India, July 25 -- Ever since being introduced in 2016, Unified Payments Interface (UPI) payments have changed the way Indians pay. Recently, UPI hit a milestone with over 55 crore users onboarded across net banking platforms. Annual transaction volume expanded from just 2 crore transactions in FY 2016-17 to over 24,162 crore transactions in FY 2025-26, representing an almost 12,000-fold surge in transaction volume, according to the Press Information Bureau.

While the numbers reflect the deep penetration of digital payments across the country, social media has often highlighted some of the quirkiest ways in which people have been using digital payments. It has been used in some of the least expected or unusual places, proving the power of...