When The Whip Turned Into A Ribbon!!!

On my way to Chandigarh on a cool Monday morning , I was listening to the radio while we were stuck in a jam ..exasperating!!! May I add that the radio has to be on all the time and that has been the case with me for years..in Kenya it used to be BBC music or the local FM stations most of the time but Binaca Geet Mala on Ceylon Radio was a favourite time spent with Amin Sayani.
Anyway getting back to the present, I was tuned in at one point to Suhana Safar with Annu Kappor who supplies some interesting titbits about stars, singers , directors and all associated with films from the past mostly. Today his subject was the Journey of Raj Kapoor… Hailing from such a renowned family and sion of the hugely statutured Prithviraj Kapoor, he apparently was not given any leverage by his father ..no silver spoon, nothing came easily on a plate for him. When he expressed his desire to join theatre and films, he was given the job of a “mazdoor” at Prithviraj Theatres by his father so that he would learn to start from the bottom and struggle his way up… That was his fathers way of teaching him to value what lay around him.
It got me thinking…most parents of our generation and especially the one before us, swore by this method as being theoretically the perfect way to nurture our kids and ready them for inevitabilities. The older generation definitely wielded a whip and ensured their offspring was never pampered .. In fact most of them Instilled a sence of awe in their children to the extent of being terrorized by that stiff upper lip, snarl or even the crooked disapproving glare they dealt from the corner of their eye which was enough to send the youngsters scuttling to do their bidding. In fact why youngsters.. We all respected that power till the end of their days.. Never questioning, refuting….doubting plenty but never retaliating!!
Which brought my thoughts to the big question.. Why dos our next Gen not empathize with this method of parenting?? What is it about the youngsters today that prevents them from accepting strictness from parents who also seek to deal what they have been dealt particularly the ones that worked in their favor, making them unspoilt , resilient, tolerant, hard working, non cribbing, accepting, patient, appreciative of the niceties in life without ever taking them for granted!!
How many of you have tried to reason with today’s Gen about not buying that ultra expensive electronic toy that you can’t afford and rather enjoy the crafted one made painstakingly by a woodwork artisan.
How many have attempted to reason with this Gen that they were too young to demand bikes and cars but should rather cycle their way around thereby getting the exercise that today’s couch potato kids lack…their only muscle in use being that of their thumbs!!
How many have tried to refuse to buy mobiles for their eight year olds and have been faced with a foot stomping tantrum amidst bursts of hate and ranting about how other parents are so much nicer to their children versus your “soutela ” treatment!!!
How many fathers have tried to induct their first born son into the family business and suggested that he must also begin at the bottom rung in order to learn the finer nuances of business but have instead been faced with indignation and contempt for treating them at the onset as a mere employee instead of the future “maalik ” of said business house!!!
If Raj Kapoor and many such successful celebrities, industrialists, artists etc who have made a respected standing in society today with their hard work and consistency, can accept their meagre beginnings and instead of treating it like an insult, turn it into their biggest strength, learning to rise from the ashes like the Phoenix why can’t the new generation which is much smarter than we were and have more resources then anyone before them also respect their roots and elders..accepting some of the traditional methods with an open heart and merge the old with the new to shake the perfect cocktail of success!!!