HNIs, banks, & credit cards in the IT capital of India

This is a rather bizzare & strange experience I had recently with a leading MNC bank based out of Bangalore (Bengaluru after renaming), the IT capital of India. Bizzare because I realized I had been included in a sort of "exclusive" club without my own knowledge and interest, & strange because of the services that were being forced upon me without my need for them.

I was @ work & this guy called me @ about 10:30 AM. Being the IT capital, Bangalore's working population in general is young, cosmopolitan, forward thinking, and experimental, with loads of free cash to spend (apparently so), & mostly looking for that extra feature in a product or service to elevate their socio - economic standing among the peer group. Perhaps not realizing that I am married (albeit young & belonging to the Gen Next), am a parent, & that my requirements in life aren't that great (I believe in simple life & quite often this drives my wife crazy), this guy called me in the morning. Here's how the conversation unfolded.

Sales guy (SG): Good morning sir. Am I talking to Mr. Vinay?

I: Yes. Who's this?

SG: Sir, I am XXX from the leading MNC bank.

I: Ok. So?

SG: Sir, from our records you fall under the HNI (High Net Individual) category.

I: Boss, you must be kidding. If I were a HNI, I wouldn't be in a salaried job & wouldn't have to listen to my boss every other day.

SG (laughing): Sir, not that way. This is a comprehensive database which our internal team has prepared.

I: Boss, who knows better whether I am a HNI or not? You or I, myself?

SG: Sir, of course you know better. But, please give me a chance to talk.

I: Ok, go ahead. What's it?

SG: Which bank do you have a account with?

I: Bank AAA & bank BBB.

SG: Are you happy with the services provided by these banks?

I: Considering my needs, I am more than happy.

SG: Sir, I would like to meet you for 10 - 15 min to explain our services to HNI customers.

I: I told you I'm not a HNI.

SG: That's fine sir. But, please give me a chance to meet you for 10 - 15 min.

I: Listen boss. First, I am not a HNI because I know I am not one. Second, despite not being a HNI if you want to meet me, no problem. I consider that a good way to kill 15 min that you will take to explain to me your services, which I do not think I need.

SG: Sir, thank you very much. I will meet you today @ about 4:00 PM to explain to you the various "value added" services we have to offer.

I: Boss, listen. My banks are doing a good job of providing me the services that I need. Do you understand that? They have not ventured to offer me any "value added" services because they know what I need & perhaps they also realize that they cannot offer any more value addition than what they are already doing, considering my record.

SG: Please allow me to meet you.

I: Alright. But, don't have much expecta.....

The guy had disconnected before I could complete.

I have no clue on what grounds the bank has dubbed me as a HNI. When I narrated this story to my friend, he said that by definition, as per Indian laws I was indeed a HNI. But, I argued with him that considering the present inflation and cost of living, there's no way I qualify to be a HNI. While agreeing, my friend conceded that while the definition of a lot of socio - economic strata in India is being reviewed and redefined by the Government (apparently in an effort to ensure that all the goodies that the Government doles out reached the intended beneficiaries), they had not yet reached the HNIs because they are HNIs after all, you know.

As for my own self appraisal of whether or not I am a HNI? I leave the judgement to you while I briefly narrate my way of life. I struggle to maintain minimum balance in my SB account by the end of the month, a couple of times in a year not even able to do that. I earnestly look forward to the last day of the month as the calendar crosses the 20th day of the month.

Still, the MNC bank considers me a HNI & wants to provide me with "value added" services. As for me, after listening to all the "value added" services that the bank has to offer, I will ask the sales guy to let me know if he has anything to offer which is "LIFETIME FREE".