesn't approve. But Arjun stopped caring what my uncle thinks.

By 2030, 23.5 million Indians will be gig workers. By 2047, 62 million.

The real question isn't whether the gig economy is coming.

It's whether we're ready to accept that "stable employment" might be the outdated model, not freelancing.

Think about it. If you could make 2-3x more freelancing than in your current job, would you take the leap? Or would family pressure keep you in the "stable" job?

Hit reply and tell me. I read every email.

Until next week,
Ritesh

PS: Remember much supply, and little demand also means price wars. The whole story needs both sides of the story.