India, Aug. 12 -- For a generation routinely labelled distracted, frivolous or disengaged, 2026 has offered something of a counter-narrative. The recent youth-led protest at Jantar Mantar put Gen Z's ability to mobilise firmly in the spotlight, but what stood out just as much was how it chose to be heard - through memes, humour, slang, social media and a language distinctly its own. On International Youth Day today, has the way we perceive the young begun to change? Filmmaker Prahlad Kakkar believes Gen Z has, quite literally, "come of age". "I am so proud of them. The fact that they have shown they have a sense of humour and never lose it is the most beautiful part of the youth."

For him, what distinguished the recent protest was the ge...