“Don’t Ever Age” — Why Ageism is the Worst Product of the New Millennium
Why does the society undervalue aging so much? Are we supposed to “wait to die” when we grow old?
I watched Miley Cyrus’s new music video “Younger Now” a few days back. The video seemed to be a take on the ageism that is currently prevalent and is responsible for springing of multi-million dollar industries of “anti-ageing” stuff. In the video, you can see Cyrus walking around with old people and sending out a message of their coolness. That’s what I interpreted of the song and the video. And it made me happy. Apart from Madonna, there is someone else who is acknowledging the evils of “ageism” in our society.
Talking about Madonna, the singer-songwriter-dancer-performer turned 59 this year and that compelled many people to show their ugly side online. The list includes privileged white women too. When I see so much of sexism coming in from these women, it makes me sick and I wonder what made me think western women were superior to us. They, most definitely, are not. The more globalized the world is becoming, the more masks are falling off. If pop icons like Prince could prance around in skimpy clothes and not invite criticism, what made people like Madonna so controversial for simply uttering the word “sex” again? I thought this kind of mentality existed in third-world countries like mine. The election of Trump opened my eyes to the glaring sexism that women practice all over the world. I don’t think Indians should take any shit from Americans on women emancipation; I don’t really think they did a better job at it themselves.
There are countless interviews where Madonna has talked about ageism, some of them dating back to the 90s. She probably knew that’s what she’d be subjected to once she gets older. Who doesn’t? People say it is true for women in the entertainment business. I, however, have seen it happening everywhere, in every industry. Probably, the only profession where age is respected is academics. Apart from that, every other industry prefers people who are young.
There are certain advantages associated with being young, especially when everything is so tech-dominated. Young minds are “fresh, adaptable, think unconventionally and are more sorted about their priorities,” they say. Not to mention their physical stamina, energy and power to deal with danger. They have more privileges at their disposal. My mom would always say — “How do you get so sick so often? You guys are young, you can tolerate anything.” She might not be wrong. However, since we are all so pumped up on artificial food items, I don’t think we have high tolerance levels.
There was a time when companies preferred people with years of experience during recruitment. They still seek experience from candidates, but at a younger age. Our parents never thought of studying and working simultaneously unless there was some compulsion. I began working before I was a graduate. My dad wondered why I was inviting trouble when he was earning and sustaining the family. I had to take the job because it was an amazing opportunity I knew I would never get. And that’s what people in my generation do. We seek adventure, opportunity, a reason to make a difference to our lives. And we question authority. Now that is something the older generation never did and hence, they do not appreciate it. Many of my professors in college would get angry when some students asked out-of-the-box questions. They weren’t used to it!
Unfortunately, there is a price which both the generations pay when it comes to effects of ageism. While the younger generation finds it hard to break the cycle of power which the older ones hold, the ones in their 40s and 50s tend to get extremely insecure about their jobs and more when they see younger people growing in numbers in their organization. You need to see an example of this? The time of lay-offs is the best one.
When companies begin to fire people, there is a lot of insecurity brewing among people in their late 30s and 40s. Most organizations do look to retain younger and fresher talent while older ones are left wondering on ways to fend for their families in case they lose their jobs. Recently, there were mass firings in many media companies and a lot of veteran journalists were asked to leave on spot without prior notice and some compensation. This created an atmosphere of fear, uncertainty and dirty, dangerous politics. Unfortunately, a lot of young employees became a victim of that.
Corporates give you an excellent example of human psychology. Surviving in a corporate during lay-offs is hard, excruciatingly painful and you would want to give up. When you are one among the young, you would find yourself being feared. You would find a lot of people getting threatened by you. They try to intimidate you but fail because intimidation hardly works with today’s generation. We question, demand and if we don’t get it, we leave. And that attitude has its cons.
I don’t wish to lay blame on the older generation for any of it. That is what concerns me. They are victims of ageism. They are being under-valued, under-estimated and taken to be redundant. Since technology is new to them and adapting is hard, they feel they can be easily replaced. Most of which is true. I was told the company would retain me since I am young and can be “brain-washed”. I can relocate, but they can’t. They have kids, families and health issues. And for women, it is harder since there are societal and cultural restrictions imposed on them. Women employees seldom wish to relocate even when they are single. There are safety issues, thanks to some men! The result is — brewing insecurity, jealousy and ill-will among them towards the young ones. It is very natural to harbour those kinds of feelings. That’s the kind of world we live in.
For the record, I wasn’t retained, the older ones were. But, that still doesn’t help their insecurity. I began freelancing, looking for work, took time in finding the right job and went for PhD coursework. Can someone in his/her late 30s or 40s do that? They don’t get that privilege. They got families to manage, limited employable years and skills and are automatically perceived to be weaker. This perception is not helping either them or the millenials. It is terrible for both.
I am 25 and already many of us consider ourselves to be “old enough.” Our parents had begun their first jobs at 25 while we are at a different stage altogether. Unlike my peers, I am excited to be “getting older”. You might say I am harbouring a child-like fascination for a more stable life which age provides. But, I don’t think I’d wish to stay young always.

Being young also means being stupid. It also means never to have those experiences which only age provides, never to see things from a different perspective, to always remain occupied with bogus, superficial stuff. Most importantly, to never value life, love and time. When you are young, you think you have all the time in the world to catch moments and make new memories. Time is not taken seriously. You begin to value it only after you see your children moving out, your health dwindling and your awakening interest in simple pleasures of life.
Do millenials value simple pleasures of life? Nah! Nothing is enough for us!
“Age is your friend, not an enemy to defend yourself.” If you think being young and wild and free is all that there is to life, wait till you see how hard it gets when your parents lose their livelihood just because they have grown old.
How can one help growing older? It is a natural process. For all people say, if you meet a person who never ages, you’d call him/her a vampire!
Is it fair to under-value and under-estimate someone’s capabilities and experiences over something they have absolutely no control over?

I remember when Madhuri Dixit made her come-back with “Aaja Nachle” a decade ago; young girls complained she looked old! Can she help that? Are you gonna look the way you look now when you are in your 40s? In the Hindi film industry, you see male stars as old as 50 romancing younger female actors. But, the reverse seldom happens!

Aishwarya Rai received a lot of flak for choosing to play a muse to Ranbir Kapoor in Ae Dil Hai Mushkil! People go all, “What is an oldie like her doing with such a young star?”. And, mind you, this comment comes from both men and women — for a female entertainer, mostly. Male entertainers get away with it, of course, with a tinge of insecurity, but nevertheless.
I have huge amount of respect for female actors like Ellen Pompeo and Julia Roberts who don’t let ageism get to their heads. It is increasingly difficult for women to do that, even if you are not an entertainer. I will turn 30 in 5 years and I am excited! It is really hard being a millenial and acting cool and chic all the time. I can’t wait to get older, and less stupider (if not all matured).
As long as you have ageism prevailing, you will see increased intolerance in jobs and clouds of insecurity which can have detrimental repercussions on everyone.
Ageing isn’t bad; it is as natural as periods or sex or having kids or dying. It is not fair to punish someone, to not play their music on radio and fire them for their age or laugh at them for being adventurous. You can’t stop time, you adapt to it. And that is true of all living and non-living entities. Everything ages! Being forever young is not just a myth, it is highly unnatural!
