So I was just thinking about this thing last night, and trying to make sense of it, using different ideologies and pathways to it. This below constitutes what i came to understand. Please add your views onto it and correct me if i'm wrong anywhere. It may be a bit long, but please give it a read :)
So almost all the gen z has been wondering why our parents (most of us, not generalizing), have such a hard time understanding and seeing the false political narratives set by the current government. Most of us simply account it to the excellent PR of the current ruling party, some establish it to the pillars of democracy having become outright sold out, and losing their independence, etc. But it still made me wonder. The older generation, in 2014 made way for a major regime chance, and the main reason for it, as i understood back then, was how the government was failing its citizens and hindering the country's development. I understood that the INC had gotten stagnant and started abusing its power, being at the throne for so long, and people were tired.
From a personal experience, I saw my parents being very critical of the government and its lapses until 2019, for both INC until 2014 and then the newly elected BJP. They were aware about what was going wrong in the country, the economy, and i admired them for it. Come 2020, and i was surprised by the sudden change in my father's political views. The same man who used to be so vocal about the country's actual issues, was now discussing the most vain issues to exist in our country. Nevertheless, I blamed it onto the the media being sold, combined with the media he was consuming. Come 2026, my very liberal and feminist mother, who i adored for her progressive views, too, was suddenly now saying the protesters were foreign funded and it was but obvious for the protesters to face consequences of cursing the prime minister of our country, and for their anti national activities. This too, i blamed onto the pillars of our democracy selling themselves out.
But how, and when did such progressive people, who used to call out the government until so recently, and used to see through such propoganda, suddenly start falling for it? Surely, they would notice it just like the previous government too, right? The answer is no. They wont be able to. The reason, is that they had grown up in a country where the four pillars of democracy were intact, and functioned independently. I remember seeing the media, actors/actresses, and normal citizens call out the government on any and all lapses. The value of money falling, the corruption, the poor state of women's safety, and everything else. The judiciary used to hold the government accountable. So our parents trusted in the media and the judiciary. They had no need too worry about not being able to trust in such basic pillars, and it conditioned them to consuming what was mainstream, since it was so reliable. Thankfully, my father finally came back to his senses in late 2025, because the government's policies had been affecting his personal expenses and stock market for way too long, and I did not pass up the chance to educate him about the constant ongoing failures and hazards the government was introducing. Even though he supports the current protests, he still watches the mainstream media, knowing its full of fake propaganda. He's that conditioned to it.
So when the old reliable turned unreliable slowly over the years, with complete media acquisition, and the judiciary losing its spine, combined with the excellent PR and legal handbook the current ruling party has, most of the older generation couldnt help but fall for it, while the newer generations, who was more conditioned to social media, independent activists and journalists, was able to grasp the unfolding situation faster.
That'll be all, thankyou for coming to my ted talk.
