Senior citizens and tech are not always a happy mix. Anyone who has tried to do a video call with a grandparent—or said grandparent’s forehead—knows. Creating a new app for boomers was set to be a challenging task. But 66-year-old Meenakshi Menon, founder of the app Gen S Life, had her reasons.
“As you grow older, it's like a shock when the outside world starts looking at you differently, almost like you’re an impediment to their life,” she tells me over Zoom. It was this shock that opened Menon’s eyes to the world around her—her cohorts, friends, and colleagues, who were all, in some way or the other, feeling like a burden to society and the people they loved. And that’s how Gen S Life was born—a platform whose mission it is to make those 55 years old or older ‘live life bindaas’, while also acknowledging that they need a bit of extra help to do that.
Created as a feel-good, safe space for seniors, this app is designed to help its members thrive. Maybe you need some investment counselling and want to know the difference between the old and new tax regime. Maybe you’re thinking of exploring yoga now. Perhaps you’ve always been curious about Ladakh and are now thinking of finally acting on it. Been putting off the appointment with the orthopaedist? Here, you can snag sweet deals on products and services across health, wellness, travel, and finance. Think everything from discounted lab tests and caregiver support to will-writing services, curated travel experiences across India (including deep-sea diving!), and even astrology, palm reading, and mystic healing for the woo-woo girlies.
“I guess you could think of it as Amazon for seniors,” says Anuya Chakravarthi, marketing head and investor. The platform also hosts daily interactive online events for its members—from 8 am yoga to evening sessions on karaoke, antakshari, Zumba, Bollywood dance, and more. Members can even join the app’s virtual reading club.
Was it a challenge to set up an app like this, particularly for a generation that’s totally freaked out by tech? When I showed the interface to my 84-year-old grandmother who still holds her phone to her nose and says things like “I’m not able to open Instagram”, she seemed to have no problem navigating it. Not to mention the homepage itself has a host of ‘How To’ videos. On the day I downloaded the app, I immediately got a call from the team asking if I needed help setting up my profile (to which I replied, “No! I’m 27!”).
Meenakshi Menon, founder of Gen S Life
“The narrative that older people don’t use tech is completely untrue,” says Menon. “It’s my generation that moved from calculators to computers, from rotary phones to smartphones. Show me one 60-year-old who doesn’t use WhatsApp. WhatsApp is tech. Again, it’s a question of stereotypes.”
But Gen S Life is as much for the oldies as it is for their Gen X, Millennial or Gen Z caretakers. If you’ve been caring for an ageing parent or relative, you’ve probably experienced that all-too-familiar pit in the stomach that hits the second you turn your focus back to your own life, irrespective of the amount of time you devote to them. What if they forget to take their meds? What if they take a fall in the bathroom at night and you miss their call?
Vaishnavi Avalur, a homemaker based in Bengaluru, came across an ad for the app on Instagram around the time she was searching for a caretaker for her mother-in-law. Through Gen S Life, she was able to connect with Anvayaa, a senior home-care service in Mumbai. “The response was very quick compared to other apps that I have used in the past. Within two days a caretaker was available to come to my address, which has definitely given me peace of mind,” she tells me over a call.
“Just like we are fighting the stereotype of the fragile, frail, doddering old coot, we are also fighting the stereotype of the young kid who needs to drop everything and run [to help them]. Arrey chhodo yaar, this is not a Hindi film,” Menon giggles.
While the app’s objective is primarily to provide today’s 55-year-olds and above with all the services they need to make their lives as easy as possible, Menon also wants it to be a space where they find community. Gen S Life has already started the process of weekly meetups across the country, from movie theatres to coffee shops, where not just members but also people of this cohort can hang out and make friends. Earlier this year, they brought together a group of more than 50 seniors to dance their hearts out at the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival in support of the app, marking the festival’s first-ever senior showcase in 25 years. And in May, they hosted the ‘Suno Sunao Sunday Manao’ open mic in Bandra (yes, exclusively for 55-plus talents), proving that age is just a number.
Although apps catering to the elderly aren’t exactly new, the last couple of years have definitely seen a rise in homegrown platforms. So, what makes Gen S Life different? “We are designed by the 60 for the sixties,” says Menon. “So that is a unique advantage we have. There’s always the young tech chaps trying to say what they think the older people need. So, I always joke about them being the tech bros and me being the tech nani.”
Gen S Life is available on Android, iOS, and WebApp in 12 Indian languages; ₹990 per year for Silver subscription; ₹4,900 per year for Gold subscription
