'Stop romanticizing poverty-level...': Viral post on Gen Z & Indian parenting divides the internet

A post by X user Prem Soni about the changing relationship between Indian parents and Gen Z has gone viral, triggering a debate on social media about convenience, success and the idea of hardship.

Soni argued that while parents worked hard to build a better life for their children, many still expect them to go through the same struggles they once faced.

'Gen Z refuses to suffer for no logical reason'

"Indian parents are facing a massive existential crisis because Gen Z refuses to suffer for no logical reason," Soni wrote.

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He added that it is "deeply offensive to our culture" that "a 24-year-old will order groceries on Blinkit instead of spending 45 minutes inhaling road dust and fighting a vendor to save ₹12 on tomatoes."

 

 

 

"How dare they value their time over unnecessary trauma?" he added.

'The parenting model is built on struggle'

Soni argued that many Indian parents see struggle as a necessary part of life because they sacrificed their own comfort to provide a better future for their children.

"The entire Indian parenting model is built on optimizing for struggle: 'We sacrificed our whole lives so you could have a comfortable future,'" he wrote.

To illustrate his point, Soni imagined a conversation between parents and their children.

"Great, I will take an Uber instead of changing three crowded buses."

"NO. You must suffer exactly like I did in 1995!"

Convenience versus tradition

Soni also suggested that young professionals are often expected to embrace modern careers while avoiding modern conveniences.

"They want you to be a highly efficient modern professional earning top-tier money, yet also spend your Sunday manually squeezing lemons on a street cart to prove you are still grounded," he wrote.

Highlighting what he described as a contradiction, Soni added: "The same dad giving a 30-minute lecture on middle-class struggle is tracking his own Zepto delivery on his smartphone."

'Let them live in the economy you built'

Concluding the post, Soni argued that parents had already achieved their goal of creating a better future for the next generation.

"Parents, you won. You upgraded the country so your kids wouldn’t have to fight for basic daily survival," he wrote.

He ended the post by adding: "Stop romanticizing poverty-level struggles and let them live in the economy you built for them."

The post has since drawn mixed reactions online. While many users said it reflected their own experiences, others argued that facing challenges remains an important part of personal growth and that convenience should not come at the cost of financial discipline.

One user wrote: "Everything sounds great until Gen Z is asked to move out, pay rent, or build a life with their ultra-convenient lifestyle."

The user added: "No parent has a problem with their kid ordering from Blinkit or booking Uber if they are earning well and managing money responsibly."

"The problem starts when earnings are low, savings are zero, expenses are high, and the lifestyle is still funded by borrowing," the user continued.

The comment concluded: "Convenience is not the issue. Living beyond your income and refusing to change is."

Another user suggested a middle ground between generations.

"I say why don't we get a hybrid model. Take the discipline from millennials and the liberalism of Gen Z. That would make a perfect parenting model," the user wrote.

A third user said the post reminded them of conversations with their own children.

"Hahaha, so true. I tried guilt-tripping my kids but received a brutal answer: 'Don't impose your romanticized poverty,'" the user wrote.

"They have their own struggles, like uncertain careers. They don't need to grind in the hot sun like I did. I built the comfort of a car, foreign travel and their own room. Let them build their own life," the user added.