‘Indian Millennials’: What being a Millennial means to the Akashs, Sameers, and Siddharths of India

Akash, Sameer, and Siddharth (played by Aamir Khan, Saif Ali Khan, and Akshaye Khanna respectively) in the 2001 movie Dil Chahta Hai became the most authentic figures of a new generation. Now a cult classic in India, the movie was perhaps the first real expression of the desires and dreams of a generation that would later identify itself as the Millennials.

But what separates one generation from another? The boundaries are porous and those born closer to the cut-off years are also likely to find similarities with the generation preceding or following them. Besides the year they were born, how does a person identify with a generation? The markers are quite arbitrary but mostly have to do with coming of age in a certain cultural, social, and political climate. Simply put, the reason why we mostly befriend and fall in love with members of our own generation is that we share similar similar experiences growing up and therefore, our anxieties about the present and the future are similar too. To put numbers to the name, the Millennial generation spans from 1977 to 1997. It is also the topic of interest in AM Gautam’s debut nonfiction book Indian Millennials: Who Are They, Really?.

Since Gautam is a Millennial himself, it...

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