There comes a time in the life of every average teenager when he or she has to make some very tough and life changing decisions in different shapes or forms. Problems may vary from region to region, from caste to caste and from person to person. But what every teenager has in common is the problem he or she faces whilst filling the university forms, not knowing what to pursue as his or her professional career.

Almost all our lives we study various subjects, go through countless books, consult many professors and take quite a handful of tests but when it comes to deciding our future, most of us snap. Even after spending 15 long years in schools and colleges, every other student goes through a phase when his mind itself plays mind games, troubling the very soul of the student and creating doubts within him.

The students from Pakistan, however, have to face a rather odd problem. Almost every Pakistani is raised in a very different environment from the rest. Ever since their birth, the thought of them becoming doctors or engineers is installed in their minds. So, when they go through what every other student goes through in their teens, they see things from a different perspective. He or she is faced with the confusion only us desi boys and girls have experienced; “The Desi Dilemma”.  

The child raised in the family of doctors is taught not to like any other profession; for not following his father’s footsteps may bring shame to the family. Every day of his life he has to listen to his parents praising other cousins and siblings who have become successful doctors and complaining about how every other profession has “no future”. The same thing happens if you belong to a family of engineers or politicians.

Many students avoid arguments and discussions and just tick the boxes their parents want them to tick, not realizing that even though such professions might bring success, money and food to the table, it cannot bring internal satisfaction because from then on, they have to do what they don’t like, every single day of their lives, day in and day out.

Picking a subject or a university is tough enough but doing so with all the pressure of the family on your back, is a very dreadful experience. The confused students face an uphill task choosing between parent’s preferences or one’s own interest. The pressure sometimes gets too much to handle, ultimately, forcing students to make irrational decisions which they end up regretting for the rest of their lives.

The parents must realize that the world is revolutionizing right in front of their eyes. What their parents thought was best for them can’t be the best for every other generation to come. The world has developed into a global village now and various new fields and careers have opened up. Being creative and pursuing something new has become a necessity. So, if one’s child wants to take arts, business, journalism, media studies, history, archaeology or pursue any other ‘new’ and unfamiliar career, one should have the heart and the guts to set the child free and let him decide what’s best for him, after all, the child himself is the master of his own doing and undoing.

This desi dilemma which has started to spread in our one dimensional society, needs to be taken care of if we are to progress as a nation. They say that “Children are the future of a nation” so, for once, let the children decide what’s best for them.