November 6, 2025 : Renowned stock market expert and founder of Marcellus Investment Managers, Saurabh Mukherjea, has issued a major and rather bitter warning about the future of India’s job market.
According to him, the growing influence of automation and artificial intelligence (AI) has nearly brought the growth of white-collar jobs in India to a halt. This shift, he said, is not temporary but a fundamental and permanent change in the way people live and work.
Job Growth Stagnant: The Return of Corporate Jobs Seems Difficult
During a podcast, Mukherjea said that India is now entering a phase where secure and traditional corporate jobs will become increasingly scarce. He believes the slowdown in white-collar job growth is not temporary—there has been barely any increase in the last five years. He doesn’t expect any meaningful growth in such jobs in the future, as automation is completely transforming how large companies operate.
Impact of Automation: Companies Expanding Without Hiring
Mukherjea explained that major companies no longer need large teams to expand. Giants like HDFC Bank, Bajaj Finance, Titan, and Asian Paints are growing rapidly without increasing their workforce. Automation has made it much easier for these companies to function with fewer employees, drastically reducing the scope for new hiring.
India Turning into a Nation of Gig Workers
According to Mukherjea, structured salaried jobs in India will decline sharply. In their place, self-employment and gig work will become the norm. More people will work independently—as freelancers, drivers, coders, podcasters, financial advisors, or content creators.
With millions of young people entering the job market every year, the country must start exploring alternative forms of work and income.
India’s Advantage
Mukherjea believes that India is in a better position than many other countries to embrace this transformation. The nation’s young population, along with affordable data, and strong digital infrastructures like Aadhaar and UPI, form the “glue connecting gig workers,” providing a solid foundation for a decentralized work ecosystem.
Advice for the Future
Mukherjea advised the current and upcoming generations to prepare for this shift. Traditional white-collar jobs will become increasingly challenging to find. We must prepare ourselves and our children for a future where a large part of life will be spent as gig workers.
He concluded by saying that the era of office ID cards, office cabs, and lifelong employment at a single company is coming to an end.
Summary:
Experts warn that India’s job market is shifting rapidly toward gig and contract-based roles, putting millions of traditional full-time jobs at serious risk nationwide.