Corporate employee leaves Delhi to work remotely from Manali — How costly is 'dream life' in the mountains

A corporate employee working remotely relocated to Manali and shared his living costs. His experience sparked discussions online about the affordability of ‘dream life’ in the mountains over metro cities like Delhi.Corporate employee, who left Delhi to work remotely from Manali, shared breakdown of monthly expenses of ‘dream life’.(Screengrab @Instagram)Manali, a high-altitude mountain resort town, is the perfect place to unwind and relax but an employee with remote job chose this place as work-from-home destination. Since, remote jobs have transformed the way many professionals think about workplace, making daily travel and close proximity to office unnecessary, a corporate employee relocated to the mountains. Exercising the freedom of choosing workplace, away from the crowded cities, in the foothills of Himalayas.As Instagram user named Ajay Sharma shared his experience of living in Manali on social media. He left the hustle and bustle of Delhi, to escape to the mountains and enjoy the greenery and beauty of nature even while at work. He provided a breakdown of the expenses incurred in the town, offering more affordable lifestyle with serene beauty of nature. The video begins with Sharma saying, “How much does it cost to live alone in the mountain as a corporate remote employee?” He revealed that he rented a 1BHK apartment in Manali which costed him Rs14,000 per month. This figure includes Wi-Fi and electricity charges.Sharing details of his expenditure on groceries, he said that due to his gym-focused diet he cooks on his own with the monthly spend totaling to ₹3,500. On an average, he spends around ₹500 a week on food orders from outside when he is unwilling to cook. This implies that his monthly expenditure on eating out is ₹2000 per month. He also pays ₹1,500 a month for gym membership which could have costed him ₹1,800 but he chose to get a deal at a bargain.Moving to travel expenditure, Sharma shared that he prefers to walk which helps him complete his daily step count and keeps commuting expenses “almost zero”. Concluding the video, he provided the cumulative estimate of mountain life which comes around ₹21,000 a month. This video ignited discussions online about whether Ajay Sharma's ‘dream life’ on the mountains is really cheaper than living in a metro city like Delhi.Social media reactionA user remarked, “That's relatively cheap though!” Another user wrote, “Cheaper than Gurgaon life.” A third user stated, “For girls it's 40-50k. Hygene safety food mood sab mila k.”A fourth comment read, “Does your parents not say that, how can you live like that, how can you enjoy with yourself like that, how can you just move away from us and ignore us, you should live for us and you should marry and give a kid, do they not say any of this and relatives banter, how is it possible that there is no fight with parents when you said you would live alone peacefully in manali (sic).”A fifth user said, “It's costly to live in mountain.” A sixth user replied, “14k for 1 bhk in a mountain that’s too costly.” A seventh user noted, “The rent is almost like a metro city.”Stay updated with the latest Trending, India , World and US news. HomeNewsTrendsCorporate employee leaves Delhi to work remotely from Manali — How costly is 'dream life' in the mountainsMore