It was midnight of 15th August 1947, India became Independent from the 200 years of British Colonial Rule. We became free from the deadly years of Torture, Massacre, Loot, Murders, Injustice, Prejudice and many words which were never written nor spoken. ‘Thanks’ is not the word to describe what we owe to the freedom fighters, martyrs and the million people who lived, killed and sacrificed during the centuries, that changed India’s destiny. We commemorate them on every 15th day of August. Indians will celebrate their 69th Independence Day this year.
Glimpses Of How Indians Today Enjoy Their Independence:
- Independence Songs: Loud Speakers play patriotic songs at every other Private/Government Organisations, Radio and Institutions. Forget about the strong message behind the songs, hardly few hear them, as they have their own hands free and modern ‘Dhinchak’ songs!
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- Unique Dress Code: Tricolour to be precise, is instructed to students. Either to form a huge live poster of our national flag or to perform a dance on a patriotic song playing in the background. What to do? We need a Competition, a small Media Coverage and it has been followed since decades. Right? Just for fun, check the people around you today when you go out. You will see people wearing white clothes, some orange and some blue as well.
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- On Social Media: Every other person on your friendlist changes their Profile picture. Unique thing here is they have one thing in common: The Tricolour Flag! Pictures of painted tricolour with different designs on faces explodes the timelines. Ek Like to Banta Hai!
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- Selfie Mania: Not to forget the Selfie Mania, with office/school/college Independence decoration in the backdrop! Celebrating Independence Day/Feeling Patriotic/Having Fun with tagged friends is all Temporary Patriotism!
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- Official Holiday: Wow, Indian Independence is a declared official Holiday. Let’s celebrate with drinks, outings, party together with family and friends. Who will attend the morning ceremony yaar? It’s just speech, prize distribution, dances that’s all. Correct, we shouldn’t waste our time rather utilize it in spending time with the loved ones.
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- Patriotism with Flags: Millions of National Flags of various sizes made of plastic/paper are distributed across India to feel the patriotism and show our love towards the country.
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What We Indians Really Forget To Do?
- Sharing Freedom stories: First and foremost, feeling Proud of Being An Indian! It doesn’t come just by posting online: Feeling Proud! It comes from knowing the history, what the freedom struggle was, by sharing the heroic stories. Just don’t blame the government, ask yourself what are we doing for our nation?
- Thanking The martyrs: Freedom fighters/martyrs/soldiers who fought can’t be personally thanked for what they sacrificed but can be respected through reading/sharing about them. By being Thankful to the current Defense system and politicians who still keep the country independent from invading.
- Flags for Pride: Flags are the symbol of National Pride. Distributing, attaching it to your dress or weaving it for hours and then being irresponsible enough to throw it away is dishonourable. If bought, flags should be respected by keeping it above the ground level maintaining its status and power.
- Teach the Young about Freedom: Schools/Organisations/Institutes celebrate Independence with speeches, songs, March Past but why not short plays or real documentaries shown to children/students who are the future of India? Precisely, we should tell them the stories of how we achieved The Great Indian Independence and we need to maintain it.
This might not sound cool, I may be appearing as a boring lecturer but this is the reality. What we Indians do to celebrate Independence is just show off, waste of money and disrespect of time. Let’s share the patriotism of people lived back in freedom fighting tenure, let’s not just talk about Mahatma Gandhi or Bhagat Singh, let’s talk about the unsung warriors, let’s think logic and do something which is utilitarian every 15th August and see Happy Days beginning.
Happy Sixty-Ninth Indian Independence Day to every Indian living in this world!
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