The college preserved the external appearance of the son, but in his inner nature and character, he did not resemble his father.

In this witty yet poignant couplet, Akbar Allahabadi reflects on the cultural toll of modern institutional education. He notes that while modern schooling preserved the young man's outer polish and physical health, it quietly transformed his 'batin'—his inner soul, values, and spiritual identity. As a result, though the son still bears his father's physical likeness, he has become an ideological and emotional stranger to his own roots.