E-comm's magic number

An empathetic, anecdotal view of human stories behind the OTP-driven ecosystem

- MOHIT HIRA

OUR MOBILE PHONE beeps. A six-digit code SMS has arrived. You copy-paste or key in the numbers, a transaction gets completed, and your transient relationship with these numbers ends. They're deleted, and you move on. But, behind these ubiquitous OTPs (one-time passwords) that run a huge industry across countries, lie thousands—if not millions—of real human stories.

And that's the beauty of Vandana Vasudevan's OTP Please! Online Buyers, Sellers and Gig Workers in South Asia—replete with anecdotes gathered from many conversations, she dives beneath the surface of south Asia's digital consumer revolution. Centred on the realities that underpin the authentication familiar to every Indian online shopper, this book isn't something an average reader would pick up.

But if you're working in—or funding—e-commerce startups, and are interested in a compelling, balanced, and meticulously researched study of how these platforms—from Amazon and Swiggy to Ola and Urban Company—are transforming the lives of buyers, sellers, and gig workers, this book will make you reflect. Where most narratives focus on the magic of instant deliveries and strong company valuations, Vasudevan broadens her perspective to cover the entire ecosystem—not just consumers and VC-backed startups, but also gig workers and small businesses, and, crucially, their emotional landscapes. This is what makes her work unique. She uses vivid stories and detailed studies (including surveys of over 5,000 gig workers) to illustrate how technology-driven commerce is fundamentally altering economies, relationships, and daily lives across the subcontinent beyond India, in Pakistan, Bangladesh, Nepal and Sri Lanka.