A UPSC aspirant who estimated a score of around 75 in the recently-held civil services preliminary examinations 2024 had to contend with his father’s anger at his ‘low’ marks. The aspirant shared a screenshot of his father’s messages on Reddit, sparking a discussion on toxic parents who create unrealistic expectations for their children.
In his since-deleted Reddit post, the UPSC aspirant said his father lashed out after being told that his son expected a score of around 75-76 in the UPSC CSE Prelims 2024. The preliminary examination was held on June 16.
(Also read: UPSC aspirant’s mother faints, father in tears after being denied entry for coming late: ‘Ek saal gaya babu hamara’)
Angry at this ‘low’ score – although the cutoffs and results have not yet been declared – the father began scolding his son. “Ghar akar baat karo (Come home so we can talk),” he said, before asking his son to look at one Satyam, who is apparently estimating a score of 120.
“As for you, I have no hopes from you. I don’t think you will be able to do anything for me,” the father goes on to tell his son. “Even today if I study diligently, I’m sure I can crack UPSC. In this paper, I can solve 20 questions and you have only managed to solve 40,” he says.
{{/usCountry}}“As for you, I have no hopes from you. I don’t think you will be able to do anything for me,” the father goes on to tell his son. “Even today if I study diligently, I’m sure I can crack UPSC. In this paper, I can solve 20 questions and you have only managed to solve 40,” he says.
{{/usCountry}}A screenshot of the father’s messages was shared on X, where it has gone viral with over a million views.
Take a look at the post below:
Several people in the comments section criticised the father for his demoralising approach. Many said that Indian parents in general need to change the way they pressurise their children, as it can affect their mental health.
“Heartbreaking man. That too over an exam with such low odds of success. No unconditional love for the son. It's sad, but that's the truth,” wrote one X user.
“This is brutal, it can totally break the mental strength of the kid. I hope wherever he is, he finds peace,” said another.
“Such parents try to fulfill their desires through their children, completely ignoring their feelings and wishes,” wrote an X user named Dr Rohan.
“Such parenting results in neither professionally successful nor socially well-adjusted individuals. People who call it good and tough parenting will only later realise the perils of this kind of cold and authoritarian approach,” wrote Dr Shaurya Garg.