They have an identity and they are not afraid to flaunt it. Anger against injustice is peaking. Inspired by thought provoking Bollywood films like Rang de Basanti and Lage Raho Munnabhai that have struck a chord with the public conscience, India's youth have no qualms about seeking a change instead of lamenting the lethargy in the system. Nowhere is it more in evidence than in this response: if any of the youth gets a chance to become prime minister of India, firing corrupt ministers is high on the agenda (at 37 per cent) followed by building primary schools, better infrastructure and unbiased handling of religious fundamentalists. In mini-metros, large recruitment centres for Generation Next in politics, an even higher percentage, 44 per cent, wants to fire corrupt ministers.

India's youth don't just want to sit back and be the angry young men and women. They want to participate in creating a blueprint for a progressive nation-which is amplified in the concerns of the two activists, who have made it to our achievers list this year. "There has been a steady shift towards shaping the conscience of society. People just don't want to be trampled upon, they want to make an effort to correct the system," says Magsaysay award winner Arvind Kejriwal, who started Parivartan, a Delhi based citizens' movement trying to ensure accountable governance. "It's about time that we took matters in our own hands. If we don't start the process of change, it's never going to happen," believes Thoiba Singh, 25, a professional footballer for Hindustan Football Club in Delhi who is now preparing for the UPSC examination.

POLL

In God's Name They are as devout as they are believers in a secular lifestyle Do you think there should be a uniform civil code for all religions? Yes 83 No 16 Do you think it's correct to bring down illegally constructed places of worship? Yes 47 No 50 Should religious processions be banned? Yes 44 No 54 Would you take into account the religion of a person when you consider giving him tenancy rights? Yes 30 No 69 Would you change your religion to marry the person you love? Yes 27 No 70 All figures in per cent. Rest: Don't know/Can't say How often do you visit a place of worship? Daily 22 Once a week 43 Once in 2-3 months 16 Rarely 12 65% agree that a person's physique makes him or her fashionable. Do you know any other Indian language apart from your mother tongue? Yes 69 No 30 Which of these best applies to your mother tongue? I can read, write and speak it 94 I can read and speak it 2 I can speak it 4 I can only understand it 0 I do not know it 0 In the predominantly Hindi-speaking North zone, 58 per cent of respondents know no other Indian language than their mother tongue while 37 per cent of youth in Hyderabad have picked up a foreign language. All figures in per cent. Rest: Don't know/Can't say Justice for All A chalta-hai attitude has given way to intolerance towards corruption Should there be reservations for OBCs in educational institutions? Yes 51 No 47 All figures in per cent. Rest: Don't know/Can't say How often do you base your decisions on the experiences of your peer group? Always 23 Occasionally 34 Sometimes 35 If you become prime minister, which task would you take up first? Fire corrupt ministers 37 Build schools in villages 20 Strengthen infrastructure 15 Abolish quotas 9 Unbiased handling of religious fundamentalists 4 Lucknow youth (65 per cent) are most intolerant towards corruption Do you think pub culture is in line with Indian values? Yes 32 No 64 Made in India The notion of tradition and sharam is deeply ingrained Do you think it's all right to smoke or drink with parents? Yes 4 No 95 Do you think it's all right for women to smoke? Yes 8 No 90 Predictably, taboos are especially strong in the mini-metros, with as many as 97 per cent opposed to both the statements. The number of women against women smoking outnumbers men by 6 per cent. Idol Worship The top icon is a repeat of last year, though the figure has come down by 10 per cent this time Who would you say is an Indian youth icon? Sachin Tendulkar 14 Amitabh Bachchan 12 Sonia Gandhi 8 Sania Mirza 7 Atal Bihari Vajpayee 7 L.N. Mittal 6 Aishwarya Rai 5 Shah Rukh Khan 5 Abhishek Bachchan 4 Anil Ambani 4 Manmohan Singh 4 Money Talks Money is a major determinant, even in decisions such as living in Money is a very important source of happiness. Do you.... Strongly agree 45 Somewhat agree 39 Somewhat disagree 8 Strongly disagree 7 While Ludhiana had the highest number strongly agreeing (73 per cent), Bhubaneswar had most strongly disagreeing (21 per cent). Would you stay with the person you love before marriage? Yes 32 No 65 The number of people saying yes has risen by 4 per cent since last year. But even now, while 41 per cent of men are open to the idea, as many as 75 per cent women are against it. 75% of those in mini-metros think life has improved, against just 57 per cent in the metros

There is a lot they are already proud of as a nation. And a lot they are not. So while a thumping majority feels that India's growing population is detrimental to its economic growth, the state-sponsored attempts to foster unity-in-diversity have clearly paid off. Almost 70 per cent are bilingual, which symbolises greater integration. A large majority (83 per cent) feel there should be a uniform civil code for all religions, while just a little over half of those surveyed agree that there should be reservations for Other Backward Castes (OBCs) in educational institutions.

The emergence of new lifestyles, changing family structures and varying attitudes towards work and worship show that India's youth are not skeptical but are seeking refuge in religion. While two in every three respondents visit a place of worship once a week or more often, more than 50 per cent of the youth feel religious processions should not be banned. Even as two-thirds feel inter-religion marriages are acceptable-the youth in South are more conservative than their counterparts in the rest of the country-so innate is their faith that only one-fourth of those polled say they are willing to convert when it comes to marrying the person they love.

But when it comes to living with the person they love before tying the knot, the 2007 findings show a positive swing. The number of people saying yes has risen by 4 per cent since last year's survey. Take Nikhil Deshpande, 26, an assistant media director who has been living with his theatre-artist girlfriend Menaka Neotia, 28, for the past one year in Mumbai. Marriage is a possibility but certainly not a priority for them now.

Convenience is also another cause for live-in relationships thriving.

Delhi-based model Vandana Rao, 22, moved to the capital from Bangalore last year. Steadily she attracted not only plum ramp assignments but also the fancy of a broodingly handsome co-model. Love (or "something close to it") blossomed and she promptly moved in with him. "We are both focusing on our careers and marriage is nowhere on the radar," says Rao who is from an orthodox family. Psychologist Sanjay Chugh says this generation is taking some time to sort themselves out rather than acting impulsively.

This reluctance to get married is more due to the change in the definition of financial freedom. The survey found that just under half strongly agree that money is a very important source of happiness. A little over 60 per cent admit that their present standard of living is better than what it was three years ago. The figure rises to almost 75 per cent in mini-metros emphasising this fact. But for all the modern perks that money brings, Indian youth are very insistent on keeping their value system intact. This is reflected in a surprising 64 per cent feeling that pub culture is not in line with Indian morality.

This generation (almost 95 per cent) also respects its elders enough to not smoke or drink in front of them-they also don't think it's cool for women to smoke. When it comes to women, Indian youth are still bound by convention. Surprisingly, when it comes to the moral code, the number of women against women smoking outnumbers men by 6 per cent.

At the same time, they do want it all. The youngsters (mostly men) are narcissistic enough to believe that a good physique is necessary to make a person fashionable and presentable, more so in mini-metros. Exemplifying the new malleable mores on which they were raised by their parents, India's young people are thinking, deciding and experiencing for themselves, with just 35 per cent of those polled only "sometimes" basing their decisions on the experiences of their peer group.

What better sign of maturity do we need? Oozing confidence and self-possession, India's youth have understood that there is no point growing old without really growing up.

Index