Staying Alive

Growing up in the '60s, Rana and his wife Mithu, 38, were very much a part of the 'in' crowd, indulging in wild escapades, experimenting with hard drugs and alcohol. The heady lifestyle continued till their first child was born. "We thought we could do anything and get away with it," says Mithu. Admits Rana: "We still indulge in a few excesses from past 'smoky pastures' but are very careful when the children are around. "

 According to the couple, who still enjoy having crazy parties, listening to Grateful Dead and Traffic and yearn at times for days that have passed, one can't really break the system. "Otherwise it'll kick you so hard that you won't know what hit you," says Rana. But, adds Mithu: "We give our children as much information as we can because it would be wrong to shield them like our parents did. Ultimately, we have to conform for the sake of the children." Adds Rana: "With our kind of past we are still different in that we give our children a well-rounded perspective of life, candid choices and above all, a more interesting, happening childhood."

Allahabad-based musician and Rock Street Journal publisher Amit Saigal, 33, and his wife Shena, 30, promise more freedom and space for their two-month-old daughter. "I had a lot of independence from pretty conservative parents. That taught me not to abuse freedom. Also, unlike our parents, we are more aware of what goes down. So the checks are in place if my child thinks she can hoodwink us." Amit doesn't have a problem smoking grass or hash before his children. "I think the message that'll go out is that there's no big deal to it." What worries Amit is the quality of education his kids will get. "We've been looking at a completely radical way of bringing up our child. Our system doesn't allow you to grow." And if the system won't allow it, he is seriously planning to start an educational institution with a difference. The nonconformist in Amit is still trying to break the system.