I come from a different generation—one where life was simple but grounded in purpose.
You studied hard, got a job, and settled down. And if academics weren’t your strength, you picked up a trade or started a business. Either way, stability and dignity were the goals. Success wasn’t measured by money alone, but by what you did for a living. A government-employed civil engineer, earning modestly, was considered far more respectable than someone earning lakhs trading scrap—because values mattered more than valuation.
But then the internet arrived. And with it, a complete shift in the cultural DNA of this country.
The Western idea—that money is the only benchmark for success—was injected into the Indian psyche like a virus. And our centuries-old slave mindset welcomed it with open arms. We stopped valuing education, knowledge, craft, and started running after one thing alone: money.
The Death of Thought
In my time, political opinion was shaped by reading newspapers, listening to debates, and reflecting on what intellectuals had to say. Opinions were born out of understanding, not reaction.
Today? Opinions are outsourced to memes—crafted by anonymous, ill-informed social media teams. And the youth consume these as truth.
Worse, the few public intellectuals who dare to speak are ridiculed, trolled, and often silenced. They’ve retreated—out of fear or fatigue. And the generation that once shaped nations through dialogue now watches silently as the future is built on digital noise.
India’s political consciousness has shifted dramatically—and dangerously. The consequences, I fear, will be irreversible.
The Food Truck Fantasy
Every street corner now has a food truck. Some run by the unskilled, some by college graduates. Borrow some money from your parents, paint a van, hire cheap labour, and start serving food that’s barely edible. The goal? Not to feed people—but to become a millionaire.
But let me ask:
Have you ever actually cooked?
Have you tasted good food in your life?
Have you done the math?
Try fulfilling 100 vada pav orders in 30 minutes and you’ll end up in the hospital. This isn’t “entrepreneurship”—this is delusion.
What works in the West doesn’t always translate to India. You can’t blindly copy-paste models without understanding context. Food trucks here? It’s less of a dream, more like entrepreneurial suicide.
The Social Media Mirage
In our time, there were no shortcuts. No magic formula. No fame without the grind.
Today, post a few flashy reels, chase followers, and hope a brand will sponsor your lifestyle. For a lucky few, it works. But for the rest? It’s a ticking time bomb.
Let’s be clear—exceptions are not examples.
Just because one person went viral doesn’t mean the entire system works.
In life, if you haven’t bled, if you haven’t suffered, if you haven’t failed—you haven’t built anything that lasts.
The Illusion of Instant Success
Life isn’t a three-hour movie. It doesn’t wrap up neatly. It unfolds over decades. Even nature doesn’t do things instantly. A chicken egg still takes 22 days to hatch—no matter how badly you want it in 10.
But today, human greed outpaces biology. Our minds race ahead of our maturity. We want it now—success, money, validation.
But here’s the truth:
Even “overnight success” takes 20 years.
And in those years, you need to commit, build, fail, and evolve.
So if you’re starting a food truck, ask yourself honestly:
Can you serve vada pavs for the next 20 years of your life, through rain and sun, at the cost of your youth and energy?
If the answer is yes—then good luck.
But if it’s just a shortcut, then know this: shortcuts never take you where you think they will.