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21 September,2022 03:01 PM ISTIs India's Gen Z revolution here? Here's what Indians of the generation have to say
Updated on: 14 September,2025 07:54 AM IST | Mumbai
Akshita Maheshwari , Tanisha Banerjee
It’s not just Nepal’s youth that’s tired of corruption, unemployment, and poor governance. The same frustrations simmer within India’s Gen Z, but not all have faith that they can overcome the inertia that comes with hashtag activism and actually step out to bring change on the ground
Sunday mid-day asks Gen Z what issues matter most to them. PIC/NIMESH DAVE
As we enter Shivaji Park on September 10, we hear the protesters even before we see them. Wave after wave of chants against the Maharashtra Special Public Security Bill, 2024, roar across the ground, and copies of the bill are set aflame, curling into ash as men and women raise their voice against what they feel is an “unconstitutional”, “draconian” regulation.
The Bill, which currently awaits the President and Governor’s nod, seeks to grant the state government broad powers to designate organisations as unlawful, under the vague pretext of fighting “urban Naxalism”. Concerned citizens have flagged the potential for misuse of the Bill to suppress dissent against the state and have come out in droves to protest against it. Yet, beneath the fury, one silence stood out: the missing chorus of Gen Z; the very generation often hailed as the engine of change, unafraid to defy authority.
Young protesters (right) Pratham Thool and (left) Misba Idrisi during a pan-Opposition protest against the state government’s Jan Suraksha Bill at Shivaji Park on September 10. PIC/SHADAB KHAN
This is in direct contrast to what’s been happening in neighbouring Nepal, where Gen Z’s wrath over rampant corruption and poor governance has spilled onto the streets after the final straw: the government clampdown on social media to curb dissidence. In what has come to be known as “Gen Z protests”, thousands of young Nepalis have taken to the streets in school and college uniforms, clashing with police, some paying for it with their lives.
The recent Mumbai protest may have lacked the same fervour among the youth, but in recent years, India too has seen Gen Z frustrations boil over onto the streets. Starting with the anti-CAA and NRC stir over citizenship laws, to demonstrations against the RG Kar Hospital rape in Kolkata, to the more recent Maratha march for reservation that paralysed the city over the past fortnight, and the August 20 protest against the ongoing strife in Gaza, all these citizen movements have one thing in common — Gen Z formed the largest numbers in the crowd.
This shouldn’t come as a surprise, considering India’s Gen Z population now numbers 37.7 crore, according to a 2024 report by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and Snap Inc. This is both the largest generation ever to live in India, as well as the largest Gen Z cohort anywhere in the world.
But at the Shivaji Park agitation, we have to comb the crowd to find a handful of Gen Z participants. Among them is Misba Idrisi, a 24-year-old and member of the All India Student Federation (AISF). Unlike many of her peers in a generation that has come to be known for “hashtag activism” or “protesting from home” by reposting about causes on social media, Idrisi has participated in on-ground citizen movements since college.
“If we, the youth, don’t educate ourselves about our country and our laws, then we may never realise that this is unconstitutional,” she says.
“It’s effortless to sit behind our screens in the comfort of our homes and do nothing about things. But what’s happening in Nepal shows the world what Gen Z is capable of. If we want to make a difference, we will have to step out on the ground too,” she adds fervently.
We meet her fellow AISF member, Pratham Thool, 22, who’s also at the protest site and excited to be part of something real. “Even I post Instagram stories [about issues],” says Thool, “But nothing changes if you don’t come on the ground.” “The air is different. There’s a charge in the crowd; you could say they are jwalant [fiery],” he says. Unlike online activism, the stakes feel much more real and immediate on ground. “I feel a little scared even now. What if I get arrested? You can’t feel that urgency online.”
So why don’t more teens and 20-somethings step out to demand change? Thool ventures a diagnosis: apoliticalism. “Young people are just not interested. Even those who are politically active are on the Right. The Left just doesn’t have the same reach because of this narrative that it’s unpatriotic and traitorous,” he explains. He’s quick to add, though, that this generation has its own struggles: “The youth are oscillating between jobs and education. It’s a hustle; there’s no time to think beyond this.”
On the other hand, the Palestine protest at Azad Maidan drew thousands of youngsters under 30. Even the recent campaign to protect stray dogs from relocation saw big numbers. What sets these movements apart? Perhaps it is their loudness on social media; maybe seeing these issues blow up on their screens is what makes Gen Z step out of their house. Plus, a new generation is likely to do things differently. Even Nepalese Gen Z used Discord to appoint their new interim Prime Minister. And once they do, they see the difference. “When you show up in big numbers, you become visible,” says Thool, “People see you, the government sees you. We are the nation that produced Bhagat Singh. We have a very strong legacy to carry.”
There’s an alternative view too — that this generation will show up in droves for Palestine, but doesn’t care about issues in India. When asked about this, Thool is quick to answer with simplicity, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.” AISF’s Mumbai wing president Aamir Kazi, 30, might be a millennial but he has been the generational bridge for many student protests in the city that have pulled Gen Z in large numbers, including the Palestine protest at Azad Maidan.
“The art of protest was handed down to us from the Gen X and the people before them, and we hope to pass it down to the next student generation, but it has been difficult. Even at Azad Maidan, though we saw a lot of youth at the protest, it was a mix of millennials and very few 20-year-olds,” he says. He admits that most interactions with the younger generation involved calls from them asking for the protest’s hashtag. “They would call to ask what the hashtag is so they can put it on their social media,” he shares, “I’m not saying they are not interested, but the hunger to get down on the streets and fight for their rights is lacking.” Kazi doesn’t want to be dismissive but adds that he is “worried” about how students’ rights in Mumbai city will play out for the next few years.
Suhana Saha, 19
Biggest political frustration: Censorship of opinions
Will you vote in the 2029 LS polls: Yes
Can India’s Gen Z pull off a revolution: No, we are too divided
Zidaan Castellino, 17
Biggest political frustration: The lack of progressive dialogue between the people and the government
Will you vote in the 2029 LS polls: Yes
Can India’s Gen Z pull off a revolution: No, Gen Z is not up to date with current affairs, nor do they care
Subha Lakshmi, 20
Biggest political frustration: Red tape
Will you vote in the 2029 LS polls: After seeing the current situation, yes
Can India’s Gen Z pull off a revolution: The Nepal revolution might indirectly inspire us
Aarav Garg, 19
Biggest political frustration:
Lack of same-sex marriage rights and good public transport, and income inequality
Will you vote in the 2029 LS polls: Yes
Can India’s Gen Z pull off a revolution: No, we lack a common cause
Neelakshi Singh, 21
Biggest political frustration: Quality of education and Mumbai’s infrastructure
Will you vote in the 2029 LS polls: I voted in 2024, and will be voting in 2029 too.
Can India’s Gen Z pull off a revolution: No, we are not organised enough
Dhwani Gaikwad, 20
Biggest political frustration: The political and social climate
Will you vote in the 2029 LS polls: Yes
Can India’s Gen Z pull off a revolution: No, there is too much identity politics right now
Can’t take away Gen Z’s lifeline
Arshiya Sethiya, 25, owns an Instagram business
Arshiya Sethiya’s livelihood is on social media; its ban is the one thing that would push her to protest
For some 20-year-olds, social media has become a crucial financial lifeline. When the pandemic hit India in 2021, bringing with it widespread job insecurity, Arshiya Sethiya launched her thrift store @Mumbaithrifts on Instagram as a way to earn part-time income to protect her from the uncertainty at her day job.
Now 25, Sethiya has grown her business to 5400 followers, while also managing customer relations for a social media job. For her, social media isn’t just an add-on; it’s the foundation of her livelihood. But as Sethiya points out, this reliance also carries risk. Any ban, she says, would have devastating consequences.
Arshiya Sethiya’s @Mumbaithrifts page on Instagram
Sethiya is not a very politically active person, but a threat to her livelihood is the one thing that would force her hand. “I am the sole breadwinner of the family. If such a thing ever happens it will be disastrous for me. If I have to protest for my life to be handed back to me on the streets, I will surely do it. If you steal social media from us, you not only disconnect us from each other but also take away our lifestyles from us.”
‘You can still change the world from home’
Anuj Nakade, 28, lawyer
While the country is waiting to see whether Gen Z will ever take their activism offline, Anuj Nakade asks: “Why do we need to?” The lawyer-activist believes that taking to the streets should be the last resort. “The entire point of the system’s promise is that you don’t need to do this,” he says, “And yeah, you can still change the world from home, through the Internet.”
Anuj Nakade believes in following due process, keeping protests as last resort
Nakade does pro-bono content creation work for the Internet Freedom Foundation, a non-profit organisation that works to protect and advance digital rights and freedoms. He also runs his own website nagarikproject.in to support the cause. In 2024, Nagrik Project found and sued 12 states that had failed to meet the Supreme Court’s directive to set up online portals where citizens could file Right to Information (RTI) applications. Since then, 10 out of those 12 states have complied.
“You should only need to take to the streets when everything else fails,” he says. “It’s important to remember that what brings people to the streets is desperation. Do you really want a generation of Indians so desperate that they have no other alternative but to stand in front of an army truck or to face the police baton?”
Nakade also warns of the violent turn protests almost always take. “You also have to look at the violent culture of protests in this country. It’s always a volatile thing. The reason I did law is because I do believe in democratic institutions. Yes, [sometimes] failure is imminent or unavoidable, but you still have to try the democratic process first.”
However, Nakade knows that something definitely is coming. “It’s stupid to think Gen Z won’t march out onto the streets. If the elements are desperate enough, they will. A youth that is promised a significantly lower standard of life through compliance will most likely have less to lose, which means they will protest harder. They will also take larger risks,” he says.
The idea of whether India could ever see this generation lead a revolution is not far-fetched, he opines. “Even the Nepalese youth have been talking about ‘nepo babies’ and their lavish lifestyles for years now. But the ban left the youth no choice [but to agitate]. Within 48 hours, the Prime Minister had to resign.” When it comes to India, he says, “I am very convinced that if censorship goes far enough, the youth will come to the streets. Because what else can they do?”
Even online warriors pay a cost
Shamita Yadav, 24, political satirist
When she was a child, Shamita Yadav’s father would leave the newspaper out for her before he went to work. When he returned, he would test her. “He’d call out the page number and I’d tell him what headlines were carried.” Today, her keen interest in politics fuels her career as the face of Gen Z political satire in India on her Instagram page @the.ranting.gola, which has 13 lakh followers.
Shamita Yadav, aka Ranting Gola, believes that we need to speak to the youth in their language. PIC/NISHAD ALAM
“I saw a gap; there was no one who spoke to the youth in their language. Someone who is 20-21 is not going to watch a veteran journalist. They want something chatpata,” she says. Yadav’s page is full of political content with her own fun twist. “I think I can mix bakaiti [nonsense] with intellectualism.”
Being outspoken on the Internet has a price though. Disgruntled stalkers have turned up at her address, she’s had to fight off several lawsuits over her content, and “my account getting banned is like Navratri for me; it has to happen twice a year,” she says with her trademark dark humour. And her unfiltered content earns her hate “not just from those in power; I get hate from the left, right, centre, everywhere”.
Is the medium powerful enough to drive change? Yadav thinks yes: “Change can happen when influencers actually start ‘influencing’ people, and not dancing on random trending songs. [Social media] is the best fake-news-busting platform. There is so much propaganda out there; this is the quickest way to bust it,” she says.
After all, Gen Z lives online. If you want to change their minds, you’ll have to meet them where they are. “It’s the best place to bring awareness, to let people know they are being screwed over. Platform doesn’t matter, the voices do.”
And there’s plenty that can push youngsters out of their homes and onto protest grounds when it comes down to it, she says. “Whenever we have needed them, our youth have showed up. They came during the farmers’ protests, and the stirs over CAA and the RG Kar rape,” she says.
The issue has to hit close to home, though, and according to Yadav, what will lead us to the boiling point is unemployment. “Take the protests over the Staff Selection Commission (SSC) exams in Delhi. Applicants study for seven to eight years, only for realise that the game is rigged. Something like that causes immense frustration.”
So does Gen Z only care about the issues that affect them directly? “There are two sections. The privileged urban kids are so comfortable that all the world’s injustices do not affect them,” says Yadav, “The rural kids , they’re hungry and their hospital is 60 km away from home. Ab voh dihadi kare ki andolan? [Should they do earn a living or protest?] The ones who want to march on the streets actually can’t afford to.”
Revolution, she says, is a ticking time bomb. “It’s the spring theory. The more you push us, the harder we will come back. We’ve been pushed for so long now, it’s no longer a question of ‘if’, but ‘when’.”
‘We need both online and offline activism’
Aaryanna Malkani, 25, investment banker
In the war to protect animals, Aaryanna Malkani can often be found on the frontlines. The most recent protest she attended was organised at Azad Maidan by YODA and several NGOs, to stand against the Supreme Court ruling allowing the relocation of stray dogs in Delhi-NCR.
(Left) Aaryanna Malkhani
“I have been an animal lover all my life,” she says, adding that she lives with three rescue cats and an indie dog who was once run over and left with a broken leg. She and her parents also cares for community dogs in their Andheri West residential society, Oberoi Springs. “We feed, vaccinate, and sterilise them, and ensure they continue to live safely in their own territories.”
She believes both online and offline activism are necessary. “Social media allows easy word of mouth, instant access, and the ability to reach thousands of people without spending a rupee. But the downside is, it can also stop at just likes and hashtags. If everyone stays quiet, nothing will ever change,” she says, adding, “Online activism spreads awareness, connects like-minded people and gets conversations started. Offline is where real pressure builds and real change is forced.”
At protests, she has seen “people from 13 to 70, including my grandmother who is 75 years old” standing together. The message is clear to her: “If you have knowledge, it’s your responsibility to educate others, to create awareness, and to make sure the truth is heard.”
When laws exist, but not to protect you
Sananda Sur, 20, Law student
The RG Kar rape case in 2024 sparked massive student protests statewide in West Bengal
The brutality of the RG Kar rape case in West Bengal in August 2024 led to national outrage and sparked one of the biggest youth protests in the country in recent times, drawing thousands of students. One of them is Sananda Sur, a Law student who also believes that sometimes people power is what it takes to get justice. “Our Indian Constitution is colossal with laws aplenty. However, they are not enforceable at all against a person of power, influence, or authority. That’s when we protest,” she says.
Sananda Sur’s slogan in Bengali: “If there’s no justice, our roars will be more violent”
Sur firmly states that it is the fundamental duty, as well as a right of citizens to put up resistance against social injustices. “If you don’t stand up, how will the people sitting in their high chairs hear your dissent?” she asks. “If we just put a WhatsApp status stating that we want justice, it doesn’t affect anyone. If you want real justice and change, you have to revolt in front of everyone.”
Nevertheless, social media remains a crucial tool to mobilise movements, she says. “Social media has become crucial to communicate with people to gather for protests. If you take that away, you also take away our right to dissent.”
Could India ever witness a revolution of the youth like Nepal did? “I don’t know about India, but there will definitely be one in West Bengal. When corruption is rotting in every sector — welfare, employment, education, politics — the frustration of the youth will pour out on the streets.”
Inputs by Arpika Bhosale
The tragedy of today’s activism
Chinmoy Chakraborty, 60, writer
At 60 years old, Chinmoy Chakraborty was a leading organiser for the protest rally over the 2024 RG Kar rape case, among other issues in Chandannagar, a city near Kolkata. “It was a spontaneous reaction; people poured onto the streets, from students to elders.” He noticed that due to the nature of the case, most of the crowds in the protest were students, especially girls.
Chinmoy Chakraborty
As for youths who stay out of the rallies, he views them with empathy. “In our times, we knew that protesting would not impact our jobs and education. Today, students have realised that they may not find any employment due to their protests.” He narrates a shocking instance from the RG Kar protest scene. “When the protests were going on, some of the girls had received rape threats from unknown callers. But they never faltered in their fight for justice. They showed up the next day.” And that’s where his empathy ends.
“When the police and the state acts as an instrument to agitate its citizens and peaceful protest rallies, is your online activism satisfactory?” “The tragedy is that we still fight regionally amongst ourselves for the youth to unite in their voices. That trend of coming to the streets has unfortunately disappeared,” he signs off.
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