Last Updated on March 26, 2016 at 5:22 pm
Ever since I revealed that I invest for my son’s marriage in the year-end personal financial audit, several friends, and readers have chided me about this:
- ‘Why do you want to invest for your kids marriage?’
- ‘Our kids should fund their own marriage’
- ‘Weddings should be simple affairs devoid of all lavishness’
Journalist Sunderajan Padmanabhan narrated over email this delightful anecdote of a no-frills wedding:
~~~~~~~
You know whenever i hear people talking about their children’s marriage, I get reminded about one friend’s marriage, which i consider as the best I have ever attended.
🔥Secure your future with our Robo-advisory tool trusted by over 3,500 investors and advisors. From effortless retirement planning to funding your children’s biggest dreams, turn your financial goals into reality. 🔥
Subscribe for money management solutions via email! (Link takes you to our email sign-up form) Join 32,000+ readers in our community.
👉 New Tool Alert! NaviPlan: A Privacy-Focused Multi-asset Tracker and Goal Planner 👈
Maybe I can recall it for you.
I am sure you have heard of journalist-cum-theatre-activist Gnani Shankaran (this is his website in Tamil). I am talking about his wedding.
He and his wife, Padma, again a theatre activist, had their wedding at the Egmore Museum theatre about 30 years ago.
They had organised a play and invited all their friends. the wedding happened during the interval. a common friend announced that the two are to get married. A nadaswaram recital played in the background on a tape recorder. the groom and the bride exchanged garlands. An encore went up, that’s all. The marriage was over.
We were all asked to move out for refreshment: a packet of mixture, one ladoo and a cup of hot coffee. after about 10 minutes the bell rang again.
We got back into the auditorium. the play resumed and went on for half an hour or so more.
At the end, we all gathered, congratulated the couple again before returning home. they also took a bus to go back home: no decorated car. No ladies’ sangeet. no janwasam, no mehendi, no special bridal wear.
Sunder.
~~~~~~~
Fairytale frugality! I re-read this story several times. Wish I had married that way!
Delightful as this anecdote maybe, I disagree with the notion that one should not invest for a child’s marriage (NB. I have temporarily paused investments due to unexpected recurring expenses)
Why?
- The future is unknown and uncertain! My boy could meet his soul mate in school and would like to marry her then! I the need the money even if I offer him a loan for the wedding!
- There could be a shotgun wedding scenario!
If you are thinking, ‘there he goes again! Pattu the most pessimistic blogger on www’, stop right there!
All I need you to do is to agree with me that the future is unknown and uncertain!
We are clueless about how our children will grow and what they will grow up to be. Let us never ever forget that!
- My sons wedding is an expense for me. Perhaps I will fund 100%, perhaps I will fund 1% of total expenses. It is an expense, period.
- It is a 100% certain expense that will occur in the future (My son could of course choose to avoid wedlock for a variety of reasons!)
- A 100% certain future expense, will affected by inflation (at least 10%)
- Therefore, frugal as I would like to be, I will need to account for inflated frugality (perhaps my wife notions of frugality may evaporate at the sound of marriage!)
- Therefore, I need to plan and invest with a schedule.
- If I do not, I may end up touching my retirement corpus to fund his wedding – a bad thing to do even if it is 1% of total wedding expenses.
- Therefore in view of the above, I invest my for my son’s marriage.
- No, allow me to correct that. I am investing to protect my retirement nest egg. Shouldn’t you?
Prepare for the worst, pray for the best – A line from the movie, Prisoners
What do you think? Do you agree?
Join 32,000+ readers and get free money management solutions delivered to your inbox! Subscribe to get posts via email! (Link takes you to our email sign-up form)
Use our Robo-advisory Tool to create a complete financial plan! More than 3,000 investors and advisors use this! Use the discount code robo25 for 20% off. Plan your retirement (early, normal, before, and after), plus non-recurring financial goals (such as child education) and recurring financial goals (such as holidays and appliance purchases). The tool helps anyone aged 18 to 80 plan for retirement, plus six non-recurring and four recurring financial goals, with a detailed cash flow summary.
🔥Join our community of 9000+ users! 🔥Avail massive discounts on our courses + freefincal investor circle!
Track your mutual funds and stock investments with our Google Sheet!
We also publish monthly equity mutual funds, debt and hybrid mutual funds, index funds, ETF screeners, as well as momentum and low-volatility stock screeners.
You can follow our articles on Google News
We have over 1,000 videos on YouTube!
Podcast: Let's Get RICH With PATTU! Every single Indian CAN grow their wealth!
You can watch podcast episodes on the OfSpin Media Friends YouTube Channel
- Do you have a comment about the above article? Reach out to us on Twitter: @freefincal or @pattufreefincal
- Have a question? Subscribe to our newsletter using the form below.
- Hit 'reply' to any email from us! We do not offer personalised investment advice. We can write a detailed article without mentioning your name if you have a generic question.
About The Author
Dr M. Pattabiraman (PhD) is the founder, managing editor and primary author of freefincal. He is an associate professor at the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras. He has over 14 years of experience publishing news analysis, research and financial product development.
Connect with him via Twitter(X) LinkedIn YouTube
Our flagship course! Learn to manage your portfolio like a pro to achieve your goals regardless of market conditions! More than 3,500 investors and advisors are part of our exclusive community! Get clarity on how to plan for your goals and achieve the necessary corpus no matter the market conditions! Watch the first lecture for free! One-time payment! No recurring fees! Lifelong access to videos! Reduce fear, uncertainty and doubt while investing! Learn how to plan for your goals before and after retirement with confidence.
Increase your income by getting people to pay for your skills! More than 900 salaried employees, entrepreneurs and financial advisors are part of our exclusive community! Learn how to get people to pay for your skills! Whether you are a professional or small business owner seeking more clients through online visibility, or a salaried individual looking for side or passive income, we will show you how to do it by showcasing your skills and building a community that trusts and pays you. (Watch the 1st lecture for free). One-time payment! No recurring fees! Lifelong access to videos!
Our book for kids: “Chinchu Gets a Superpower!” is now available!
Must-read book even for adults! This is something that every parent should teach their kids right from their young age. The importance of money management and decision making based on their wants and needs. Very nicely written in simple terms. - Arun.
Buy the book: Chinchu gets a superpower for your child!
How to profit from content writing: Our new ebook is for those interested in getting a side income via content writing. It is available at a 50% discount for Rs. 500 only!
We publish monthly mutual fund screeners and momentum, low-volatility stock screeners.
About freefincal & its content policy
Freefincal is a News Media organisation dedicated to providing original analysis, reports, reviews and insights on mutual funds, stocks, investing, retirement and personal finance developments. We do so without conflict of interest and bias. Follow us on Google News. Freefincal serves more than three million readers a year (5 million page views) with articles based only on factual information and detailed analysis by its authors. All statements made will be verified with credible and knowledgeable sources before publication. Freefincal does not publish paid articles, promotions, PR, satire or opinions without data. All opinions will be inferences backed by verifiable, reproducible evidence/data. Contact Information: To get in touch, please use our contact form. (Sponsored posts or paid collaborations will not be entertained.)Connect with us on social media
Our publications
You Can Be Rich Too with Goal-Based Investing
Gamechanger: Forget Startups, Join Corporate & Still Live the Rich Life You Want
Your Ultimate Guide to Travel
