0:00:08 > 0:00:11Now on BBC News, young adults from Mumbai speak to us
0:00:11 > 0:00:17about their hopes and dreams, in India's Millennials.
0:00:20 > 0:00:23India's millennial generation.
0:00:23 > 0:00:29Over 65% of this vast country's population are under 35.
0:00:29 > 0:00:33They are tech-savvy, mobile, and better educated than their
0:00:33 > 0:00:38parents and their grandparents.
0:00:38 > 0:00:41In 2004, the BBC met a group of children in Mumbai
0:00:41 > 0:00:45who encapsulate generation Y.
0:00:45 > 0:00:48They came from a variety of backgrounds, but they all had
0:00:48 > 0:00:49one thing in common.
0:00:49 > 0:00:50Their hopes and dreams.
0:00:50 > 0:00:51TOGETHER: Namaste.
0:00:51 > 0:00:55We've returned to see how life has changed for them.
0:00:55 > 0:00:58Have their expectations been met, or have their lives taken them
0:00:58 > 0:01:04in directions they could never have dreamed of?
0:01:07 > 0:01:11Spruha, Gaurav and Madhavi are watching the original BBC
0:01:11 > 0:01:15programme for the first time in over ten years.
0:01:15 > 0:01:19They went to school together, and are still good friends.
0:01:19 > 0:01:20Namaste...
0:01:20 > 0:01:22I'm Madhavi, and these are my friends.
0:01:22 > 0:01:26We live in Mumbai...
0:01:26 > 0:01:29I'm Madhavi, I'm 25 years old.
0:01:29 > 0:01:33I was filmed for the BBC programme which was on the lives of kids
0:01:33 > 0:01:39in Mumbai, about ten years back.
0:01:39 > 0:01:48I live in a flat in Mumbai with my sister, mother and father.
0:01:48 > 0:01:50When do you have yoga class today?
0:01:50 > 0:01:54Two o'clock.
0:01:55 > 0:01:56I like doing art.
0:01:56 > 0:02:01When I grow up I will become a graphic designer.
0:02:01 > 0:02:11But first, I've got Gujarati in school this morning.
0:02:20 > 0:02:22ADULT MADHAVI: I live in a different flat now,
0:02:22 > 0:02:23and I didn't grow up to be a graphic designer.
0:02:24 > 0:02:26I am a practising lawyer.
0:02:26 > 0:02:29In the past ten years, I have spent most of my time studying.
0:02:29 > 0:02:32I pursued my legal studies at Government Law College
0:02:32 > 0:02:33in Mumbai for five years.
0:02:33 > 0:02:36I then pursued my masters at the University of Oxford
0:02:36 > 0:02:39in England for a year.
0:02:39 > 0:02:43And now I'm currently a practising lawyer in a mid-sized law firm.
0:02:43 > 0:02:46It was my dad who actually pushed me to do law.
0:02:46 > 0:02:50For me, the choice was always economics or law.
0:02:50 > 0:02:53There was no question of her coming to my business.
0:02:53 > 0:02:58I think, after 12 years she decided that she wants to go
0:02:58 > 0:03:03into the legal law field, and God has been kind.
0:03:03 > 0:03:06Five years she has studied at the Law College, the oldest
0:03:06 > 0:03:08institution in Mumbai, and luckily she got into Oxford,
0:03:08 > 0:03:14so there was nothing to think about or anything.
0:03:14 > 0:03:23It was just to accept, and pay the fees.
0:03:27 > 0:03:32For graduation we were so proud, our daughter is graduating in Oxford.
0:03:32 > 0:03:35So, it was a nice, sunny day.
0:03:35 > 0:03:39We went there in our Indian attire.
0:03:39 > 0:03:47It's a proud moment for us.
0:03:47 > 0:03:49I don't want to ask you any questions...
0:03:49 > 0:03:53I think it's boring for everybody, I get very passionate,
0:03:53 > 0:03:55and I think it's boring for everybody else
0:03:55 > 0:04:02who's not a lawyer.
0:04:02 > 0:04:04The timings are horrible for you guys.
0:04:04 > 0:04:05Yeah, it's a tough balancing task.
0:04:05 > 0:04:09I only get one day off a week, which is a Sunday, but sometimes it
0:04:09 > 0:04:11also happens that I'm called into the office on a Sunday,
0:04:11 > 0:04:18or I'm expected to work from home.
0:04:21 > 0:04:23She may be committed to her work, but Madhavi's
0:04:23 > 0:04:24priority is her family.
0:04:24 > 0:04:26More than half of India's twentysomethings still live
0:04:26 > 0:04:30with their parents, as she does.
0:04:30 > 0:04:34The one thing that I have seen is that the family bond is one thing
0:04:34 > 0:04:38in India that has never changed, and I don't see it changing, and I
0:04:38 > 0:04:40don't even wish that it changes.
0:04:40 > 0:04:43Though we have different lifestyles, we lead different lifestyles,
0:04:43 > 0:04:47we still come back to a family at home, and I think that is a very,
0:04:47 > 0:04:48very satisfying feeling.
0:04:48 > 0:04:50She is traditional in other ways, too.
0:04:50 > 0:04:54Happy to let her parents help her find a husband.
0:04:54 > 0:04:59Now we have started seeing for her marriage proposals also.
0:04:59 > 0:05:02She hasn't found anyone in Mumbai, neither in Oxford.
0:05:02 > 0:05:07So we have to search for a decent boy.
0:05:07 > 0:05:11We hope that, luckily, she gets a very good family and the boy
0:05:11 > 0:05:20lets her pursue her career, also in life along with it.
0:05:20 > 0:05:22Not all millennials in India are as fortunate
0:05:22 > 0:05:24as Madhavi, and she knows it.
0:05:24 > 0:05:26The only difference that I notice in millennials in Mumbai,
0:05:26 > 0:05:28and especially in India, is the social, cultural divide,
0:05:28 > 0:05:35the most important thing being the economic divide.
0:05:45 > 0:05:48Hello, my name is Sagar, I am 11 years old.
0:05:48 > 0:05:56I live with my family, that's where I live.
0:05:56 > 0:05:58When we first met Sagar, he was living with his family under
0:05:58 > 0:06:01tarpaulin on the side of the street.
0:06:01 > 0:06:03Sagar's parents sold garlic and scrap metals to get by.
0:06:03 > 0:06:13Sagar was determined to make a better life for himself.
0:06:13 > 0:06:18My favourite cricketer is Yuvraj Singh, he plays
0:06:18 > 0:06:25for the Indian team.
0:06:25 > 0:06:34My goal is to be a doctor.
0:06:39 > 0:06:46AS ADULT: I remember I was a little kid 12 years ago.
0:06:46 > 0:06:48We were living in the slums at that time.
0:06:48 > 0:06:50Now, our government has rehabilitated us to Mankhurd,
0:06:50 > 0:06:56on the outskirts of Mumbai.
0:06:56 > 0:06:58Mankhurd Compound is a development of 65 buildings, created under
0:06:58 > 0:07:00the Slum Rehabilitation Act.
0:07:00 > 0:07:04It's home to over 30,000 people.
0:07:04 > 0:07:08There is little sanitation and a limited water supply.
0:07:08 > 0:07:11But for Sagar and his family, it's a step up.
0:07:11 > 0:07:20We have our own home, we have four sided walls, we are safe.
0:07:20 > 0:07:22But this place is where all the people from
0:07:22 > 0:07:25the slums are put together.
0:07:25 > 0:07:27So, all the people from different communities, different
0:07:27 > 0:07:33mentalities come together.
0:07:34 > 0:07:36In the last ten years, things have changed.
0:07:36 > 0:07:39I have changed.
0:07:39 > 0:07:42When I was a child, I wanted to be a doctor,
0:07:42 > 0:07:44and now I don't want to be a doctor any more.
0:07:45 > 0:07:47I want to work for the media field.
0:07:47 > 0:07:55I'm doing a bachelors in mass media, and I'm majoring in advertising.
0:07:55 > 0:07:57It's a huge industry, it's growing.
0:07:57 > 0:08:01It has a lot of scope.
0:08:01 > 0:08:06Sagar lived in a single room with his mother and brother.
0:08:18 > 0:08:20Growing up, Sagar was helped by the Akanksha Foundation,
0:08:20 > 0:08:21an educational charity where he learned English
0:08:21 > 0:08:24and was supported in his studies.
0:08:24 > 0:08:28It's been a particularly hard journey for Sagar.
0:08:28 > 0:08:31But he stayed on the path, and he's had huge struggles and hardships.
0:08:31 > 0:08:35I think a lot of them financial.
0:08:35 > 0:08:41Many of them emotional.
0:08:41 > 0:08:43He is hugely determined, and has great grit and tenaciousness
0:08:43 > 0:08:46to his nature, which has obviously seen him through and
0:08:46 > 0:08:49brought him this far.
0:08:49 > 0:08:52Hopefully, that'll see him much further in his life.
0:08:52 > 0:08:55We were 30-odd kids and only five of us have made it to college,
0:08:55 > 0:09:05and I'm one of the few.
0:09:11 > 0:09:14Sagar has worked in call centres and fast food outlets to supplement
0:09:14 > 0:09:19the family's income, and pay for his student fees.
0:09:19 > 0:09:26I'm proud that I have still not given up.
0:09:26 > 0:09:28Yes, there are days when I want to give up,
0:09:28 > 0:09:31or I don't want to study, or I don't want to do anything.
0:09:31 > 0:09:35I just want to quit everything and start earning for myself,
0:09:35 > 0:09:37and live my life as I want.
0:09:37 > 0:09:45But that's not going to take me far in life.
0:09:46 > 0:09:50After college, Sagar plans to do an internship at Teach for India,
0:09:50 > 0:09:54an educational charity.
0:09:54 > 0:09:57He wants to work in the communications department, and then
0:09:57 > 0:10:01look for a job in advertising.
0:10:01 > 0:10:04What would you say are some of the bigger things you want to do
0:10:04 > 0:10:09once you join the comms team at Teach for India?
0:10:09 > 0:10:12First, I want Teach for India to be on everybody's page,
0:10:12 > 0:10:13everybody's Facebook page, everybody's Instagram.
0:10:13 > 0:10:18Everybody should like it.
0:10:18 > 0:10:21We get more people who want to work with Teach for India,
0:10:21 > 0:10:22show their support for us.
0:10:22 > 0:10:24And ultimately get the support from the government.
0:10:24 > 0:10:27So tell me a bit more about when you get your results now
0:10:27 > 0:10:29and what are you thinking about your internship.
0:10:29 > 0:10:3121st of April is my last exam.
0:10:31 > 0:10:33After that I'm going to be free for two months,
0:10:33 > 0:10:35until my results come.
0:10:35 > 0:10:41I want to do an internship during that phrase, when I am
0:10:41 > 0:10:44waiting for my results, and gain as much knowledge as I can,
0:10:44 > 0:10:54and be with a team and learn how they work, and then apply for a job.
0:11:02 > 0:11:0512 years ago, a short distance from the young Sagar,
0:11:05 > 0:11:09a girl called Shenaz also lived by the side of the road.
0:11:09 > 0:11:14She too was determined to forge a better life for herself.
0:11:14 > 0:11:20My name is Shenaz, I'm 26 years old, and I'm married.
0:11:20 > 0:11:24I live in Mumbai and I have two children, two beautiful children.
0:11:24 > 0:11:34The BBC filmed me when I was 14 years old.
0:11:39 > 0:11:44I went to dance classes.
0:11:44 > 0:11:52Shenaz was a teenager when the famous Indian choreographer
0:11:52 > 0:11:55Shiamak Davar sent trainers into studios in Mumbai to teach
0:11:55 > 0:11:57jazz, ballet and modern dance.
0:11:57 > 0:11:59She was earmarked as a student who showed great promise.
0:11:59 > 0:12:02I loved dancing, it was my career, I wanted to make
0:12:02 > 0:12:07a career in my dance.
0:12:07 > 0:12:17By the time she was 15, Shenaz was taking the lead in shows.
0:12:18 > 0:12:20But Shenaz decided she wanted something else out
0:12:20 > 0:12:21of life, and chose a different path.
0:12:21 > 0:12:23I stopped dancing, because I got married.
0:12:23 > 0:12:28And I couldn't go to the classes.
0:12:28 > 0:12:30Shenaz left school when she got married.
0:12:30 > 0:12:33She was just 16.
0:12:33 > 0:12:38After I left my school, I never stopped studying.
0:12:38 > 0:12:44My husband helped me in my studies, he paid for my computer classes.
0:12:44 > 0:12:47Shenaz and her husband have their own apartment,
0:12:47 > 0:12:50shared with their daughter, their son, her mother-in-law
0:12:50 > 0:12:55and her sister in law.
0:12:55 > 0:12:58It's a big thing in Mumbai to have your own apartment,
0:12:58 > 0:13:01and it's a single room with a bathroom and a kitchen.
0:13:01 > 0:13:05It's very small, and we are happy in it.
0:13:05 > 0:13:08She is serious about providing her children
0:13:08 > 0:13:10with the best possible education, paying for after-school
0:13:10 > 0:13:13classes for her daughter.
0:13:13 > 0:13:16I want them to have a good education, because I have
0:13:16 > 0:13:19left school very early.
0:13:19 > 0:13:25So I want them to study and get good jobs, and be happy in their life.
0:13:25 > 0:13:33My daughter loves dancing, so she might fulfil my dreams.
0:13:33 > 0:13:38Shenaz, like Sagar, has come a long way in the past 12 years.
0:13:38 > 0:13:43Her intelligence and optimism have helped her carve out a better life.
0:13:43 > 0:13:45With the help of her husband, she now has a permanent
0:13:45 > 0:13:53home and her own family.
0:14:01 > 0:14:03There's lots to do in Mumbai.
0:14:03 > 0:14:08That's me!
0:14:08 > 0:14:10Gaurav has spent a lot of time living away from Mumbai
0:14:11 > 0:14:14in the past decade.
0:14:14 > 0:14:16Today, he is reunited with his childhood friends,
0:14:16 > 0:14:22and enjoying watching his young self play tabla for the BBC.
0:14:22 > 0:14:27Sometimes at lunch, I play tabla, an Indian drum.
0:14:27 > 0:14:34So cute!
0:14:39 > 0:14:42I'm Gaurav, I'm 24 years old.
0:14:42 > 0:14:45When I was eight years old, I started playing tabla.
0:14:45 > 0:14:51I used to go to tabla classes for the next six years.
0:14:51 > 0:14:56Not just a talented tabla player, Gaurav was also a child actor.
0:14:56 > 0:14:58But during his last years of school, he decided to do
0:14:59 > 0:15:01something very different.
0:15:01 > 0:15:08Basically I wanted to work for the society.
0:15:08 > 0:15:10There were only two options, becoming a proper
0:15:10 > 0:15:11surgeon or physician.
0:15:11 > 0:15:15That was one option, and dentistry was the other option.
0:15:15 > 0:15:18During my high grades, I was inclined towards
0:15:18 > 0:15:21biology and medicine.
0:15:21 > 0:15:24And during that time, I had braces on my teeth.
0:15:24 > 0:15:28So I used to be frequently visiting the dentist.
0:15:28 > 0:15:32The dental chair, the instruments and all that really fascinated me.
0:15:32 > 0:15:34A degree in dentistry followed.
0:15:34 > 0:15:38It took five years to qualify.
0:15:38 > 0:15:43When I became a qualified dental surgeon, it was,
0:15:43 > 0:15:48for me, of most importance to be a specialist.
0:15:48 > 0:15:51This doctor who runs a practice in Mumbai has become his mentor.
0:15:51 > 0:16:01Gaurav, first and foremost, has joined the very best field.
0:16:03 > 0:16:05He is a very compassionate human being.
0:16:05 > 0:16:07I would like him to get into the paediatric field,
0:16:07 > 0:16:09get into prevention, it get into the government and get
0:16:09 > 0:16:12more policies into place, where we can take this
0:16:12 > 0:16:13to the rural area.
0:16:13 > 0:16:16I want him to grow big, and take India with him.
0:16:16 > 0:16:20Gaurav's plan is to open his own clinic in Mumbai.
0:16:20 > 0:16:22He knows he's lucky to have the support of his family,
0:16:22 > 0:16:28he still lives at home.
0:16:28 > 0:16:30I have a good support from my parents, my grandparents.
0:16:30 > 0:16:40They always drive me forward, and that keeps me going.
0:16:53 > 0:16:54I did a Bollywood sequence.
0:16:54 > 0:17:00Dancing in the dancing studio.
0:17:00 > 0:17:02When she was growing up, Spruha went the same
0:17:02 > 0:17:07dance studio as Shenaz.
0:17:07 > 0:17:10She would have liked to have been in a Hindi movie.
0:17:10 > 0:17:14I'm Spruha, I am 24 now.
0:17:14 > 0:17:17Since I was last filmed by the BBC, I have since graduated school,
0:17:17 > 0:17:25at graduate college.
0:17:25 > 0:17:28I've switched one job and I'm currently in my second job.
0:17:28 > 0:17:29I did my studies abroad.
0:17:29 > 0:17:31I did an undergraduate degree in business.
0:17:31 > 0:17:33I came back after finishing college, back to India.
0:17:33 > 0:17:35When I was growing up, I'd always see things
0:17:35 > 0:17:37happening around me, which was sort of an inspiration,
0:17:37 > 0:17:42aspiration, ambition, that one day I would have my own office space,
0:17:42 > 0:17:47I'd be running something of my own.
0:17:47 > 0:17:50And to do that, it's always best to come back and learn,
0:17:50 > 0:17:54and understand what's going on.
0:17:54 > 0:17:58Another reason is my mum was missing me a lot!
0:17:58 > 0:18:01Spruha's first job was as an analyst for a leading bank.
0:18:01 > 0:18:03Then came the start-up boom in India, and she decided
0:18:03 > 0:18:07to seize an opportunity.
0:18:07 > 0:18:09Mumbai was becoming a space for start-ups.
0:18:09 > 0:18:14Graduates, even people who weren't retired, suddenly wanted
0:18:14 > 0:18:20to have their own ideas, and people were getting funded.
0:18:20 > 0:18:22Everyone had their businesses, had fancy offices.
0:18:22 > 0:18:24And it sounded like the dream to live.
0:18:24 > 0:18:30They made it sound like you can have it if you want it.
0:18:36 > 0:18:39I currently work at Refreshed Car Care.
0:18:39 > 0:18:42We are a doorstep car cleaning service.
0:18:42 > 0:18:47With Refreshed Car Care, you can book over the phone or online.
0:18:47 > 0:18:53It started out as a small organisation, everyone does
0:18:53 > 0:18:55everything, from the top of CEO, all the way down
0:18:55 > 0:18:56to our cleaning staff.
0:18:56 > 0:19:01Everyone has a responsibility to step in wherever needed.
0:19:01 > 0:19:05Spruha works seven days a week, and Sunday is
0:19:05 > 0:19:07usually her busiest day.
0:19:07 > 0:19:12Despite the long hours, she loves working for the start-up.
0:19:12 > 0:19:15Especially the excitement of not knowing what's going to happen next.
0:19:15 > 0:19:18You don't know what's happening tomorrow, but at the same time
0:19:18 > 0:19:24you're also thinking long term.
0:19:24 > 0:19:27So you're not doing what you're not doing, why is it not going?
0:19:27 > 0:19:29There's a constant push, there's a constant rush.
0:19:29 > 0:19:33When I do get time off work, I generally go for a run
0:19:33 > 0:19:35to de-stress, or I go to the gym, lift some weights.
0:19:35 > 0:19:39That's my way of distressing.
0:19:39 > 0:19:42That's my way of de-stressing.
0:19:42 > 0:19:43You guys are moving your office, right?
0:19:43 > 0:19:44Yes, yes.
0:19:44 > 0:19:48We have rented out a new space, way bigger than we have now.
0:19:48 > 0:19:51We got the wi-fi fitted yesterday, so we can start working from today.
0:19:51 > 0:19:53My generation is different from my parents.
0:20:08 > 0:20:10Our generation is a lot more risk-taking.
0:20:10 > 0:20:14We know that we have heavy student loans to pay off,
0:20:14 > 0:20:18but that is not stopping us from taking jobs at start-ups
0:20:18 > 0:20:21or starting off on our own.
0:20:21 > 0:20:24I think that's the way we have evolved now.
0:20:24 > 0:20:27We want to do what we want to do, not something
0:20:27 > 0:20:30that we are told to do.
0:20:30 > 0:20:34Spruha is different from her parents in another way, too.
0:20:34 > 0:20:38She has travelled much more than they ever did at the same age.
0:20:38 > 0:20:43Every year I make a point to have a trip, have a travel plan,
0:20:43 > 0:20:51that motivates me to keep working and then take that time off.
0:20:51 > 0:20:55I think my generation is adding a lot to India's progress,
0:20:55 > 0:20:58by pushing new ideas to the world, creating different businesses,
0:20:58 > 0:21:08creating different opportunities.
0:21:09 > 0:21:11The lives of these five young millennials are a far cry
0:21:11 > 0:21:12from their childhood dreams.
0:21:12 > 0:21:15Perhaps that's no surprise.
0:21:15 > 0:21:19But all of them have worked hard to get where they are today.
0:21:19 > 0:21:21Some come from privileged backgrounds, have studied abroad
0:21:21 > 0:21:23and travelled the globe.
0:21:23 > 0:21:27But they've worked long hours to make the most
0:21:27 > 0:21:32of those opportunities.
0:21:32 > 0:21:35Others have strived just to get a roof over their families' heads.
0:21:35 > 0:21:37Their stories are also the story of modern India.
0:21:37 > 0:21:44The gulf between the rich and the poor, but also
0:21:44 > 0:21:46the possibilities the country can hold for those who are
0:21:46 > 0:21:47diligent and lucky.
0:21:47 > 0:21:50How will the next few decades pan out for these young people,
0:21:50 > 0:21:52and for many others like them?
0:21:52 > 0:21:55Ten years down the line, maybe five years down the line,
0:21:55 > 0:21:57I see myself being settled, having a family of my own.
0:21:57 > 0:22:02But at the same time, I wish to pursue my career.
0:22:02 > 0:22:05Ten years down the line, I feel I'll be the top most
0:22:05 > 0:22:06paediatric dentist in Mumbai.
0:22:06 > 0:22:07Hopefully!
0:22:07 > 0:22:10In ten years' time, I hope to have my own company,
0:22:10 > 0:22:13doing something fun out of Mumbai.
0:22:13 > 0:22:21I don't want a lavish lifestyle, I just want a simple lifestyle,
0:22:21 > 0:22:24where I earn a lot of money but yet lead a simple life.
0:22:24 > 0:22:27There should be peace in life, there should be a lot
0:22:27 > 0:22:29of love and care, support, and that's it.
0:22:29 > 0:22:32That's all I want, that's not much.
0:22:53 > 0:22:54Hello.