Republic Day

I write this article more as a reflection on life and less related to money matters.

Today is the 62nd republic day of India. In a nation with a history spanning more than 5000 years 62 years are just a small drop in the ocean. Today after 5K years of history we as a country are younger than ever. We have one of the largest, youngest and brightest people in the world. Our young today do not believe that they are second to any body in the world and for them India re-emerging as one of the world’s greatest nations is as obvious as sun rising in the east. Please note that the operative world is re-emerging, as we as a nation have always been a prosperous country, except for the last 100 years of the British colonial rule over us. This was the period when our domestic industry was systematically eliminated to make sure mills in Manchester can sell there produce to the subjects in India slowly killing the domestic textile industry. But our country has survived thousands of years and has always risen from the ashes much more stronger than ever.

Let me go back to my childhood when national festivals like Independence day and Republic day were not just holidays to vegetate but proudly look at our glorious past and dream about the promised future. But some where down the line as one grew older and learned about the realities of life the corruption, nepotism, caste and class divide in the society one became more and more aloof to the celebration of Republic and Independence day. The when I started working for BPO companies one started celebrating 4^th of July with more enthusiasm as that was a holiday for me and not 26^th of January, since one is suppose to align the work hours and holidays with the customers in US.

So in last ten years I have rarely celebrate 26h January only once in a while I would fondly remember the preparation one will do in our school to celebrate the same. And on the actual 26^th of January one would wait eagerly for the telecast to begin on the national TV of the parade on Rajpath. I remember I would switch on the TV even before the telecast has began and we will just have the monochrome lines and logos of DD. Then suddenly an auntyJee will appear and make some announcement and the telecast will begun. I would eagerly wait for the tableaus to appear as they were the highlights of the parade, showcasing the unity in diversity of India.

But for last so many years I have not even watched the parade, preferring to vegetate and make maximum of my sleeping hours during the day as I needed to go back to work in evening.

But today in morning at 7 am itself the alarm bell rang and my daughter who is in class III sprang out of bed and headed straight to bathroom to get ready. I was irritatingly listening to all the noises she was making while getting ready. I was wondering what the big deal about school is today. That she has got out of bed on her own without her mother coaxing her out of the slumber.

When she got ready she came to our room and demanded to know why we are not ready? My question was ready for what? She reminded us that today is the republic day and we have a small function in our building to celebrate the same in another 30 minutes and she wanted us to join us once we are ready. With this she dashed out of the door. So reluctantly we got ready and reached down to see what was she and her friends up to.

Once we reached down we realized that the kids along with the office bearers of housing society have organized a small function to hoist the national flag. The security guards of the building came marching and formed a line. The GS of the society hoisted the flag, with beautiful petals showering down as it unfurled in its tricolor glory and suddenly my skin had a tingling sensation on hearing the kids singing in unison : “ Jana Gan Man adhinayak Jai ho, Bharat Bhagya Vidhata”

Suddenly Republic day again meant a lot to me, all the dreams of a nation of a billion people flashed before my eyes. I suddenly felt the corrupt netas and their : “ Tujhe pata hai mera baap kaun hai ?’’” screaming betas were nothing more than bugs waiting to be squashed under the feet of a young marching generation, who will not take shoddy existence for an answer.

Listening to these glowing kids, who have got up early morning without anybody asking them to celebrate the Republic day, opened my eyes. I remembered the words of Iqbal who famously captured the essence of 5 millennium young civilization in his immortal song:

“” YUNAN O MISR O ROMA, SAB MIT GAYE JAHAN SE,

KUCH BAAT HAI KE HASTEE MITTEE NAHIN HAMAREE,

SARE JAHAN SE ACHA HIDUSTAAN HAMARA,

HUM BULBULEN HAIN ISKEE,

YEH GULSITAN HAMARA””

Thanks for reading and a very “Happy Republic Day”.