When I compare the legacies left behind my parents' and my generation , I lament the sorry state popular culture is in today in India .
They will be remembered for such musical greats as Mohammed Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle and Pandit Jasraj - whereas we will be remembered for Himesh Reshammiya !
They will be remembered for movies such as Mughal-e-Azam and actors and actresses like Prithviraj Kapoor and Amitabh Bachchan and Madhubala - whereas we will be remembered for movies such as Murder and actors and actresses such as Salman Khan and Mallika Sherawat .
They will be remembered as the generation that built up India's intellectual class - and we as the ones who squandered this intellectual capital .
They will be the ones who , bit by tortuous bit , built up India's physical infrastructure - whereas we will be remembered as the ones incapable of even maintaining it .
Sometimes when I see other people my age , I wonder what strange urges drive them to what amounts to literally drowning themselves temporary enjoyment , forgetting all about the long run , forgetting that they have to achieve something in life .
There is no fire in their belly . They have no constructive goal in life , no driving force , no desire to leave a mark on history , to even be part of something which will leave a mark on history . They have no desire for immortality .
The worst part is - they have no spirit of rebellion . My parents' generation rebelled against the old order , and put in its place a new intellectual class . My generation is actively and positively anti-intellectual . They blindly follow the path of least resistance , both physically , economically , and intellectually . Either they have no innate creative power to evolve an identity for themselves , for their generation , or there is a huge conspiracy which includes everyone but me where they have decided not to use it .
This may sound like an old man's lament to many , but I've seen the degeneration from the time when I was a child to the state right now . And I'm just 18 years old . I wonder what further horrors the future has in store .
They will be remembered for such musical greats as Mohammed Rafi and Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosle and Pandit Jasraj - whereas we will be remembered for Himesh Reshammiya !
They will be remembered for movies such as Mughal-e-Azam and actors and actresses like Prithviraj Kapoor and Amitabh Bachchan and Madhubala - whereas we will be remembered for movies such as Murder and actors and actresses such as Salman Khan and Mallika Sherawat .
They will be remembered as the generation that built up India's intellectual class - and we as the ones who squandered this intellectual capital .
They will be the ones who , bit by tortuous bit , built up India's physical infrastructure - whereas we will be remembered as the ones incapable of even maintaining it .
Sometimes when I see other people my age , I wonder what strange urges drive them to what amounts to literally drowning themselves temporary enjoyment , forgetting all about the long run , forgetting that they have to achieve something in life .
There is no fire in their belly . They have no constructive goal in life , no driving force , no desire to leave a mark on history , to even be part of something which will leave a mark on history . They have no desire for immortality .
The worst part is - they have no spirit of rebellion . My parents' generation rebelled against the old order , and put in its place a new intellectual class . My generation is actively and positively anti-intellectual . They blindly follow the path of least resistance , both physically , economically , and intellectually . Either they have no innate creative power to evolve an identity for themselves , for their generation , or there is a huge conspiracy which includes everyone but me where they have decided not to use it .
This may sound like an old man's lament to many , but I've seen the degeneration from the time when I was a child to the state right now . And I'm just 18 years old . I wonder what further horrors the future has in store .
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