Nats and the protests

Illustration/Uday Mohite

Natasha aka Nats, my Gen Z neighbour, strode through my door. She was fuming, she was flustered, she was wired, she had a vibe that wasn't individual but had a collective vibe, like she'd been through something quite severe, but she was definitely energised. Her usual aggressive nature was on overdrive, but for once it didn't seem to stem from a generational apathy, but from real agitation. She was alive. It didn't need me to get her started. It was obvious that she had been to the protests, she had marched, she had mouthed off, she had memed, and she had megaphoned.

Her rant had a back story. One of her friends had hung herself, "The exhaustion, she felt bruh, and the futility of a re-exam, the fear, the claustrophobia, the closeting up for three years, maybe four, the study study study relentlessness, the dream that she needed to be a doctor, to help people, the aim was to be a cardiac surgeon, a woman cardiac surgeon, which is very rare. And then, that damn paper leak. The system is so messed up. Bruh, it seems like a cliche, to pick herself up again, her parents had sacrificed so much," she paused for breath.

"Dude, you have no idea what it's like to be a frustrated Gen Z'er, a messed-up millennial. We've been quiet long enough, you took silence as weakness. Those ‘uncles' got complacent.

Bruh, you boomers believe that children should be seen and not heard, well we've been both seen and heard. That other cliche - spare the rod and spoil the child, we've withstood that too, the sheer brutality of the establishment's goons, couldn't match our collective frustration and fury. Gen Alpha vs Alpha males, Millenials in millions, the streets have a name, now bruh, and it's called ‘Gen Z' road.

You called us apathetic, stuck in our phones, living our own life, not concerned with the India around us… well, you've seen what we're capable of, armed with our digital knowledge and our daring.

This is a warning to all you uncles, all of you in ‘uniforms', all of you uninformed, all of you looking for your moments in the sun, five minutes of fame, venting your frustration on a generation that just won't listen to your bygone era shackles.

These embers won't die - we're not just looking for resignations, we want reforms, we want results, we want remorse, we want responsible governance. Climb down from your hubris, we demand humility.

Someone wise wrote that we may not be as successful as Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh with our Gen Z revolutions. Well, let's wait and watch.

Give us fascism, we'll give you fury. And don't harp on the past, we deserve a future, you've been fighting your internal battles, we give two hoots about your petty squabbles, your coalitions and you contrarian views. Dude, this is controlled anarchy, we want our futures to have some meaning, we're going to paraphrase Pink Floyd a bit, we don't need no leaked education we don't need no thought control.

This isn't about hunger fasts, it's about hunger. It isn't about leaks, you can fast track and catch the culprit. You think that's going to give us a solution and respite from the suicides - you should have caught those responsible years ago.

It's too late.

We're not going to accept leadership that's defined by empty words, and broken promises, we don't want lip service, we want to be served.

Don't give us party lines, don't give us apologies, we need accountability.

Bruh, there are approx 350 million of us Gen Z and 400 million millenials, we make up 52 per cent of the population. Let me tell you, bruh, we're not going anywhere. You can chase us, tear gas us, detain us, chain us - tell you what unc, we don't care, we aren't scared. we have a condition, a serious condition, and it's this. You can't condition us. I know bruh, you've always called us Gen Zzzzzz. Well know one thing, Baby Boomer bruh, we are Generation Z. We are Zoomers. The only way is up, dude, the only way is up," Nats concluded.

Rahul daCunha is an adman, theatre director/playwright, filmmaker and traveller. Reach him at rahul.dacunha@mid-day.com