What really bothers me is this constant, invisible pressure to live a life that’s not even mine. I feel like I was handed a script the moment I was born, written by society, edited by relatives, and directed by my parents. And I’m expected to perform flawlessly, without question. Like a kathputli (a puppet on strings) my every move feels dictated: what to study, how to behave, when to smile, when to marry, how to look “presentable,” even how to feel. It’s exhausting.
What bothers me is that this isn’t just my story, it’s the quiet pain of so many people in this generation. We’re suffocating inside homes that are supposed to be our safe spaces. Toxic parenting masked as “concern,” emotional manipulation disguised as “tradition,” and the subtle but deadly dismissal of mental health as just “overthinking.” Parents say they sacrificed everything for us, but sometimes I wonder, was that sacrifice ever about love or about control? Was it really for us, or for the version of us they had in mind?
It bothers me that you can’t just be. You can’t say, “I don’t want to get married,” or “I don’t believe in the 9–5 hustle,” or “I’m not okay today” without judgment, mockery, or guilt-tripping. We’re told to follow our dreams, and then when we try, we’re told to stop being selfish. It’s a trap.
What also breaks me is the state of the world around us. Crimes are everywhere, against women, against children, against anyone who dares to be different. There’s this constant hum of fear and helplessness, like we’re all walking on thin ice. It’s hard to stay hopeful when humanity feels so lost. We scroll through Instagram and see smiling faces, aesthetic lives, “living the dream”, but we’re all quietly battling anxiety, burnout, trauma, identity confusion, and loneliness. It’s like we’re all part of a beautiful lie.
And then comes marriage. The sacred, suffocating ideal. Especially for women, it’s not a choice, it’s a deadline. A measure of worth. It’s like your value has an expiry date, and no one cares about your dreams or healing. Just settle. Adjust. Be the “good girl.” Lose yourself. And they call that love?
What bothers me most, though, is how hard it is to find your “self” in all of this. I believe our souls came here with a purpose, but that purpose gets buried under expectations, labels, fear, and generational wounds. We’re taught to ignore our intuition, our inner voice. And in doing so, we disconnect from our path, from our peace, from the divine essence within us.
Sometimes I just want to sit with God and ask, why is it so hard to just live authentically? Why are the kindest, most sensitive souls the ones who suffer the most?
But even in all this, I’m trying. I’m slowly learning that healing isn’t rebellion. That saying “no” is a form of self-love. That I’m not here to make everyone proud, I’m here to live a life that feels like me. And maybe, just maybe, that’s how we break the chain. One gentle refusal, one courageous choice, one tear turned into a boundary at a time.
And if you feel this too, you’re not alone. I see you. I feel you. And I hope we all find the strength to untangle ourselves from the strings… and finally dance to our own music.
The Thought Box 
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