Summer Camps or just hide and seek?

When we think of "tough careers," our minds often jump to IITians or medical professionals. The entrance exams are grueling, the fees are high, and the early years demand relentless effort. But once the gates open, the path is relatively secure: a fixed return, a predictable trajectory, and societal validation.

Artists, however, walk a different road. Their struggle isn’t confined to the early years—it stretches across a lifetime. While they are submerged in passion and vision, society often questions their worth when financial sustainability becomes urgent. "What did they really do to get paid?" is the refrain they hear.

The Unseen Differences

- Understanding vs. Not Understanding Art: Unlike engineering or medicine, where knowledge is measurable, art thrives on interpretation. Its value depends on whether someone feels it, not whether they can calculate it.

- Paying to Enter vs. Creating to Exist: Parents invest lakhs in admissions, confident of crores in returns. Artists invest their entire lives in honing innate talent, with no guarantee of financial recognition.

- Books vs. Innate Talent: Academic professions rely on structured knowledge. Art demands something deeper—an unteachable fusion of intuition, practice, and vision.

These differences are so profound that they could be topics for a PhD. How can any layperson, bound by conventional definitions of success, truly answer them?

Why Parents Choose the Safer Path

Parents, understandably, take the easy option. They pay today for admissions, knowing companies will pay tomorrow. Even if a child shows artistic talent, many parents prefer to keep it hidden—restricted to summer vacations, treated as a hobby rather than a calling.

This isn’t just about economics; it’s about fear. Fear that art won’t provide stability. Fear that society won’t respect it. Fear that passion won’t translate into livelihood.

The Bigger Question

So, is being an artist tougher than being an IITian or a doctor? In terms of financial predictability, yes. In terms of emotional resilience, absolutely. Artists must constantly justify their existence in ways professionals in structured careers rarely do.

And yet, art persists. Because while money secures life, art gives it meaning. If anyone looks closely, IITians often use artists reference to pitch their deck to Customers- they even borrow the phrases "story boarding" from the animation industry and "carve out" from sculpting terminologies, Doctors advise their patients to practice art for recovery from surgery or emotional trauma, Cultural performances are promoted to enhance diplomatic relationship between war stricken countries and many more. Yes, art is the backbone for all but it looked upon as something of adding no value to Dollar economy.

I leave this post incomplete here today as I want the reader to decide their own conclusions. I definitely have chosen my path to art ditching the engineering and corporate world after 24yrs of contributing to nothing but sustainable city life.