A few years ago, my son became upset with his mother and shouted, “Parents always have to say something negative.”
He was angry—clearly—but what struck me more was his tone. It was no longer childish; it carried the force of an adult voice. At that moment, I realized he had crossed from childhood into adolescence. This reminded me of my friend Ashfaq Ahmed Kashif. Once, when he was upset with his parents, he said, “I’ve stepped into youth, not into a gutter.” I smiled at the memory, though my wife protested that the child was slipping out of our hands while I seemed amused. Later, reading remarks by Qaiser Nizami and Fazeela Qazi about their son Zorin, the same thought returned: whether it is Ashfaq, my son Rayan or Zorin Nizami, all three are thinking in remarkably similar ways. So what has really changed?
There is a difference, but before coming to it, one must acknowledge the common ground. The shared truth is that every generation, in its own time, grows discontented with its elders. Each believes its understanding of the world and the abilities bestowed upon it are unprecedented. This sense of uniqueness becomes a source of pride. Armed with exceptional talents, it believes it will change the world. But did we? Instead of changing the world, we came to be labeled “boomers.” This alone tells us that boomers always exist—and so does Generation Z. What changes is the language of each era. When people speak in new terms, it feels as if everything has changed, whereas in reality nothing fundamental does. Only people change.
History offers clear examples. Those who poured into the streets in 1968 and shook Ayub Khan’s rule were the Generation Z of their time. Similarly, the generation that dismantled years of repression in Bangladesh carried the same rebellious spirit. The difference lies only in labels. Earlier they were called the “angry young men”; today they are called Generation Z. The traits remain identical: certainty about one’s own views and confidence in personal strength. So what is the real difference? It lies in the speed of the age—technology. Boomers belonged to a time without social media or even the internet. At most, a film dialogue by Amitabh Bachchan announced the arrival of the “Angry Young Man.” Today’s youth, however, hold the greatest invention in human history in their hands. Through the internet, anyone can project themselves, amplify their voice and announce their existence. Our children and their contemporaries are doing exactly that.
Tomorrow, when Generation Alpha and then Generation Beta step into their parents’ shoes, they will treat their elders just as Generation Z treats boomers today. This is a recurring cycle—a fixed post around which generations revolve. The actors change, not the script. No deep structural transformation takes place. Let us accept, without entering philosophical debates, that in Pakistan Imran Khan represents Generation Z. Nearly fifteen years have passed since his entry into power—four years federally and three terms in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Leaders close to this generational bracket now govern the province as well. The question is simple: what have the heroes of Generation Z changed? If the excuse is that they were not allowed to work, then the same was true for boomer leaders like Nawaz Sharif and Benazir Bhutto. They faced imprisonment, exile and even death—yet little changed. Why?
The answer lies deeper. Nearly eight decades after independence, we have done many things—but not one essential thing. We never consciously defined a destination and organized ourselves to reach it. Development and prosperity require intellectual maturity—what may be called political consciousness. Our history shows emotional surges rather than sustained awareness. That is why we still remain adrift. One credit, however, goes to the boomers. After repeated setbacks, they learned that perpetual conflict achieves nothing. If circumstances are to change, a new social contract is required. The Charter of Democracy was the preface to such a contract, but in the frenzy of “change,” its foundations were dismantled. What followed is the disorder we witness today.
The way forward is not complicated. Boomers must listen attentively to the internet-empowered generation. At the same time, Generation Z should not entirely dismiss the experience of boomers. Yes, they may seem like losers—but after losing much, they have learned something. Boomers and the internet generation are two wheels of the same vehicle. The problem is that these wheels are not aligned. Their destination is the same; their paths differ. The solution is not to invent a new wheel, but to align direction. This can only be achieved through consciousness, not noise. History teaches us precisely this lesson.
—This writer is former advisor to the President of Pakistan, author & mass media theorist.
(farooq.adilbhuta@gmail,com)
