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We continue to fail our children — not because they lack ability or talent, but because we, as a society, still do not know how to recognise or nurture aspirations that fall outside our narrow definition of success. It is the year 2025, and while we proudly call ourselves a “skill-based” and “progressive” society, our actions often contradict our words.
Children are achieving incredible things — some even receiving scholarships from the Ministry of Culture, one of the highest honours for excellence in the arts. But instead of celebrating these milestones, we downplay them. Why? Because somewhere deep down, we are still chasing just one version of success: ACADEMIC PERFECTION.
The dream we have imposed on every child looks the same:
A perfect 500 out of 500 in Class 10.
A flawless 720 out of 720 in NEET.
A one-size-fits-all journey toward engineering, medicine, or government services and that has to be UPSC, nothing and less and definitely more and more.
We are a greedy society expecting our children to be calm and composed. And, above all, be CONTENT. Content only with the ambitions we are imposing on them!!
And anything beyond that? That’s considered a distraction. A hobby, A “waste of time.”
But what about the dancer who finds solace and strength in movement? What about the child who stays up late not to revise formulas, but to write stories that move hearts?
That’s the story of Sameer (like many others with their dead dreams inside them) — a young lad who stayed true to his love for KATHAK, despite being mocked by his peers and misunderstood by adults. His dedication earned him one of the 650 prestigious scholarships awarded by the Ministry of Culture this year. Among these, 14 went to Tribal/ST students, 23 to students from traditional art families, 7 to differently-abled children, and 3 to creative writers. And Sameer — he made it. He’s on that list. And yet, many around him are still not proud because it’s just a hobby, a “waste of time.”
“Dance is not a career.” definitely not a good competitor to different job prospects like that of a doctor.
Like many, Sameer also knows that. He knows this may not be his lifelong profession. But it is his aspiration — something he wants to live, love, and breathe for a little while. Just a year. Just enough to follow a dream before diving into academic responsibilities again. And yet, he’s asked to wait, to step back, to “focus” — because the perfect 720 in NEET is all that seems to matter.
At what cost?
As adults, we’re always quick to take credit for our children’s academic accomplishments. The marks, the ranks, the medals — those we proudly display. But when it comes to their dreams, their passions, their gifts? We often respond with silence, discouragement, or worse, ridicule.
Have we ever stopped to think how many gifted children we’ve failed — not because they didn’t try, but because we didn’t let them?
The problem runs deeper than individual families. It’s systemic. We have created a culture where art is admired but not respected, where talent is appreciated but not encouraged. We praise children in annual functions, clap for them during school performances — but when they want to pursue those passions seriously, we ask them to be “realistic.”
We forget that aspiration doesn’t always mean ambition. Sometimes, it simply means doing something that makes a child feel alive. Something that gives them purpose. Something that teaches them discipline, joy, confidence, and self-worth.
We keep quoting “holistic development” and “New Education Policy reforms,” but do we really mean them? Or are we just decorating old thinking with new words?
Let’s be honest — we’re afraid. Not of failure, but of freedom. A child who dares to dream beyond marks threatens the comfort of tradition. And so, we pull them back. We clip their wings. We tell them to fall in line.
But here’s a truth we must accept:
We can remove history from books, but not from hearts.
The Mughals may be deleted from the syllabus — but the Taj Mahal still stands.
And just like that, Sameer’s dance might not appear in textbooks, but his spirit will leave behind a legacy. A legacy built on courage, not conformance.
Only, only if he follows the passion!
As parents, educators, and community leaders, we owe it to our children to believe in their aspirations — not just the ones that look good on report cards, but the ones that light up their souls. Because true success is not just about becoming a doctor, engineer, or officer.
True success is becoming yourself.
These pieces are being published as they have been received – they have not been edited/fact-checked by ThePrint.