E-Paper
Indian man documents his day surviving in New York City with $20. Watch
An Indian YouTuber documented surviving in New York City on $20.
An Indian content creator has captured the internet’s attention after posting a video in which he attempted to survive an entire day in New York City on a budget of less than $20. The YouTuber, Aabir Vyas, shared the clip on Instagram, where he documented his food choices and experiences while navigating the city’s bustling streets.
In the video, Vyas can be heard introducing the challenge in Hindi, translated into English as, “Welcome to an episode of Barely Surviving with Aabir. The challenge is simple: manage breakfast, lunch and dinner outside, all within $20.”
(Also read: Zohran Mamdani serves chai as prize at end of NYC scavenger hunt)
Meals on a tight budget
For breakfast, he bought five bananas for one dollar and a whole wheat bagel with egg for three dollars. “That was my first meal of the day. I’m trying to keep it relatively healthy. I know the protein is low, but the carbs give enough energy to get going,” he explained.
To stay within budget, Vyas relied on a prepaid subway card for transport. During the day he picked up a protein bar for $2.29, followed by a coffee for $6.17 where he chose to sit and edit his work. “I needed a good coffee and a place where I could sit and work comfortably. The protein bar gave me 20 grams of protein,” he added.
Later, he purchased a sparkling water for $0.48 to stay full. Before heading to a meeting, he ate the leftover bananas. For dinner, he turned to a cart, ordering chicken and rice for under seven dollars, keeping sauces to a minimum.
At the end of the clip, the text overlay revealed: “Total – $19.94 spent.” The video carried the label, “Barely Surviving – $20 budget in NYC.”
Watch the clip here:
Online reactions
The post has already garnered more than two lakh views on Instagram with many reactions. One user commented, “That cart chicken rice is the best thing I had in New York,” while another wrote, “Compromise on coffee doesn’t work even if the budget is tight.”
Some were amused at his spending priorities. “Bro drinking a seven dollar coffee in a 20 dollar budget!” one person quipped. Another asked in disbelief, “Where are you getting sparkling water for 48 cents?” A viewer also remarked, “Surviving on 20 is crazy.” Others praised his attempt, with one writing, “This is creative and relatable.”
