By Arvind Chaturvedi
When Narendra Modi was of Gen Z age, he too opposed the system when he felt something was wrong. It began when he entered Class 8. Narendra was around 14 years old, which means he had entered what we would today call the Gen Z age group.
Five Days in July 2026 (July 20–25)
The country and the world witnessed many shades of the Gen Z movement that unfolded in the national capital, Delhi. Student protests, their demands, new slogans, banners and posters, memes, their mutual support, their abuses—words filled with affection for some and messages of hatred for others. All of this was truly startling. For everyone, it was something entirely new. The country had never witnessed a movement of this nature on such a scale before.
At Jantar Mantar, there were also many people who seemed to be simply spreading hatred. Evil has a strange tendency to be remembered as goodness. That is why it is said that evil can never be complete, because even though it lacks human qualities, it is still in search of humanity.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi observed all this closely and decided to take a stand in favour of the youth in order to fight what he saw as the evil at work. He decided to communicate with Gen Z in the language and style of Gen Z. The result was witnessed by the country and the world.
When Narendra Modi recorded his first video for Gen Z at 11:52 pm on July 23, 2026, and released it on social media, its message was clear: incidents such as paper leaks and malpractice in competitive examinations are extremely serious and painful. The welfare of young people is the government’s priority, and fast-track courts would be established to ensure strict punishment for those involved in paper leaks and conspiracies related to examinations.
Gen Z responded positively to it. The reel was viewed more than 300 million times within 24 hours.
Prime Minister Modi released his second reel, or video, for Gen Z on July 24, 2026. He began the video with the words, “Thank you, friends.” He expressed his gratitude to young people across the country for the overwhelming support, response and positive suggestions he had received in response to his first video.
Amid all this, Dharmendra Pradhan resigned from his post.
Prime Minister Modi assured the youth that this process of dialogue with them would continue.
Narendra Modi released two selfie-style videos, popularly called reels, for Gen Z on social media platforms. These, too, were watched and discussed by millions of people across the country and the world.
One of Narendra Modi’s defining characteristics is that he does not hesitate to embrace new technology. When some people criticised the movement of his hands in one of his social media videos, a change was visible there as well.
This is not new for Narendra Modi. Throughout his life, he has experimented with new ideas and approaches. This report examines the experiments Narendra Modi undertook when he himself was of Gen Z age.
The future of a nation is built on the foundation of its past. In a diverse country like India—where hundreds of languages and dialects are spoken, thousands of beliefs and deities are worshipped, and several religions and sects form part of people’s identities—the echoes of the past can be heard in every heartbeat of the national consciousness.
That is why it has been said: “Challenges are the adornment of life, and finding solutions to them and moving forward is the true skill of living.”
In terms of India’s political movements, the Jantar Mantar movement has written a new chapter. Decisively, it lasted barely five days, yet it achieved from the Central government what movements lasting months and even years could not.
Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigned. Cases registered against students began to be withdrawn. Prime Minister Modi appealed to society to forgive students who had used abusive language. RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat addressed Gen Z. Things gradually began returning to the way they were before the movement.
Yes, the movement did leave behind one important lesson: there is wisdom in keeping legitimate issue-based movements separate from the category of professional protesters.
A natural question arises: Why did the movement end within just five days—and that too with a gold medal in the form of Pradhan’s resignation?
Before getting to the heart of that question, a scene from the Jantar Mantar protest may make the answer easier to understand.
“Dharmendra Pradhan, resign! Police administration, down with you!”
An elderly man in a wheelchair, dressed in a white kurta and sporting a long white beard, was supporting the Gen Z protesters as they raised the slogan.
Then someone in the crowd shouted: “Modi chor, gaddi chhod!” — “Modi is a thief, leave the chair!”
The elderly man immediately stopped them and said: “No, I will not say that. Modi is not a thief. Amit Shah is not a thief. It is their followers and associates who have brought disrepute to them. Let me tell you again, they ruled Gujarat for 12 years and no allegation was levelled against them. They have ruled here for 12 years and there has been no allegation against them. But whatever allegations have been made are against their followers and associates.”
These words were spoken in front of thousands of people.
The episode is reminiscent of a line attributed to the famous writer William Shakespeare in Antony and Cleopatra: “Neither age can wither her, nor custom stale her infinite variety.”
The reason behind the movement being decisive yet short-lived is not accidental either. At its heart lies a part of Prime Minister Modi’s own life—the period he lived through at an age corresponding to today’s Gen Z.
The term “Gen Z” did not exist at the time, but the energy and aspirations of young people have always existed and always will.
When Narendra Modi was of Gen Z age, he too opposed the system when he felt something was wrong. It began when he entered Class 8. Narendra was around 14 years old, which means he had entered what we would today call the Gen Z age group.
His uncle, Narsinhdas Modi, got him admitted to V.N. High School in Vadnagar. During this period, Modi carried out several experiments with his Gen Z friends—experiments that people still remember.
Ras Bihari Maniyar, who was Narendra Modi’s principal at B.N. High School, once narrated to me an interesting episode from Modi’s Gen Z years. It was nothing short of an act of rebellion.
Maniyar, who had served as Narendra Modi’s headmaster for several years, told me:
“I was transferred, and during that period I had a dispute with the management of B.N. High School over some issue. The management decided that they would not organise a farewell ceremony for me.”
This decision deeply affected Narendra Damodardas Modi and his friends, who were studying at B.N. High School.
Modi’s group felt that a farewell ceremony should be organised with due respect for a headmaster who had spent years imparting knowledge to them as their teacher. They adopted what one might describe as a Gen Z-style rebellious attitude. They gathered their friends, organised a meeting within the premises of B.N. High School and held a farewell ceremony for their teacher, fulfilling what they believed was their duty as students.
For this act, Narendra Modi could even have been expelled from school.
Narendra Modi’s headmaster also told me that when he reached Vadnagar railway station, a large number of boys had gathered there to see him off.
Perhaps this was one reason why, a few days after Narendra Modi took oath as Chief Minister, he honoured all his teachers. RasBihari Maniyar was among them.
Even during his tenure as Chief Minister, he would interact with Gen Z from time to time.
While studying in Class 9, Narendra Modi learned that floods had caused devastating destruction in several parts of the country. Ordinary people in many states had lost everything.
When Modi read about the situation in the newspapers, his Childhood friends group felt that they should do something to help the flood victims.
Modi gathered his Gen Z friends
During the month of Shravan, a fair was held at a place called Gauri Kund in Vadnagar. Narendra Modi’s father had given him one rupee to spend at the fair.
Modi gathered all his Childhood friends, pooled the money they had collected at the fair, set up a tea stall and used the money they raised to send assistance to the flood victims.
This effort continued thereafter as well. When the Gujarat Navnirman Movement began in 1974, Narendra Modi played a significant role in it.
History bears witness to the fact that whenever one speaks of a major and influential student movement in Gujarat, the 1974 Navnirman Movement stands out.
At the time, Narendra Modi was not the Chief Minister. He was a young student leader and an activist associated with the RSS and ABVP.
The movement began in December 1973 as a protest against a sudden increase in mess fees at the hostels of Ahmedabad’s L.D. Engineering College and Morbi Engineering College—from 70 to100 per month.
The seemingly small issue soon transformed into a statewide mass movement against inflation, a serious economic crisis and widespread corruption in public life.
The protests spread across dozens of cities in Gujarat. Students were joined by the middle class, traders and ordinary citizens.
To control the situation, police resorted to lathi charges and tear gas, while curfews and even the deployment of the Army became necessary in several places.
Under the intense pressure generated by the student movement, the then Chief Minister Chimanbhai Patel was forced to resign along with his government, and the Gujarat Assembly was dissolved.
During the movement, young Narendra Modi, as an activist of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, played an important role in mobilising young people and taking the message of the movement to the wider public.
It was the first major and decisive experience of his political life.
Narendra Modi knew that if students’ problems were not addressed in time, they could become a formidable challenge.
Even after Modi became Chief Minister, he kept his doors open to Gen Z. Chandrakant, a young man from the Maninagar Assembly constituency, reached the Gujarat Chief Minister’s bungalow. The staff posted there asked him why he had come. Chandrakant showed them the hospital bill for his pregnant wife, who had been admitted to the hospital for five days. Since he was unable to pay the bill, the hospital authorities had refused to discharge his wife.
When Chandrakant could not find assistance anywhere, someone advised him to approach the Gujarat Chief Minister.
Within moments, Chief Minister Modi called his young Gen Z friend inside and heard him out.
Chandrakant, who was from Hubli, told him about his family and his wife. Chief Minister Modi not only gave his young visitor a letter but also conveyed his best wishes to Chandrakant’s wife. (Fact sourced from Kishore Makwana’s book Samajik Samrasta.)
Modi understands that Gen Z possesses the potential to take the country towards a great future. This is Gen Z—the generation capable of doing anything.
