Thought Lantern Essay Writing Competition winning essays

 Thought Lantern organized an Essay Writing Competition on the topic - "Voices That Refused to be Silenced: The Power of Expression in a Changing World.  Our winners have demonstrated exceptional talent and writing skills on this topic. 

Top 3 Essays by - 

1. Dr. Arwa Saifi 

Essay - 

Every change in the world begins with a voice. Sometimes it is loud and firm, and at other times it is quiet yet determined. History has shown us that when people choose to speak, even in the face of fear, the world listens - sooner or later.

Expression is more than words. It lives in stories, art, songs, protests, and everyday conversations. A child questioning unfair rules, a writer sharing hidden truths, or a citizen standing up for what is right - all of these are acts of courage. Even when voices are ignored, mocked, or suppressed, their honesty gives them power.

In a changing world, expression connects people. It allows us to share pain, hope, anger, and dreams. When someone speaks their truth, it often gives others the strength to do the same. That is how movements are born - not from silence, but from shared voices.

Silencing expression may stop sound for a while, but it can never erase the truth. Words have a way of surviving, travelling, and returning stronger. A voice that believes in justice, kindness, or equality will always find a way to rise.

Voices that refuse to be silenced remind us that change is possible. All it takes is the courage to speak and the will to be heard.

2. Kiran Rao 

Essay - 

Title - The Power of Expression. 

An entire generation grew up trained not to think too loudly or feel too deeply about power - its decisions, its consequences, its reach. Politics was something to be endured, not engaged with. At most, there was a brief, muted reaction after the annual budget, before attention returned to safer ambitions: careers, visas, exits. Silence felt easier than resistance, familiarity safer than questioning.

That silence, however, was never neutral. It carried fear, habit, and the quiet weight of “this is how it has always been.” Many who left carried that silence with them, expressing belonging only through nostalgia - sad songs, patriotic films, private sighs of longing. But history has never changed because people stayed quiet.

Across time, change has begun with a voice - often trembling, often inconvenient, but stubbornly alive. Expression is not merely the act of speaking; it is the act of existing out loud. When people write what they were told to forget, sing what they were told to swallow, or question what they were told to accept, they stretch the limits of the world as it is. Every movement that reshaped society was once dismissed as noise. Today, we call it courage.

In a rapidly changing world, the stakes of expression are paradoxical. Technology amplifies voices like never before, yet algorithms, outrage, and intimidation constantly attempt to flatten them. The pressure is no longer just to speak, but to speak safely, palatably, profitably. True expression refuses these conditions. It insists on discomfort. It disturbs convenient lies.

I write this aware that expression always carries a cost, and that silence often feels safer than honesty. Voices that refuse to be silenced are not always loud. Some are essays written at midnight, poems hidden in notebooks, or conversations that finally say, “This hurts.” Their power lies not in volume, but in persistence. When such voices endure, the world is forced to listen, and listening is where change begins.

3. Writa Bhattacharjee 

Essay - 

The world has gone mad.

Every day, from morning to night, we are assaulted by a cacophony of voices. What one asserts to be the truth is proven to be false by another. Those who should uphold law and justice mock those who are actually doing so. Compassion is under attack by bigotry, hatred, and intolerance. We feel lost and hopeless.

It is at times like this that we should remember the voices that were raised against tyranny, corruption, and brutality. Voices like that of Mahasweta Devi, who untiringly told the tales of the downtrodden. Voices like that of Dr Jane Goodall, who spoke for the survival of Mother Nature. Voices like that of Malala Yousufzai, who took a bullet for women’s right to education.

But how can we know which voices to listen to? The answer to that is both simple and complex. We all have the God-given ability to look inside ourselves and know right from wrong, good from evil. The instrument within us that lets us do that is our conscience. If we listen to our conscience—truly listen to it—then we can tell the truth from the lies.

We can see it happening in so many places in the world today. We see it happening in India, where community animal caregivers have come together to stand against anti-animal propaganda. We see it in the protests in the USA against racist brutality towards immigrants. We see it in the advocacy campaigns in Brazil to save the Amazonian rainforest.

And those of us who have been given the gift to use our voices to tell the truth, to make others listen—it is our duty today to use the power of expression to stand by truth, justice, and compassion. And to not let our voices be silenced.