Social media is inundated with the assertion that “no one should be a billionaire” and it has become a prominent moral standing among a vocal group of people on the interweb. The phrase raises legitimate concerns about wealth inequality, labour exploitation and concentration of power.

However, as with many slogans that gain cultural traction, its broadness and vagueness risks collapsing distinct forms of wealth accumulation into a single ethical category and in doing so, it often obstructs the very mechanisms of power that it seeks to critique.

The hullabaloo surrounding Taylor Swift’s emergence as a billionaire reveals a lot about this herd mentality which is rampant online and it is often accompanied by no amount of critical thinking. Taylor’s wealth has provoked a cultural anxiety that appears disproportionate compared to public reactions toward ultra-wealthy individuals.

The public outrage is not merely economic in nature. It is cultural and gendered. Taylor is not an oil magnate, a private equity executive or a tech monopolist. She is a highly visible cultural producer whose labour, persona and emotional expressiveness in forms of singing, songwriting and art are central to her public identity. The discomfort surrounding her wealth cannot solely be seen as opposition to inequality. Rather, in my opinion, it reflects unresolved tensions about women’s access to power, ownership and legitimacy within capitalist systems.

My demand is for analytical precision and critical thinking to prevail in this age of herd mentality and stupid but divisive “hot-takes” that sweep through social media.

Accumulation of wealth is not a morally uniform phenomenon and the process by which wealth is generated and the degree of labour involved, the transparency of accumulation and the uses of the accumulated wealth and power matters. Taylor’s case complicates dominant narratives about billionaires.

The Anti-Billionaire Rhetoric:

Extreme wealth at any point of time in the past, present or future is off-putting. The claim that extreme wealth is inherently immoral rests on the assumption that no individual can accumulate wealth to such an extreme degree without exploiting others. It should be noted that this assumption is often justified in cases involving resource extraction, financial speculation or monopolistic practices but the logic becomes less persuasive when applied indiscriminately.

Political economists often distinguish between different modes of capital accumulation. Wealth derived through rent seeking behaviour such as controlling access to housing, healthcare or natural resources operates very differently from wealth generated through direct labour and intellectual production. If we ignore this distinction, then there is no distinction between a George Lucas and a Elon Musk or a Mark Zuckerberg. If we ignore these distinctions, we are transforming the argument from structural analysis to a symbolic condemnation.

Taylor Swift’s wealth is overwhelmingly linked to monetization of intellectual property she helped create. Her dominant income streams include album sales, touring, licencing and publishing her art which is directly tied to cultural consumption rather than essential goods or coercive market control. Obviously, this does not render her wealth morally pure but it does situate it differently from other forms of wealth accumulation that rely on scarcity, dispossession or systemic harm.

Opposition to inequality requires specificity and critical analysis. Otherwise, without specificity, moral outrage becomes performative rather than transformative in the long run.

Taylor Swift’s Cultural Production:

One of the defining features of Taylor’s career is the visibility of her own labour. Unlike many wealthy individuals whose work is abstracted behind corporate structures, Taylor’s labour is public and ongoing. It is not an accident that she has achieved this level of success. She writes her music, performs extensively (is a fan of over-delivering) and maintains creative involvement across all her work. Nobody else was baking cookies for their fans and having secret hang-out sessions and opening up their hearts the way Taylor has continued to do.

The Eras Tour exemplifies this labour-intensive model. The tour was not merely a revenue generating enterprise but a physically demanding performance that requires endurance, rehearsal and emotional presence. The tours impact includes employing thousands of workers and contributing significantly to local economies which complicates the narratives that frame her wealth as purely extractive. Additionally, her model of – "if the tour does well, everyone involved gets paid more" should set a precedence in the entertainment industry!

Cultural labour is often undervalued precisely because it is associated with pleasure and emotion. The assumption that creative work is less than industrial or technical labour has historically been used to justify its under-compensation. Taylor’s success threatens the entertainment industry as it challenges this hierarchy by demonstrating that cultural production can generate enormous value when creators retain control over their work.

To dismiss her wealth without acknowledging the labour, creativity and hard work behind it reinforces the very devaluation of artistic work that critics of capitalism often seek to dismantle.

Ownership as Resistance:

The most significant factor distinguishing Taylor from other ultra-wealthy figures is her approach to ownership. The sale of her masters without her consent exposed a structural vulnerability faced by artists within the music industry. Taylor Swift engaged in a strategic market-based intervention and re-recorded her catalogue.

Economically, it devalued her original masters while legally operating within existing contractual structures and culturally, it reframed ownership as a site of resistance rather than resignation of your fate. Taylor’s public declaration and acts of reclamation established a precedent that will forever influence industry norms.

This is a prime example of how Taylor did not reject the market; instead, she used it to correct an imbalance of power. She demonstrated her agency within capitalist systems and expanded it through knowledge, leverage and collective support. Her resulting wealth is not merely the outcome of market success but the by-product of an intervention that challenged exploitative norms.

Gender, Ambition, and Moral Scrutiny:

The outrage and reactions to Taylor Swift’s billionaire status cannot be disentangled from gendered expectations surrounding ambition. It is a truth universally acknowledged that women who pursue power are more likely to be perceived as unlikable, manipulative or morally suspect which is not the case for men with identical behaviours.

Taylor’s career trajectory has been marked by strategic decision making, brand management and her continued vulnerability and ability to express herself and her emotions in a way that marks her as a brilliant storyteller. Her career trajectory has increasingly positioned her within a traditionally masculine domain of authority.

The discomfort provoked by her wealth has disrupted the cultural framework through which she was initially understood which is as a confessional songwriter whose value lay in emotional transparency rather than strategic competence.

Emotional expressiveness is tolerated and even celebrated in women, so long as it is not accompanied by structural power and Taylor’s refusal to be boxed within these distinctions and her refusal to choose between vulnerability and ambition challenges this age-old stereotype and binary.

Criticism framed as economic concern often masks deeper anxieties about women who refuse to self-limit. The demand that she justifies, apologises for or redistributes her success reflects expectations that women temper achievement with humility. Where are these demands for George Lucas, Steven Spielberg or James Cameron?

The Demand for Relatability:

Taylor Swift’s wealth destabilizes the concept of relatability which is a quality disproportionately demanded of women in the public eye. Her music has fostered a sense of intimacy with her listeners who interpret it as personal connection. When that perceived intimacy coexists with immense wealth, it produces cognitive dissonance.

However, relatability is not a moral obligation and it is a market construct that benefits audiences more than the artists. We will be conflating art with personal availability if we insist that Swift remain economically accessible in order to preserve emotional authenticity. Additionally, this expectation reflects a broader pattern in which women are asked to trade power for connection.

Taylor’s refusal to do so exposes the transactional assumptions embedded in audience attachment. It is evident that the audience forever wants a palatable version of you.

Philanthropy and Responsibility:

Supporting Taylor’s billionaire status does not automatically mean that I idealize her use of wealth. While she has made significant philanthropic contributions, no individual’s charity can offset systematic inequality and to demand that she solve structural problems through personal generosity misunderstands both the scale of the problems and the role of the State.

At the same time, Taylor Swift’s labour practices, including reported bonuses for touring staff and advocacy for artists’ rights suggest an orientation toward responsibility rather than indifference. These actions do not absolve her from scrutiny but they do distinguish her from figures whose wealth accumulation is accompanied by deliberate opacity or harm.

Conclusion:

Taylor Swift’s billionaire status is not a referendum on capitalism’s moral legitimacy; instead, it is a test of our ability to think critically about power without resorting to symbolic scapegoating. 

Taylor did not inherit her billionaire status nor did she accumulate it through monopolistic control of necessities; she did not detach herself from the labour that generated it. She was successful in navigating an exploitative industry, reclaimed ownership over her art and leveraged cultural production into sustained economic power.

If the goal of anti-capitalist critique is to dismantle unjust systems, then precision is essential. Blanket condemnation may feel satisfying and will get you clicks and likes but it obscures meaningful distinctions and reinforces gendered double standards.

Taylor Swift’s success is unsettling precisely because it resists easy categorization. It exists at the intersection of labour and capital, vulnerability and authority, intimacy and distance. Engaging with that complexity does not weaken moral critique; it strengthens it.

Supporting her billionaire status is not an endorsement of inequality. It is my refusal to flatten nuance in the name of ideological comfort and a recognition that who holds power and how they came to hold it still and will forever matter!

What does Shah Rukh Khan have in common with Tarot?

So, here I am with this post to celebrate King Khan’s 60th birthday!

If Shah Rukh Khan, the person, were a tarot card, he’d be The Magician.



It is simple. The Magician is the master of transformation. He takes the tools in front of him (in Tarot: the sword, the cup, the wand, the pentacle) and turns them into alchemy. Just like Shah Rukh turned a middle-class Delhi boy with no industry godfathers into the King of Bollywood. He didn’t wait for permission. He just said it out loud, “I am the last of the stars.” The Magician is about charisma, manifestation, and sheer willpower. He’s the person who channels energy from above into the real world and SRK does that every time he steps on a stage, greets a fan, or owns a role like it was made for him. He doesn’t just perform for the sake of performing and it shows on screen. He makes the audience live the role through him.

As The Magician, Shah Rukh reminds us:

it is not about what you have, it is about what you believe you can do.

Now let us take a look through a tarot-inspired lens on Shah Rukh Khan’s roles over the years. I would like to pay a symbolic tribute to the way his roles mirror the soul’s journey. Think of it as cinematic astrology with a Bollywood twist. And who knows? You might just find your own soul card hidden among of one of his iconic characters.

Raj Malhotra (DDLJ) – The Sun


Keywords: Joy, Innocence, Radiance

Raj isn’t just a character, he’s a feeling. The wide-eyed charm, the cheeky humour… everything about Raj radiates warmth and light. He’s the embodiment of The Sun card, which represents joy, youthful optimism, and the kind of love that feels like home. But The Sun isn’t just about happiness. It is about authenticity. It is about showing up as you are, without manipulation or masks. Raj is playful and goofy, yes, but also deeply respectful, especially of Simran’s boundaries and her father’s authority. He chooses love with integrity, which is rare and powerful.

Raj reminds us that the brightest kind of love is the one that’s honest, patient, and brave enough to wait.

The Lovers – Aman (Kal Ho Naa Ho)


Keywords: Love, Choice, Sacrifice

If ever a character embodied the bittersweet beauty of The Lovers card, it’s Aman. His presence electrifies everyone around him. He is love in motion, laughter in chaos, life in a dying body. But The Lovers card isn’t just about romance, it is about the choices we make in life, especially the hard ones. And Aman’s story is ultimately about choosing someone else’s happiness over his own. He doesn’t fight for love in the traditional sense. He lets go. He steps aside so that Naina can have a future with someone who give her a ‘forever’. The Lovers card asks: What will you choose when the heart is divided? Aman chose selflessness.

Aman reminds us that love isn’t always about possession. Sometimes it is about giving someone else a lifetime when you only have a few moments left.

The Emperor – Major Ram (Main Hoon Na)

Keywords: Authority, Protection, Duty

Major Ram is the embodiment of order, discipline, and devotion; both to his country and his family. As The Emperor, he stands tall as a figure of structure and safety in a chaotic world. Whether he’s defusing bombs, tackling teenage drama in a college corridor, or trying to unite a broken family, Ram always brings calm, control, and unshakable principle. The Emperor in tarot represents the divine masculine: a provider and protector who leads with integrity. Ram is that archetype made flesh: a man in uniform who softens only for his loved ones, who holds his ground when everything around him threatens to collapse.

Major Ram teaches us that strength isn’t about stoicism. It is about showing up, staying grounded, and leading with heart led authority.

Justice – Rizwan Khan (My Name is Khan)


Keywords: Truth, Fairness, Moral Clarity, Cause and Consequence

Rizwan Khan’s journey across cities, heartbreaks, and hostile people is one of radical clarity. Diagnosed with autism and driven by purpose, Rizwan’s mission to tell the U.S. president that he is not a terrorist isn’t just personal. The Justice card is about accountability, truth-telling, and standing firm against prejudice. Rizwan embodies all of it, with sincerity and zero ego. He’s not loud, but he’s relentless. He doesn’t seek revenge, but he demands recognition. He is living proof that moral courage doesn’t need anger to be effective.

Rizwan shows us that justice, at its core, is love made brave.

Strength – Veer (Veer-Zaara)

Keywords: Inner Power, Compassion, Patience, Devotion

Veer isn’t strong in the way most heroes are. He doesn’t flex his muscles or raise his voice - ever. But when it comes to emotional strength, no one comes close. He sacrifices his future, freedom, and voice for love, for peace, for respect, and for Zaara’s dignity. The Strength card is about quiet resilience: the power to wait, to endure, to love without demand. Veer spends 22 years behind bars, not out of helplessness but from a place of deep, unwavering choice.



Veer teaches us that the strongest hearts are often the softest ones and that love isn’t proven through possession, but through patience.

The Hierophant – Mohan Bhargava (Swades)


Keywords: Tradition, Teaching, Values

Mohan Bhargava starts as a man of science (NASA engineer) but as he returns to his roots, he becomes a conduit between two worlds: the modern and the traditional. The Hierophant represents a spiritual teacher or guide, someone who honors existing wisdom while also reshaping it for the future. Mohan doesn’t come to the village to “rescue” it. He listens, to understand, and eventually, serves. What makes him the Hierophant is his reverence for learning , not just textbooks and satellites, but hand pumps, village elders, and the lives of those that history usually forgets. He learns as much as he teaches.

Mohan reminds us that true leadership lies in humility and that progress is most powerful when it honors its roots.

The Star – Jahangir Khan (Dear Zindagi)

Keywords: Hope, Healing, Renewal, Guidance

Jug isn’t just a therapist, he’s The Star. He is a gentle, steady light that appears after the storm, guiding Kaira back to herself. The Star comes after The Tower in tarot, symbolizing the calm that follows emotional collapse. That’s exactly where Kaira is when she meets Dr. Jehangir Khan. Burnt out, closed off, disconnected. And he doesn’t rush her. He listens, nudges, and invites her to see herself with compassion. The Star doesn’t heal with grand gestures. It heals with presence. With stillness. With the quiet belief that you can be okay again. Jug never promises to “fix” Kaira. He just shows her she was never broken to begin with.

Jug reminds us that healing doesn’t always roar. Sometimes, it whispers: you’re safe now.

The Devil – Rahul (Darr)

Keywords: Obsession, Shadow Self, Control, Unhealthy Attachments

This isn’t the romantic Rahul we’re used to. This is Rahul with a knife and a stutter, weaponizing vulnerability and intensity. The Devil card in tarot is not evil. It is a mirror of our shadow selves: the parts of us driven by fear, obsession, possession, and the illusion of control. Rahul in Darr is dangerously fixated, mistaking love for ownership, attention for intimacy. What makes it so unnerving is how believable he is. He is soft-spoken, poetic, yet terrifyingly persistent. The Devil card reminds us that when love becomes addiction, it loses all tenderness.

Rahul shows us how unchecked desire can twist even the most romantic heart into a cage.


Death – Don (Don 1 & 2)

Keywords: Transformation, Endings, Rebirth. Power Shift

No one kills a version of themselves quite like Don. Not just once, but again and again. He is the Death card personified: not literal demise, but the complete shedding of one identity to evolve into another. Death in tarot is not an end, but a metamorphosis and Don is constantly three steps ahead, morphing from criminal to kingmaker, from hunted to hunter. What makes Don’s transformation powerful is that he is never apologetic. He reinvents himself with swagger, intelligence, and danger and forces the world to recalibrate around him.

Don teaches us that to become unstoppable, sometimes you have to bury who you were and build something scarier in its place.

The Fool – Sunil (Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa)

Keywords: New Beginnings, Naivete, Risk, Heart-led Choices

Sunil is all heart and no plan. The Fool card captures that wide-eyed, chaotic, sometimes foolish optimism and no SRK role captures this more vulnerably than Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa. Sunil lies, fumbles, schemes, and crashes. But he also feels deeply, earnestly, unashamedly. The Fool isn’t stupid. He is brave in a way only innocence can be. Sunil leaps before he looks, and when he falls, he still believes the next thing will work out. And somehow, he’s right. The world bends just enough to give him another chance.

Sunil shows us that the beginning of every journey is messy, but the heart that leads it? That’s pure magic.

The Chariot – Kabir Khan (Chak De! India)

Keywords: Willpower, Victory, Redemption, Direction

Kabir Khan drives a redemption arc so focused that it burns through into the hearts of his audience. The Chariot is about sheer will, discipline, and moving forward despite resistance. Kabir channels humiliation, bias, and heartbreak into razor-sharp determination and leads his team (and himself) to glory. He did not do any of it for applause. He was there to prove a point. Not to others, but to himself. The Chariot is victory earned, not gifted and Kabir earns every second of it.

Kabir reminds us that strength isn’t just muscle. It is momentum, forged through pain and pointed toward purpose.

If tarot is the story of the soul’s evolution, then Shah Rukh Khan has lived it on screen many times over. He’s been the boy who loved too much and the man who lost it all. He’s played the rebel, the romantic, the redeemer, and the ruthless. From The Fool’s innocent chaos to The Chariot’s unstoppable drive… from The Lovers’ ache to The Devil’s grip… SRK has danced through all the archetypes like he was born with the deck in his veins.

And maybe that’s why we keep returning to him. Because in watching his characters stumble, fight, love, lose, and transform, we’re reminded of our own messy human journeys. His films echo our fears (what if I’m not enough?), our hopes (can I try again?), and our fantasies (what if someone saw the real me and stayed?). And like the tarot, his roles don’t just entertain — they reflect, reveal, and sometimes, even heal.

So the next time you pull a card, don’t be surprised if you see a familiar dimpled smile, arms outstretched, whispering,

“Picture abhi baaki hai, mere dost.”

Psssst - Would you like me to match up rest of the Major Arcanas to other roles he has played?

The Life of a Showgirl might be a LOT of things, but the life of a swiftie is never dull.

As a Bengali, I was already in a festive mood with Durga Puja shenanigans right before the album release. But I would not deny the fact that I was more excited for the album than I was for Durga Puja this year.

First of all, when the tracks were declared and the fifth track of the album stared at me, I could almost hear it say, “It’s me. Hi! I’m the problem, it’s me.”

Taylor Swift admitted to placing her most “vulnerable, personal, honest, emotional” song as Track 5 on her albums in 2019 when the fans spotted that pattern. Of course, I was eagerly waiting to be wrecked by a song. Again.

In India, the album was released at 9:30 in the morning and I only got out of bed after listening to all the songs. With TLOAS being the shortest TS album till date, it took me just an hour to go through them all (yes, I might’ve listened to a few of them multiple times). I loved some songs immediately and others might’ve taken some time to gel with. After that 31-songs double album which was heavier than expected, I was relieved that The Life of a Showgirl is full of upbeat and lighter songs (except maybe two).