If you are living in a bubble, it is about to get bursted: Looking at 5 Biggest Delusions Indians Believe In
India is a land of diverse cultures, rich history, and limitless potential. But let’s be honest—it’s also a land of some pretty deep-rooted delusions. From blind faith in celebrities to the myth that we are this close to being a superpower, many Indians live in a bubble of wishful thinking and selective memory.
This isn’t to say that India doesn’t have strengths—our economy is growing, we have brilliant minds in science and technology, and our “jugaad” (creative problem-solving) is unmatched. But let’s drop the sugarcoating. It’s time for a reality check. Here, we bring you a list of 5 biggest delusions Indians believe in, along with why they don’t hold up to scrutiny. Of course, needless to say, not all Indians believe these myths, but a huge majority does, whether they accept it or not.
India is Soon Going to Be a Superpower
Every year, some politician, economist, or an overenthusiastic YouTuber declares that India is “on the verge” of becoming a superpower. Meanwhile, just take a walk down your local street—you’ll find potholes big enough to swallow a bike, garbage piles that could be mistaken for historical monuments, and traffic jams so bad that even Google Maps gives up.
Yes, India has strengths—it’s the fifth-largest economy, has a strong military, and is making strides in technology and research. But superpowers don’t have mass unemployment, broken infrastructure, bureaucratic nightmares, and an education system designed for rote learning instead of innovation. China, which Indians love to compare themselves to, has world-class highways, bullet trains, and a manufacturing sector that dominates global trade. Meanwhile, Indian graduates are fighting over low-paying jobs or leaving for foreign countries because they see no future here.
Until we fix corruption, infrastructure, and economic disparity, this superpower talk is just feel-good propaganda.
Giving Your Child an Expensive Education Will Solve All Their Problems
Many Indian parents believe that spending lakhs (or even crores) on private schools, IIT coaching, and foreign degrees will guarantee their child’s success. Reality check: a degree is not a golden ticket to happiness nor towards financial stability.
- India has millions of unemployed engineers, MBAs and Ph Ds, because the job market is oversaturated. Plus, most of these unemployed youth are not taught any real useful skills by the educational institutions that would be actually handy for their jobs.
- A foreign degree does not guarantee a job—many Indian students abroad end up in low-paying survival jobs.
- Real success comes from skills, adaptability, and life experience, not just an expensive piece of paper.
Due to our extremely flawed education system, we see youths struggling to get a decent job with a basic income, despite the fact that they have spent lakhs or even millions of rupees in acquiring their degree.
Let’s say even if these kids do land high-paying jobs, what about wisdom, emotional intelligence and life experience? If they don’t learn how to handle stress, failure, relationships, and personal struggles, (which are not taught in schools) they’re headed for nothing but anxiety, depression, or a mid-life crisis.
Everything in Ancient India Was Perfect
Ah yes, the glorification of ancient India—where wisdom flowed like the Ganges, kings were just, and everyone lived in peace and harmony. If that were true, why did we have so many wars, tyrants, and societal divisions? EVen if we go back to the time of Ramayan and Mahabharat, we see tyranny, deception and corruption.
Yes, India had a great education system (Takshashila, Nalanda and thousands of Gurukuls), advanced sciences, and a thriving economy. But let’s not ignore the dark side:
- There were rulers like Dhan Nanda, who overtaxed his people and neglected their problems.
- There were bloodthirsty rulers like Ashoka, who killed over 100,000 people in Kalinga, and many many more before that. (Although he did reform later on)
- The caste system existed, and though it started as a profession-based hierarchy, it later became rigid and discriminatory.
If ancient India was so perfect, why did spiritual leaders like Buddha and Mahavira emerge? Their entire life’s work was about fixing the broken society around them. Although it has nothing to do with Sanatan Dharma, our society has been discriminatory towards one another to a large extent, which is why Mughals and British were able to rule over us for centuries.
India Got Freedom Due to Gandhi and Nehru
Ask any school kid who got India its independence, and they’ll parrot, “Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru.” While both played a role in our “independence”, India’s freedom was not because of non-violence at all.
- Revolutionaries like Mangal Pandey, Bhagat Singh, Chandrashekhar Azad, Subhash Chandra Bose fought the British head-on.
- The Indian National Army (INA) and the Naval Mutiny of 1946 shook British control.
- Adolf Hitler’s policies and the Second World War weakened Britain financially—they couldn’t afford to hold onto India anymore.
And let’s be real—did we even get real freedom? The British left but the colonial mindset remains. Our laws, judiciary, bureaucracy and the education system are still based on British colonial policies. We are still mentally colonized to a large extent. In a country where 90 percent of the population can’t speak proper English, we ignore our own languages but equate speaking English with being intellectual and educated.
Celebrities Care About Their Fans & Are Mostly Good People
This one is almost adorable in its naïveté. The idea that film stars stars, cricketers, influencers genuinely care about their fans and the public is laughable. You can count political leaders in this as well.
- One top Bollywood actor “accidentally” ran over people and was involved in a poaching case, but fans still worship him. It wouldn’t be a surprise if his next movie earns hundreds of crores.
- Another megastar was accused of domestic violence, drug addiction, and underworld connections—yet a movie was made to whitewash his crimes and portray him as a “victim.”
- Most celebrities only interact with fans or even media, when promoting a movie or a product. If you needed actual help, good luck getting a response.
Celebrities, at least a huge majority of them, care about money, PR, and status. Fans worship them, but in reality, they wouldn’t care if their fans lived or died.
Although these 5 biggest delusions Indians believe in are quite common, if we were to compile all of the myths and misinformation Indians still believe to be true, it would be a big list.
