Caring Differently: The Rise of Assisted Living in India
Vanya Duggal
Jindal Global Law School, India

Sep 2025

With rapid globalization, and socio-economic transformation, every aspect of human life has seen a change, central to which is the structure of families and the way elders receive care and support. The rise in nuclear family structure, coupled with declining fertility rates, and increased life expectancy, has together contributed to a spurring in the elderly demographic, accompanied by a new set of needs; both emotional and physical. This is what invigorated my interest in understanding the emergence of ‘assisted living facilities’, which diverge away from the traditional forms and approach of ‘old-age homes’.

Historically, the care for elders was part of the moral and cultural duties of all family members. Elderly members sat at the head of the table and gave advice on the workings of the family, and were usually cared for by the women of the household. However, with the rise of dual-income households, with both the ‘husband’ and ‘wife’ migrating for work, co-residence with ageing parents is less feasible. This also stems from the fact that elderly individuals find themselves in need of a support system that the growing nuclear family cannot provide anymore. This has led to a change in mindset.

I explored this shift in mindset through an ethnographic study at Aurum, a senior assisted living facility in Gurugram. What made it unique right from the outset is the terminology it used- ‘assisted living’ as opposed to an ‘old-age home’, to induce a positive outlook on care for the elderly rather than a dependence-driven model of care. Residents of Aurum preferred to live there because they were able to get care that was tailored for them and had greater autonomy in deciding their own routines. However, there were also many elders who felt the initial jolt of being away from their family and took some time warming up, especially because they were accustomed to always being at home.

The hardest challenge for a large number of residents was loneliness and mental health problems, because all of a sudden, from being productive members of society and caring for their grandchildren, they found themselves in a different environment altogether. The hardest challenge at this age is to be able to change mindset, because it has been set in stone from all the years they have lived in a traditional joint-family household. To help with these problems, Aurum has a dedicated “Happiness Manager” and a team of in-house caregivers who ensure that residents have enough opportunities to engage in different activities. This, coupled with the latest technological interventions such as emergency health care and regular health check-ups, ensured that residents were cared for more securely. 

The most important part of families opting for such a mechanism for care is not neglect or lack of love for their elderly family members, but rather embracing the fact that a professional care environment ensures better quality of life for their elders, even if it means it is away from home. Such a change reflects a larger change in not just living arrangements, but also in the cultural attitude change towards ageing. This change in mindset was noticed in residents as well, who await the weekly Sunday visits from their grandchildren accompanied with a big flask of chai, and the weekly gossip of neighbors.