How superstition fuels one of India’s most unregulated shadow industries — built on faith, fear, and fortune.
India’s Hidden Market of Fear
India’s deep faith traditions coexist with a massive underground economy worth ₹30,000–₹50,000 crore annually.
Beneath temples and astrology apps thrives a marketplace where fear is currency and belief is business.
Unrecorded. Untaxed. Unchecked.
The Shadow Economy of Belief
Superstition hasn’t faded — it’s flourished. From “evil-eye removal” to black-magic cleansing, the occult business is booming.
“Tantrics” and “babas” now sell costly remedies instead of blessings.
- Ritual exorcisms (jhaad-phook) cost ₹15,000–₹1.5 lakh.
- WhatsApp “spell removals” start at ₹5,000, promising “results in 24 hours.”
Algorithms have become the new oracles, powering India’s digital occult economy.
The Numbers Behind the Fear
- 🪬 The “godmen + occult” market exceeds ₹40,000 crore (RedInk Award-winning One India TV report).
- 💰 Maharashtra spends ₹1,200 crore yearly on occult consultations.
- ⚰️ Over 2,000 murders in the past decade link to witchcraft and rituals (NCRB).
- ⚖️ Experts say ten times more cases go unreported.
Why It’s Hard to Catch
This black market hides behind devotion — no GST, no receipts, no oversight.
Payments appear as “puja donations” or “consultation dakshina.”
Sociologists call it a “parallel faith economy” — where belief becomes a tool for control.
The Digital Tantra Boom
Superstition has gone online.
Thousands of YouTube, Telegram, and Instagram accounts now sell “astro-tantra” and “energy healing” with UPI links and testimonials.
What was once secret is now trending — monetised and algorithm-approved.
When Cinema Exposes the Curse
The upcoming film Jatadhara (releasing November 7, 2025) by Zee Studios and Venkat Kalyan explores how faith turns into exploitation.
Its mythical curse, Dhan Pisach, mirrors today’s greed-driven spiritual industry.
The Cost of Blind Faith
Faith is India’s strength — but blind belief has a price.
For every temple that offers hope, there’s a fraud selling fear.
Until this ₹50,000-crore empire is regulated, the demons won’t need dark magic — they already have money and followers.
